If you are brave, it is always worth trying to call the hotel that you want to stay at on the actual day you intend to arrive, or possibly the day before. Hotels are usually prepared to offer a substantial discount on the same day it is booked; from their point of view, an empty room is just a waste of money. If you are feeling particularly bold, you could even try telling the hotel what you want to pay and ask them if they have any rooms available.
This is a very effective way of going about getting a really good deal on a hotel room if you are traveling to a city that has several hotels, it is out of peak travel season, and you are flexible about the facilities. Just make sure to check that the hotels aren’t getting booked up due to an event or something during the time you’ll need a hotel room.
If you are not feeling as bold in terms of leaving your hotel room reservation until the last minute, you can call the hotel a few days in advance. While you may not get a total bargain, you are still in a good position to negotiate the price; especially if you are traveling out of season.
If you are trying to stay at a specific hotel, then make sure to check out their cancellation policy. If a specific hotel requires at least a 3 day notice for a cancellation in order to not be charged, then this is the time when they will most likely receive the most cancellations. Hotels will then be ready to fill these spaces quickly.
Another good way to use the cancellation policies of the hotels to your advantage is to book a relatively cheap chain hotel room that will allow you to cancel for free up until the day of travel. Then you’ll at least have some place to stay if you can’t find anything cheaper. On the day of travel, you can phone around to other hotels so you can see if you can get a better deal. If you get a better hotel room deal, then you can cancel your previous booking without getting charged; if you do not then you will still have a hotel room to stay at!
Your negotiations over an extra free night or room rate discounts will generally only work with smaller regional hotels; the larger hotel chains have a central system and they will not usually negotiate directly with a guest. Keep this in mind when you are selecting your targets; but it never hurts to ask.
If a hotel has facilities such as swimming pools, fitness centers, satellite televisions, they all add to the cost of a hotel. Consider what you need in a hotel carefully. Do you want to pay extra for facilities that you don’t want, won’t need and won’t even notice? If you are after a cheap hotel room rate, then avoid hotels with the extra facilities as they will almost always have a higher cost.