If you’re looking for the best hotel experience of your life, you might be tempted to increase your travel budget and look into four to five-star hotels. We’re talking about bigger rooms, top-notch services, and gorgeous views. But did you know that it’s possible to stretch your dollar and upgrade your hotel experience for free?
The key is to book smart. We’ll share the tricks for scoring an upgraded hotel experience from the perspectives of hotel insiders and seasoned travellers. Before finding a hotel that goes over your budget, consider doing the following simple and easy things first:
1. Check the hotel via TripAdvisor
It might be a chore to browse review sites but trust us, it will pay off. One site to check out is TripAdvisor. Here, you can read reviews from past guests and look at unfiltered photos from different angles. You’ll get an idea of the different room types and rates without the hotel’s marketing team getting in the way.
You may also filter results to look at properties with specific features, like swimming pools and proximity to tourist attractions like parks, restaurants, and beaches. Who knows? That budget hotel you’ve been eyeing might be the best choice as far as your travel needs are concerned.
2. Don’t limit your search to chain hotels: try serviced apartments
Okay, so you want a bigger space with a kitchen but you’re still looking for the luxury of hotel accommodation. The first thing in mind is to get your wallets ready for a more expensive hotel suite, right? Well, there’s another option you’ll love: serviced apartments.
Unlike hotel rooms that merely look like elegant bedrooms, serviced apartments are more spacious and fully furnished. Like this serviced apartment in Glasgow Scotland, these attractive apartments come with a living room, bedroom, dining area, and a fully-equipped kitchenette. While their rates usually sit close to hotels, serviced apartments give you value for your money.
3. Book through the hotel’s website
While there’s a wide array of third-party booking sites, your best bet is still booking with the hotel directly. You can use aggregator sites for hotel search in your choice of destination and price comparison. But if the rate isn’t dramatically lower, you can guarantee a better stay with direct booking.
Hotels are more likely to assign the best rooms and give better experiences to patrons who book directly with them — a hotel standard that’s been practised for years. So if you book with a third-party site, you’ll be placed in one of the vacant rooms left after the best ones have been filled out. Booking directly may give you better views, bigger suites, and access to exclusive perks.
4. Ask for the best room available
Booking directly gives you a good head start to request things that will make your stay even better. One example is the privilege to ask for the best room in the house.
Don’t give in to the front desk agent’s “all rooms are basically the same.” That’s one of the top lies in hospitality. Due to the building’s layout, there will always be a corner room (which is usually bigger, has better views, and offers more privacy) and a larger bath with two sinks. While they assure you that all rooms offer views of the beautiful lake, there will be ones that offer sceneries unobstructed by trees and nearby buildings.
5. Communicate your needs
Do you need extra toiletries? An extra pillow? More tea bags or coffee? How about a rose petal turndown service for your anniversary? Or maybe a simple request of placing you in a room that’s much quieter than the rest.
Just because the things you need aren’t advertised doesn’t mean they’re going to charge you for it. You just need to communicate your needs and the hotel will likely provide them for you for free.
6. Time your trip off-peak
The idea is simple: low seasons mean the business is slow and hotels serve fewer guests. Since they’re not that busy, the chances of getting your requests approved and scoring the best room are higher. You’ll have a great chance to have the elegant pool and other amenities to yourself.
Plus, the hotel rates are usually lower in the off-peak seasons — a win-win situation.
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7. Tip wisely
Staying in a country that encourages tipping culture? The hotel staff should be your new best friend. Hotel insiders share that if they feel you slipping money in their pockets, they’ll do whatever it takes to deserve the tip. If there’s nothing they can do room-wise, they can offer other upgrade options like late checkout, free movies, room service amenities, and more.
8. Be kind to the hotel staff
My father is a chef and he used to tell us, “don’t mess up with people who prepare your food for they have the power to poison you” (okay, not that harsh but they’d probably spit on your food or put extra hot sauce).
Like chefs, hotel employees are agents of karma. Treat them well, and you’ll be rewarded with a nice room, service, and even access to attractive freebies and upgrades. Treat them poorly and they have a special way to get revenge.
Remember: they know everything about the property, including the worst rooms in the house with leaky faucets and poor views. Hotel insiders even share that they used to “key bomb” rude guests or call your room at any hour and blame it on other guests. So the next time you experience troubles with your key card or get placed in a bad room, recall if you’ve pissed the front desk.
Author Bio: Carmina Natividad is a free-spirited writer who loves exploring the great outdoors. She loves traveling, eating, taking food and streetscape photographs, and simply enjoying new experiences and writing about them. To know more about hotels and travel blogs, you may visit PREMIER SUITES Glasgow Bath St.
