Friday newsletters always feature luxury travel contests, tips, series or news.
Today (March 20, 2015): travel tip: how to book a room at a luxury hotel at the cheapest price?
When booking a room at a luxury hotel, you will have to choose whether you want the cheapest price for that room, or whether you want to enjoy some extra perks & flexibility. We hereby list our tips to help you save (lots of) money when booking a luxury hotel:
Inspiration to find the right hotel
Tips for when to book
Tips for booking a room at the cheapest rate
Tips for booking a room with (free) extra perks
Key points
Think we forgot a tip? Share your tips in the comments section below.
JADE MOUNTAIN, ST LUCIA
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INSPIRATION TO FIND THE RIGHT HOTEL
Be inspired by our website & blog: subscribe to our newsletter (3x/week), like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter or Instagram.
The Kiwi Collection is a great website featuring the best luxury hotels in the world.
Read the Conde Nast Traveler and Travel&Leisure magazines.
Read Tripadvisor reviews.
Read Flyertalk posts (google the name of the hotel + flyertalk).
Watch Youtube clips of hotels (you can find some examples on our Youtube Channel).
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TIPS FOR WHEN TO BOOK
Do not book too late as the top luxury hotels will often sell out months in advance. Do not count on a last-minute deal (which are not offered anyway by most top hotels).
When you want to save some bucks, travel in the shoulder season (e.g. summer months for the Caribbean, autumn months for the Maldives), but try to avoid the worst months weather-wise as you may find yourself very disappointed despite the fact that you saved a lot of money!
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TIPS FOR BOOKING A ROOM AT A LUXURY HOTEL AT THE LOWEST PRICE
The lowest price will mostly be found on the aggregator websites Hotelscombined and Trivago. These aggregators verify hotel prices at hundreds of other sites (e.g. Booking.com, Hotels.com, Otel.com, Hotelopia.com, Onhotels.com, Expedia, Ebookers, etc…) and show where you can book the cheapest rate.
The member-only websites Jetsetter and the Vacationist (which do not feature on aggregator websites) negotiate temporary, special rates with some of the world’s finest hotels, which can represent a discount of up to 60% (room only or room with breakfast). Membership is free and without hassle (just submit your name and email address). Sign up for the Jetsetter and Vacationist newsletters, so that you stay updated about their temporary offers.
Always compare the price that you found on aggregator or member-only websites with the one featured directly on the hotel website to make sure that it is the best price indeed. Do not forget to click the “special offers” section that is present on most hotel websites (and can save you lots of money).
If you find a lower price than on the hotel website, make us of the Best Rate Guaranteeprogram that is offered by many hotel programs (SPG, hotels.com, Kempinski, Hyatt, etc …), as they will not only match that lower price that you found but often will throw in an additional discount as well (of up to 25%)!
Make use of discount coupons that you can find anywhere on the internet (google the website of hotel name + coupon). For example, Hotels.com is one of our prefered hotel booking websites that regularly sends out 10% discount coupons by email (albeit not for the big hotel chains).
Except for the big hotel chains (Starwood, Hyatt, IHG, Marriott, Hilton), we always try to book our hotel stays through the website Hotels.com and you can read here why. In a nutshell: Hotels.com is not only very generous in matching the best price that you find on both aggregator websites (e.g. Hotelscombined, Trivago) and member only websites (e.g. Jetsetter, Vacationist), but you also collect credits towards free hotel stays and they have always discount coupons on offer.
Sign-up for newsletters of your preferred hotel (chains) or booking website. They often email coupons or advanced notifications when they’re having a sale.
Stay for free by using hotels points and credits that you collected in a hotel loyalty program(albeit very few of the top luxury hotel chains offer that option).
Stay for free or at a highly discounted rate by keeping an eye out for erroneous rates on this Flyertalk post.
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TIPS FOR BOOKING A HOTEL ROOM WITH (FREE) EXTRA PERKS
Some luxury hotel chains (e.g. Aman resorts) will only display the best rates on the official hotel website (so do not waste your time to try to find a lower price on an aggregator or member-only website).
Check the hotel website directly for packages that will include extra perks like spa credits, breakfast, or complimentary nights,
Absurdly, when booking a room at a top luxury hotel, it is sometimes advised not to book it directly through the hotel website, but rather through a Virtuoso travel advisor. Not only will they help you to create unique journeys and explorations in every corner of the globe, but more importantly, you will get free access to special amenities and perks (e.g. complimentary upgrades, dinners, etc …) as compared to when you would book the same rate on the hotel website. This is particularly true for the world’s most exclusive hotel brands. All hotels were you can enjoy the Virtuoso extra perks are listed on their website.
Holders of an American Express premium or Visa Signature credit card can also benefit from extra perks when they make the booking via their credit card travel office and/or pay with their credit card. Contact your local credit card company to find out whether this service is offered.
Elite members of hotel loyalty programs will receive free benefits during their stay, ranging from late check-out and free WiFi to suite upgrades and breakfast. Click here for more info.
Elite members of Cathay Pacific‘s frequent flyer program (Marco Polo Club) are entitled to special benefits (e.g. early check in, late check out, room upgrade, complimentary breakfast) with partners such as Hilton, Hyatt, Fairmont, Marriott, Langham, Mandarin Oriental, Shangri-La, Swissotel, Peninsula, Swire and Ritz-Carlton. Some of these deals only apply to hotels or rentals in the Asia-Pacific region. Others do not; the Mandarin Oriental benefit is applicable worldwide, for example,.
Best kept secret: you can take part into an auction that is offered on the website Luxury Link, where packages at many luxury hotels are offered at an impressive discount of up to 60%. On top of that, Luxury Link mostly allows the use of additional discount coupons of 10% or more. Click here to find out why we like Luxury Link so much to book our own holidays.
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KEY POINTS
Inspiration: this website + the Kiwi Collection.
When money is an issue: book outside the high season.
Lowest price: compare the price on Hotelscombined and Trivago with the one on the hotel website to find the lowest room rate.
Best Rate Guarantee: when possible, make use of a Best Rate Guarantee claim to throw in an additional discount.
Free extra perks: book a package on the hotel website, or, even better, through a Virtuoso travel agent, via your credit card travel office, or by auction on Luxury Link.
Stay for free: be part of a (hotel) loyalty programs.
Our preferred hotel booking websites: Hotels.com, Jetsetter and Luxury Link.
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JADE MOUNTAIN, ST LUCIA
AMANGIRI, UTAH, USA
BULGARI RESORT, BALI, INDONESIA
COMO SHAMBALA ESTATE BALI, INDONESIA
AL QASR SARAB BY ANANTARA, ABU DHABI, UAE
BANYAN TREE BANGKOK, THAILAND
CAPELLA IXTAPA, MEXICO
MYSTIQUE SANTORINI, GREECE
ROSEWOOD MAYAKOBA, MEXICO
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Save money: how to get the best deal at a luxury hotel?
Friday newsletters always feature luxury travel contests, tips, series or news. Today (March 20, 2015): travel tip: how to book a room at a luxury hotel at the cheapest price?