how do you find the lowest rate

[lidec]

How does everyone book their hotels? How do you find a good rate? Has anyone used hotwire or priceline and how do you know what place you are getting?

 

[crazelion]

I used www.hotelkindgom.com and I used the hotels websites.

 

[gtalum]

To find a good rate, use the travel sites like Orbitz.com, travelocity.com, or even kayak.com. To find the best rate takes some time. Use all your resources to find the lowest rates available, and combine those with reviews from sites like tripadvisor.com or discussion boards like our very own DISboards to make sure you'e not looking at a real dud. Check all the chains' sites themselves, and use sites like mousesavers.com for more information and deals. Book the best deal you can find. Keep checking, and feel free to cancel and rebook as you find better deals. For a stay coming up October 26-28, I have already made and cancelled 4 hotle reservations as I have unearthed better deals.

 

[kilee]

I've gone all routes including priceline. Usually for me it requires hours spent scouring the internet for the best deals. I can say I haven't had any one sure bet site that has always done it for me.

 

[Mickeys_n_me]

www.travelzoo.com has sent me some very good deals for the orlando area.
If you sign up to recieve their 20 best deals of the week, every week there is something for the orlando area.

 

[f7prez]

I have great luck with Hotwire. I know sometimes it is hard to figure out which hotel you will end up with, especially in the Disney area where there are sooo many hotels. However, the Disney area is broken down into areas (Seaworld I Drive, Lake Buena Vista, Disney Main Gate, etc.). If you pick a specific area, there are only going to be so many 4 star hotels in that area. Then you narrow those down by amenities (spa, tennis, business services). Most of the time you can plan on the hotel being one of two places. And a 4 star hotel for around $80 is a great deal no matter which one it is. I have gotten some great deals: Peabody $79, Buena vista Palace $75, Gaylord $86. Look for the customer favorites with the thumbs up symbol . Also use Expedia to compare prices and star rating. I think the two sites may be run by the same group. Expedia will show you which hotels are in a certain area and you can compare star rating, amenities and price. Hotwire will show you the regular price and then the Hotwire price. The regular price is usually the same price found at Expedia. It takes a little time but you can stay in some really nice hotels for a fraction.

 

[dyna]

I like tripadvisor.com for reading reviews on hotels too Many times when I been checking prices i can get the same hotel room off the hotels site as I can off any of the so called cheap hotel sites.

Also in reading reviews I've came across many ppl who was unsatisfied wanted their money back but because they had used another source to book the hotel room they could not get money back from hotel directly an go on down the street to next hotel.

 

[gtalum]

If you want to go the Priceline or Hotwire route, check out betterbidding.com. They have lists of which hotels at each star level are in which zone sin each city, and which zones to pick for "free rebids" for Priceline.

 

[LAS2AMS]

To find a good rate, use the travel sites like Orbitz.com, travelocity.com, or even kayak.com. To find the best rate takes some time.

This is the best advice you'll get. Websites like Expedia & Travelocity are good starting points (Orbitz has a limited selection) but they won't always yield the very best price.

My advice:
-- Use Expedia or Travelocity as a starting point. In the Orlando market, Expedia generally has better negotiated rates but Travelocity has its own. Also note that Expedia does not display Intercontinental/Crowne Plaza/Holiday Inn hotels, so you'll want to search for those separately.

-- Download, install & use Travelaxe. Travelaxe compares hotel rates from many websites... it's great for finding negotiated rates.

-- Check consolidator websites, such as travelzoo and bookit.com. Also compare land-only vacation packages from major airlines. From my experiences, US Airways Vacations and Funjet (the United Airlines marketed version of Funjet sometimes has better rates) have the best prices in Orlando. Funjet includes resort fees in the total, and also throws in admission to Gatorland for your entire party. Also try site59.com for last-minute reservations -- buying your hotel & car together can yield some great rates.

-- Check individual hotel websites. Check for discounts (AAA, etc.) that apply to you... last month the Radisson Celebration's lowest rate was $69, but a AAA rate yielded $59 with a free upgrade to sleep number + breakfast for two! Also search for packages/specials. The latter can be hidden. For example, last month the Best Western LBV's lowest rate was $149, but they had a packaging offering of two tickets to PI & a continental breakfast -- for $79/night! In the Orlando market, special deals/special package deals usually include breakfast, free nights and sometimes dinner shows. Adding tickets or a car rental generally will NOT give you a better price.

-- Check rates on Hotwire. You can usually tell which hotel is which now that they've provided tons of information. You can also try Priceline -- see biddingfortravel.com.

As you can see, it's a time consuming process. My "short cut" recommendation: always check prices on Expedia/Travelocity -- pick-out hotels you like. Check their websites, see if they offer better rates/deals. Then run travelaxe, check travelzoo & search land-only offerings on US Airways & Funjet. This will probably give you the lowest rates 9/10 times.

 

[rosiep]

If you have time to plan, and are planning ahead, try both gtahotels.com
and alpharooms.com
I've had fabulous results with GTA..both for Disney and other places.

 

[spiceycat]

How does everyone book their hotels? How do you find a good rate? Has anyone used hotwire or priceline and how do you know what place you are getting?

you don't - go look at

www.betterbidding.com - for help on priceline and hotwire

i have used
www.hotelkingdom.com
www.hotelmartusa.com
www.travelzoo.com
www.expedia.com - generally the others can beat it

have you considered a condo
www.skyauction.com - look for the home away - don't bid more than $40 (okay I don't) - be patient one will come to you.
forgot don't bid until the last few minutes. (after you are already register)

this is probably the best for a week stay. Less than a week stay - might go with one of the above sites/

if you don't like to bid then
www.condodirect.com

that say if you know anyone who owns a timeshare and uses RCI or II - then ask them to use a getaway II - they get 4 or 5 a year, or with RCI - last call or extra vacation they get 12 a year.

you could really save you some money.

 

[zaxmom]

I have used travelaxe for years, but now I am using kayak.com and I love it! They both search many of the other sites listed for you.

 

[MattM]

Good Question. Travelzoo.com and Priceline tend to be big winners for Orlando and the Disney area.

For example, for a Nov. 1 check-in, they (Travelzoo) are showing Disney's Pop Century for $59/night.

 

[dyna]

Sun - Thurs Pop Century is 59 a night for this fall till mid dec I think. I've seen it several places for that this fall.