Rudy Maxa: Tricks for snagging hotel bargains

Travel expert Rudy Maxa

(CNN) -- The travel industry continues to struggle to recover from the post-September 11 downturn, and plenty of bargains remain if you know where to look for them. CNN's Miles O'Brien spoke to travel expert Rudy Maxa about how to find amazing hotel deals.

CNN: All right, Rudy. What's the secret to finding a good hotel? I've often heard you can get better rates if you call the hotel directly as opposed to calling the central toll-free number. Is that true?

MAXA: That's often true because the central number is basically somebody sitting maybe in a bunker in Nebraska looking at a computer screen, and they have no power to negotiate. They don't know that maybe this is the slowest weekend in business in that particular jurisdiction that you might be calling or area you might be calling.

So it's often wise to spend an extra 15, 20, 80 cents and call directly to the hotel and see if you can't get a better rate. Maybe you can get free parking. Maybe you can get free breakfast. Maybe you can get an upgrade to a better room.

You always have more negotiating ability talking to someone on-site than a reservationist at an 800 number.

CNN: Do you have to engage in any sort of clever ruses? You know, pretend like you're the administrative assistant for the guest. … Does that kind of stuff work?

MAXA: Well, there's always the couple that's perpetually on their honeymoon that walk in all giggly and say, "This is our honeymoon." Everybody goes, "Oh," and gives them a big suite. Or there's the old line, you walk into a full hotel: "If the president of the United States were here, would you have a room for him?" "Well, for the president of the United States, we'd have a room." "Good news, the president's not coming, give me the room."

CNN: I like that one, by the way, that's good.

MAXA: What we have right now is a situation where it's no secret the travel business is down. Hotel occupancy rates are down 6 percent since 2000, and the average room rate is down even more. So there's really sort of going, I think, unnoticed ... a sale on urban hotel rooms around the world.

I have some examples for you. In Europe, for example, Radisson SAS has put all 100 properties on sale. So a hotel room at the Prague Radisson SAS -- it cost $246 a night this time last year -- is $132 now. That's like half off. Vienna, $236, now $134. You go to London, you stay at the Swissotel that costs $300 a night last year at this time, it's now $200.

And in the United States, go online to convention and visitors bureau Web sites. They're called CVB sites. I, for example, picked a date at random, March 2, and I called Seattle, and I talked to the reservationist at the Hotel Monaco, a favorite hotel of mine there. And I said, What's the best price you can give me for a double room? Two hundred and ninety-five dollars. Then I went to the convention and visitors bureau site, called seeseattle.org, $155. That's a $140-a-night savings. That's huge.

CNN: Yes, that's some real money.

MAXA: Philadelphia's -- I think it's gophila.org -- two-for-the-price-of-one nights. That's like half-price if you're staying more than one night. The Portland Hilton I called directly -- best rate they could give me, $139. On their Web site, which is travelportland.com, $109. Now that may not sound like much -- only $30 -- but it's a 28 percent savings. And if you did the online booking through the convention and visitors bureau site, you got free breakfast and free parking, so you'd save even more.

CNN: So what does this tell you? Travel levels are still way down, and these hotels are just hurting?

MAXA: Exactly, and they want to put, as the industry calls it, heads in beds. And so they're willing to strike bargains. And you can negotiate. You know, as Americans, we're not used to negotiating. We get a price, generally we go, OK, that's it. But we are allowed to negotiate. You can say, "Can I get a suite for that?" Or, "Can I get $20 off a night or free breakfast?" Whatever, don't be shy about that.

CNN: All right, don't be shy, those are good words to remember. Rudy Maxa, "The Savvy Traveler," and if you would like to check out more about what he's been talking about, we invite you to go to rudymaxa.com, it's right there on the Web, www.rudymaxa.com.