Business Travel
How Business
Travelers Can Save on Room Rates
Finding
all the comforts of home while on the road may be a bit too much to
expect, but North Carolina’s hotel and resort managers say great
deals on lodging can be had by business travelers who know how to shop
for accommodations. The tips they offer also apply for your leisure
travel.
Calling about room reservations well in advance gives business
travelers the ability to compare properties and prices and find the
best value. And once you’ve found a property you like, stick with
it, says Jason Smith, general manager of The Landfall Park Hampton Inn
& Suites in Wilmington.
If you often travel to the same city, always stay at the same property
and get to know the general manager and front desk staff. Although
hundreds of guests pass through the hotel each day, Smith says
properties remember their repeat customers.
“Build a relationship with the innkeeper,” says Smith, whose hotel
was ranked as the top property in Hampton Inn’s 1,200-hotel chain by
guests in 2001 for product and service. That means calling the hotel
directly for reservations, skipping over the chain’s 1-800 number.
“We take care of our best guests, and we know them all by name.”
Major hotel chains offer incentive programs — such as Hilton Honors
and Marriott Rewards — for guests who stay frequently, and using
those programs can generate significant savings.
If you have some flexibility in scheduling meetings, you can save
money on lodging by staying overnight during slower periods. At
traditional business hotels, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights tend
to be the busiest nights for business travelers, and therefore rates
are higher. If a meeting can be scheduled for a Monday or a Friday,
travelers will find they get a better rate on Sunday or Thursday
nights.
On the flip side, resort properties such as Asheville’s Grove Park
Inn usually are busiest on the weekends when couples and families come
for a leisurely getaway and to take advantage of the resort’s spa
and other recreational amenities. For that reason, the Grove Park Inn
offers discounted rates Sunday through Thursday, which is prime
business travel time, says Joni Moffett, director of sales at the inn.
Business guests who come early on Sunday get a discount on that
night’s stay and are able to take advantage of the area’s leisure
activities before their business meetings begin the week.
It also pays to watch seasonal changes in business travel. Many
companies tend to slow down travel at the end of the month and just
before and after holidays. Also, when companies are busiest with the
following years’s budgeting — most often in October and November
or April — travel tends to fall off. Hotels and motels know to
expect this drop in demand and will usually offer more attractive
rates, says Smith.
Some properties offer discounts to businesses headquartered nearby
that regularly put up travelers at their property. Others, such as the
Grove Park, offer guests discounts for booking reservations online.
“We are finding that more and more companies are using this
program,” says Moffett. “Internet bookings have grown 30 to 40
percent in the last year.”
Hotel and resort managers say the key to comfortable travel is to find
a property where you feel relaxed and one where you get the best
value.
“You may find a hotel is $5 cheaper a night but if you find you’ve
paid for parking, for all of your local calls and $15 for breakfast,
you haven’t saved any money,” says Smith.
— Laura Williams-Tracy
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