Hi g_leyser! Thanks so much for all the helpful information. There is a certain hotel I return to approximately 3x a year. On one prior stay I lucked into a room I really liked for a number of reasons (regular price, not exec level or anything) but when I inquire about it on subsequent stays I'm always told it's "already assigned" or simply "unavailable." When do hotels assign rooms for the night? I always thought it happened on a first come/first served basis as people checked in. Is it ever possible to reserve a specific room in advance?