Originally Posted by Dr Jabadski

Thanks again.

Although a few years ago I switched my main hotel loyalty from Hilton to Hyatt, my paid Hilton stays since then are almost all in London 2-3 times per year, in good part due to Hyatt’s more limited footprint in London. So even with just 2-3 annual paid Hilton stays I’m keeping my 6 year old Aspire card, at least until my fall 2024 AF increase.

My experience has been that London Hilton hotel rates often decrease, sometimes dramatically, as the date of the stay nears. I always book a 24 hr or 6pm day of arrival free cancellation rate. After making initial bookings 4-8 weeks prior, I’ve cancelled and rebooked some Hilton stays in London up to 4-5 times, sometimes doing so for the last time the morning before I head to the airport for an overnight flight. I’m uncertain if OTA rates similarly decrease and I think it would be more complicated to rebook and cancel a 3rd party booking and IIRC the AA website hotel pages offered 5 day free cancellation.

I partially view the process as a calculated gamble, agree to pay more now in the hope that I’ll be able to rebook later at a lower rate (and still receive all appropriate benefits).

Have you experienced hotel rates decreasing at the stay nears? If so, have you been able to rebook and cancel? Do OTA rates decrease similarly (to London Hilton rates)?

Thanks again.

(The “♢” symbol in your profile is very impressive, took me a while to figure out how to insert it to this sentence and I still wasn't certain it was the proper symbol. )