How do hotel rates work?
 

I'm kind of confused.. but I was thinking of staying another week in vegas and yesterday I bought the room I'm in for the rest of the week at $19 a night.. today the same search engine is reporting $49 for today.. and about $49+ for next week..

I notice that all the rates went up.. so I was just wondering if were just in a busy time like forever (ran dates in october and december same price or so) or if the hotels only offer the cheap prices cause there not booked up.. or only on sunday ;)

Usual rates, discounted or rack, are offered on websites. If you're already there you can always try to negotiate a better rate and in your case it looks like you already did.

What's odd about it.. is I asked the hotel what the rate for the day was and they said $25..

Very odd..

Hotel revenue management has actually gotten pretty sophisticated over the years. For instance, you bought "for the rest of the week" - is that two more nights? Three? Four?

If more than one night, the revenue management setup may have determined that they have a better chance of maximizing revenue by allowing you 2-3 nights at $19 than they do taking their chances at getting $49 for a single night...with three guests over three bookings.

Just curious .. which hotel?

Prices also change because of conventions/events in town.

But if you're staying at some place for $19/night, I doubt that it's the kind of hotel that attracts those sorts of crowds. :p

I think there's a fight in Vegas this weekend, and the MDA telethon is Sunday & Monday @ South Point.

4 queens currently.. yah it's weird now lists as $56, I'm guessing if I go down there today and ask it's still $25.. very, very weird.. when I bought at $19 it was $25.. lol

Hmm.. there own website shows it's $19 next week only.. I guess maybe expedia.. just does a jack up the computer system..

Ahh well.. I will just assume I just had good timing..

Hotel rates are no different than airfares...what you find today could be different tomorrow or even in a half-hour. And it is not entirely uncommon for the third-party sites to occasionally lag in being able to access the best rate a property might offer through its own website.

I was in Vegas about two weeks ago...rates for the same property bounced up and down, and there were times where (as an example) the AAA rate went down by $30 or so a night while another package went up by a similar amount. I booked through the property and so they adjusted down when I called and asked since there had been a downward departure on the website.

Vigilance and a willignness to use the phone to ask about such things can go a long ways...had you been at a different property, I would also have suggested trying to hook up with a host ahead of time. I'm not sure Four Queens would know what to do with such a request though... :D