I noticed that the "corp rate" that my travel department booked me on are not usually the cheapest and sometimes surprisingly high. You would think that these rates would be the best rate that the hotles are offering...

They often are over time. The advantage of a corporate rate is that it tends to be consistent throughout the year, regardless of how heavily booked the hotel is and seasonality.

From a corporate perspective, this certainty helps with budgeting and means that a reasonable deal is always achievable. I moan when I have to book our $130/night corporate rate when web specials are $69, but on the other hand, that $130/night rate certainly looks attractive during a special event when all the hotel rooms are going for the full rack rate of $350.

I think you really have to shop around, including in particular on the internet, to really get the lowest rate.

A few weeks ago, I posted that in booking a Hampton Inn, I asked several times for the best rate and the desk clerk on the phone, while lowering his quote each time I asked, never did get down to the rate on the net.

It suprised me that FT posters answered in response that they thought that was just how things were done by most chains. One or two people even said that when a hotel says "This is our best available rate", that doesn't mean it is the lowest, because "Best Available Rate" is a term used by hotels, and isn't always the lowest.

Here's what I do to get the cheap rate:

1. Always check the internet. The lowest rate is probably there since the hotels know that the folks who book on the net comparison shop.

2. Use the comparison web sites like hotel.com (there are many others) who will give you solid quotes and tell you the hotels involved. Again, in many cases I have found that you can't get these prices by calling either the 800 numbers or the front desk.

3. Don't forget AAA and AARP. Many chains throw an additional 5-10% off for being a member of one of these organizations, and AARP is only $10 a year to join (though they send you a ton of mail).



[This message has been edited by Mountain Trader (edited 12-10-2001).]

I've definitely noticed this.

Another issue is that sometimes travel providers give rebates to companies depending on the amount of travel the company books. One client I worked for told me never to use another rental car company other than their preferred provider because of this. They said I might think I was saving the company a few bucks but actually I would end up costing them money.

I don't know if the hotel chains offer rebates or not, but I can almost always beat the corporate rate with a little shopping.

If going to London...

use www.Londontown.com to book a room.

I just booked a 4Star hotel -- less than 50 pounds/night +tax.
Millennium Knightbridge.

A great place to look.
Frank

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TANSTAAFL - but if you work it right, FF miles comes pretty close.

From my limited experience, it appears that corporations get a free car rental, hotel room, etc. for every 15 rentals, room nights, etc. That is a 7% rebate. I am allowed to book anything that is lower than our corp rate by 7%. Consistancy and compliance are the benefits of corp discounts but I think of it as my money that I'm spending.

Bob
www.InternetTravelTips.com

Also, one some of the properties I am trying to get on, my travel agent has failed to give me any corp rates eventhough the properties are a part of a major chain that my company has a contract with. Which to me is very weird...

Nothing is wierd, it just means that your employer's negotiated corporate rates do not have a "last available room" clause.

Nothing weird. Either not enough commission in it for the agent, or they grabbed the first room/rate they could find, or there was a promotion with another chain, etc. etc.

Too bad so many corporations are so hung up on using a certain agency and doing the it by the "book" when a their travelers can get better rates on their own.

the company I work for falls under this rebate scenario with hotels and airfare. However the rebate goes back to the corporate level and is not allocated back to the individual business units. So If I'm given a travel budget in my FY operating plan and I can cut hotel costs in some cases by over 50% and hence keep my travel costs with in budget, I'm going to do that. Now if they allocated those rebates/credits back to my business unit in an equitable fashion, I might adhere to it the "preferred" lists a bit more. I speak more for hotels than airfare.