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Step 1
Travel out of season. Traveling out of season means you stay at hotels outside the summertime (the most popular traveling season and, thus, the one with the highest rates) and away from major holidays. Hotels also generally offer cheaper rates during weekdays than weekends, so if you can afford to wait and travel outside traveling season and during the week, you'll easily save a lot of extra cash.
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Step 2
Compare rates online. Do not settle for the first hotel you find listed inside the city. If you are staying in a small town, you may only have a few choices, but most major cities offer pages and pages of hotel options. The same company alone may house three or four hotels in any given large city, so spend some time to compare and contrast. A lot of great websites are available on the web for the sole purpose of comparing hotel rates.
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Step 3
Call the hotel and ask for any special promotions or offers. Hotels want to get people to stay with them because they are a business like anyone else, and that is how they make money. If you travel out of season, some hotels may practically beg you to come and stay at their hotel. They may give you a better deal if you pay ahead of time or enroll in some special hotel rewards card, etc. Always ask and try to bargain with them a little.
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Step 4
Decide which accommodations you really need, and which ones you could do without. A hotel with a pool and hot tub will cost more than a hotel without a pool or hot tub. A hotel with a pool but not a spa should cost less than one with both. Do you really want HBO, or will basic cable do just fine? Hotels offer a lot of extras and not all of them are necessary.
