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Are you thinking of staying in a St Pete Beach hotel?
Staying in a St Pete Beach hotel pretty much puts you in the driver's seat for spending your daylight hours on a beautiful beach...and your evening hours in "Party Town." Make no mistake, with its proximity to both Pass-A-Grille and Treasure Island, St Pete Beach FL offers you a target-rich environment for visiting other nice beaches, meeting lots of new people, and a whole gamut of nightlife. When you are looking for a Florida beach hotel, you want to make a thorough search and you want to pin down the best amenities at the most reasonable rate.
Before you even get online or on the phone, take 30 or so minutes with a pen and piece of paper to write down what you want as far as accommodations and amenities. What's important to you? (An non-ground floor room? A great beach bar connected to the hotel? A fitness center?) If you are traveling with someone else, make sure you get their input also.
Keep in mind that the poor economy has really hammered the Florida beach tourist industry. Hotels, motels and condo rentals are all suffering. There is plenty of room to negotiate a good price for your stay, if you research things strongly and you use a positive approach. March and April are the "Spring Break" months and St Pete Beach hotels can pretty much charge what they want, however...even during those months there are cancellations, out-of-order rooms, early departures, and duplicate reservations.
1. Once you have decided on the St Pete Beach hotel you want, it is best to make your reservation well in advance. Yes, there are often discounts by the time you are checking in...and you should ask about those...but get your reservation in early. 2. Use the hotel 800 number and official website for information harvesting do not try to negotiate through those entities. Dial the hotel direct. The majority of the discounted rates will be available only through the hotel itself. 3. Make sure that any special request you make will not trigger a "rate add-on." For example, a room with a view of the pool and the beach might be priced differently. Always confirm the rate first...then, and only then, state any special preference or request. 4. Always ask for a reservation confirmation number and make sure you get the full name of the person making the reservation. If they are not allowed to give their last name, get their employee number. This will alleviate any hassles if you've gotten a better deal than anyone expected. 5. Always ask if your St Pete Beach hotel has a super-saver rate or how you can qualify for the best discount. 6. You can also mention you will accept an "out-of-order" room at a discount. This term can mean anything from a leaky shower head to a coffee stain on the carpet. Just make sure you can live with the problem for the duration of your stay. (If having a TV or wireless Internet hook-up are priorities, then you may want to skip rooms with those problems.) You can't get a 25% discount because of a problem, then whine about it to management throughout your stay. 7. Ask the person you negotiated with for their hotel eMail address and follow-up immediately for a written confirmation. Always keep a paper-trail on anything you discuss over the phone. 8. Above all, negotiate in a friendly and polite way. If you act like a donkey, use a lot of sarcasm, get angry, or putdown the desk help you will get nowhere. Do these techniques work with every St Pete Beach hotel? Of course not, but they'll give you a place to start with your negotiations for a better rate.
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