ABOVE: Outside
the Loews and Royal Palm Hotel - Miami Beach hotel strip on Collins
Avenue.
Hotels,
like any other commodity, are subject to the rules of supply and demand.
The more flexible you are about where and when to stay, the more money
you can expect to save.
For the lowest rate, use a consolidator
Hotel managers know they'll seldom fill all their rooms at the published
"rack rates," so they often negotiate discount rates with
consolidators like our booking partner Hotels.com.
You might be able to match such rates by showing up at the last minute
and negotiating your own price for a vacant room, but you can't count
on doing so--and you might not find a room at all.
Insider tip
Remember that room rates will be more expensive during high season.
The high season in Miami is December to May. Cheaper rates can be
found July to October.
Rates will also increase for holidays and special events:
Thanksgiving (Nov 18 - 21)
Art Basel (Dec 2 - 5)
Christmas/New Year's (Dec 23 - Jan
2)
Boat Show Week (Feb 7- 21)
Winter Music Conference (Mar 23 -
29)
Spring Break (Apr 1 - 30)
Pharmaceutical Convention (Apr 9
- 16)
Memorial Weekend (May 27 - 30)
Book in advance. If your first hotel choice
is full, let us offer a comparable alternative. Don't be surprised
if you don't get your first choice, especially if you're booking during
busy periods. Discounted room rates are like bargain air fares: They
can be hard to get during periods of high demand.
How to get the room you want
The quality of hotel rooms can vary, especially in some of the smaller
Art Deco hotels in South Beach where the layout of the older building
may limit the number of rooms that have good views and sunlight. Although
you can request a specific room ahead of time, you can't always be
sure of getting it--and if you've never stayed in the hotel, you may
not know what to request in the first place.
Fortunately, there's an easy solution: check
in as early as possible. If you aren't happy with
the room you've been assigned, ask to see another. In hotels, as in
many other endeavors, the early bird often gets the worm.
