Saw this in a magazine and wondering if anyone can verify if it is true or not.

1.) You get the best hotel rate by calling the hotel's local number and not the 800 number. The idea is you are not going to be speaking to an off-site call center and will get the hotel staff.

2.) Rooms are more expensive in the morning. The lowest rates happen after 6pm when they wipe out all the no-show reservations that were unsecured by a credit card.

3.) When calling you can negotiate room rates by asking to speak to the manager on duty, the general manager, or the director of sales. They have the authority to lower rates, which the normal reservation desk cannot do without permission.

I am currently a VP of Hotel Operations for a Strip Hotel (which will remain anonymous). I also have worked with hotels such as The Breakers Palm Beach, The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco, and the Palace New York in Rooms Division Management. Thus, my responses to your questions on the basis of a myriad of years of direct industry experience - many of the questions you ask I have been responsible for directly addressing in routine operations as a procedural matter.

Original Post with Responses:
Saw this in a magazine and wondering if anyone can verify if it is true or not.

1.) You get the best hotel rate by calling the hotel's local number and not the 800 number. The idea is you are not going to be speaking to an off-site call center and will get the hotel staff.

An important distinction that needs to be made here is that properties under Harrahs Entertainment (e.g. Caesar's, Bally's, Flamingo) have a centralized reservations department - thus while you may reserve a room through the front office per say, chances are you will be forwarded to room reservations unless you are calling to make a same day reservation (this is because the reservations department in larger hotels is a completely seperate function and they have specific strategies/yield management procedures they are selling to). Now, as a matter of procedure, assuming things are 'as they should be', when you call the hotel directly versus and 800 number as you state - 90 times out of 100 you will receive the same rate quoted (as they are working with the same availability/inventory screens. Usually the 10 times out of 100 is due to some human error. Regarding the direct dial number and the 800 reservations number... at a resort like Wynn Las Vegas - you're going to get the same people either way. This will hold true for nearly all properties. The 800 number is offered as a convenience to guests to make arrangements with the hotel without charge (the hotel pays for the call) - were you to call a property and ask to be transfered to a guests room through the 800 number, you would be asked to call the hotel's direct number first.

In summary, the suggestion that you will get the best rate by calling the hotel directly vs. the 800 line is purely an evaluative opinion - from my years of experience I would say this is rarely if ever the case. It doesn't necessarily hold true that you would get the best rate from an online wholesaler like hotels.com/expedia.com as some hoteliers have realized consumers think they are getting the 'best deal' on such sites, and as a rate they publish the same rates as their rack rate, or even higher.

2.) Rooms are more expensive in the morning. The lowest rates happen after 6pm when they wipe out all the no-show reservations that were unsecured by a credit card.

Again, this is an evaluative opinion - maybe on the basis of the writers on experience. Rate structures, especially in Las Vegas unlike most other areas of the world are constantly changed to reflect inventory availability.

Regarding the lowest rates occuring after 6pm when they wipe at no-show reservations - that is just simply ridiculous and clearly a comment from someone that has no understanding of how hotel's/resorts handle room reservations. First of all, a 'no show' reservation is one in which a guest has a guaranteed reservation arriving to the hotel on a selected day, and for whatever reason unknown to the property - the guest never arrives or checks-in. All hotels I have been at will not release no-show reservations until after they run the night audit of the property (post room/tax to guest accounts)... this usually occurs at 2am - 4am for most properties. So, your reservation for say November 20th is guaranteed for arrival until around 4am the 21st. Technically, were you to arrive at 7am, legally you still have the 'right to use' the room until the hotel's checkout time.

In vegas, all hotels that I am aware of (the larger properties) require a reservation to be secured with a credit card (if not a casino guest), and many charge an advanced deposit to secure the room account. What you are referring to, that of reservations not secured by credit cards, are technically reservations that are not guaranteed in the first place - very few properties in vegas accept such reservations (maybe hotels like holiday inn, embassy suites, extended stay properties). As a result, you will not find any change in inventory (significant) at strip properties.

Regarding the lowest rates being after 6pm, as most strip properties run year-round occupancy of over 95%, generally if rooms do become available, it will be later in the evening (that is correct), however they will rarely be less expensive - often these rooms limited in availability will be selling at a higher rate than most guests already reserved for the hotel (last minute bookings = higher opportunity cost).

3.) When calling you can negotiate room rates by asking to speak to the manager on duty, the general manager, or the director of sales. They have the authority to lower rates, which the normal reservation desk cannot do without permission.

This might work at a holiday inn with 100 rooms. I would not recommend trying it at any hotel over 300 rooms in size (which is nearly every property in Vegas). First of all, the Director of Sales would be responsible for negotiating group/convention bookings... so unless you're bringing a party of 50+rooms they will immediately refer you to leisure room reservations.

Most strip properties do not have a General Manager. Divisions of the Hotel are operated by Vice Presidents, such as myself. If a guest called me attempting to negotiate a room rate (this has never occured)... first of all they would receive my executive assistant who would refer them to room reservations. Bottom line, you would never receive my extension because you would be referred to room reservations to handle your request. Assistant Hotel Managers are simply guest relations managers, and Front Office Management would quote you rates as being sold in the system - they do not have security clearance to quote rates as see fit... this is called rate integrity. While such 'managers' do have the authority to lower rates, the director of sales does so on the basis of volume, the GM as you stated (or VP which often is)... would do so on the basis of extenuating or special circumstances (a guest wanting a lower rate just because would not qualify), and the Assistant Managers/Front Office Management would have the authority to do so on the basis that you experienced a challenge during the stay - they would never adjust or lower confirmed room reservation rates in advance.

There is a good blog article posted on this site about getting best online rates, like when to clear your browser cookies, searching from certain pages, best times to book, etc.:
Online Booking Secrets

Good inside information. I do think though that calling a hotels local number will get you a better deal generally.

Also my favorite trick is the $20 one when checking in fold a $20 and tap it on the counter so the person sees but only them, then ask if they have any upgrades they can place you in. If they give you a free upgrade you can give them $20 if not then well dont give them the $20