jffc

hey everyone - it has been so helpful to read through the trip reports and other posts on this board! maybe this has been addressed elsewhere but i didn't find a specific thread on this...what are people's favorite ways to get good deals on hotels? i've seen agoda, asiaroom, and sawadee mentioned on the boards. are there any other websites or travel agents that have been very helpful to get good deals (someone else mentioned eddie at sea tours)?

typically when traveling in asia we just show up at budget hotels and haggle to get a good price but this year we're trying to do a more deluxe trip. i'm looking at the peninsula and shangri la in bangkok, the chedi and the four seasons in chiang mai, and the anantara golden triangle in chiang rai... we are traveling in november 2011.

thanks in advance for any advice!

Kathie

Eddie at Seatours isn't for booking hotels - he books airlines that are hard to book elsewhere. In Thailand, I've never found that travel agents can get a better deal.

I check many sources. I check the hotel's own website as well as the websites listed above. At higher range hotels, in my experience you always get a better price by booking ahead. Walk-ups pay more - sometimes lots more.

lcuy

I havve had really good luck on Agoda.com, often better that the hotels themselves, as Agoda will often include the taxes and a breakfast in their price.

There is really no "one best" place though. As Kathie said, shop around.

jffc

gotcha. just wanted to make sure i wasn't missing any other good websites to try eddie was actually quite helpful on the anantara quote in chiang rai; much better than what i found elsewhere, so i thought i'd give him a go for the other places too. thanks much for your help! i'll start on watching these other websites...although not that hopeful since novi is start of high season in thailand....

mcbg1

I found some pretty good deals on Asialtravel.com for my trip last year (like the Royal Orchid Sheraton for 60$ per night with breakfast!)

Kathie

Good to hear that Eddie can get good rates at the Anantara.

Craig

The Peninsula sometimes has package deals on its website - you'll have to search around a bit but they are usually there. You may have to wait a couple of months until specials for November are posted - alternatively, you could e-mail them and ask if they have any special rates for when you are there. We like the packages that include breakfast as the Penn's breakfasts by the river are awesome.

yestravel

Check out this web site which consolidates the consolidators (AsiaRooms, Agoda, etc)
http://www.hotelscombined.com/ I have been using it as it saves the trouble of going to each site and comparing their rates.

rhkkmk

the hotel's websites themselves are good sources in addition to the above..

ROS at $60 was a short lived promo..

i try to post really special rates here if i see them, as do others.

KimJapan

For true luxury hotels, the best prices which are also accompanied by other benefits such as upgrades and breakfast, can often be had by booking through Anerican Express Fine Hotels and Resorts program, a Virtuoso agent, or a Four Seasons Preferred Agent. There is no cost to the client - if the agent does indicate to you that they charge a booking fee, find another agent. It has been my experience that which online agents like Agoda, Asiarooms and Sawadee do offer very good deals for many places, I've yet to see a better price by those type of discounters than you get either directly or via the programs I mentioned. And the benefits offered by those programs also have quite a high value.

Cilla_Tey

Second KimJapan and rhkkmk. But also contacting the hotel directly (email or phone) as they may throw in a free massage or an upgrade. The latter is always my priority.

Cilla_Tey

And flyertalk.com has a thread on crisisdiscounts in the luxury hotel forum. The participants on that particular forum are a bit snooty - Aman, GHM, RC and Four Seasons are the sort of level considered luxurious.
There are also some luxury auction sites, like luxurylink.com

Kathie

I've never found luxury link to be a good deal for me. The "extras" included in the package to make it sounds like a good deal are typically things I have no interest in or would never pay for. If you compare the room and breakfast price with what luxury link charges, you'll get a much better price booking directly with the hotel.

Kathie

You might also try www.dhr.com That's the site where we found the best rate for the Oberoi Grand In Kolkata last December. I checked and they have all of the major Bangkok hotels. Their prices generally include tax, service and breakfast. Note that tax and service add 17.5% to hotel prices in Thailand and breakfast is worth US$16-20 per person.

yippie65

i would recommend
http://www.allresortthailand.com//index.html

price are inclusive of taxes and service charge

qwovadis

betterbidding.com Priceline bidding 5 stars from $50

like amari.com/watergate properties Marriotts SPG.com

get suite upgrades free by joining frequent guest programs

luxurylink.com

Otel.com good deals lately 10% FaceBook DC and 5% cash back

Asiarooms.com Agoda.com

Hanuman

If the Amari Watergate is a 5 stars property then they are giving out the stars too easily!

jffc

wow, thanks for the great response everyone! this is really helpful, you guys rock