I'm planning a trip to the Rockies for next year and am flabbergasted at the rates I'm getting (from the 800 #) for the various Fairmont Hotels. $600-700 (U.S.) a night?! (for king bed, view room) Surely one can find lower rates? I know that accommodations are very costly in that area, and we do want wonderful rooms-- but I know that I'll never put out that kind of $$ for a room. Advice much appreciated. (I.e. how to obtain lower rates at the Chateau, etc)

Check www.aavacations.com for a deal...I purchased air from DFW and hotel (deluxe lakeview) for 5 nights for about $1800 total. Considering the air alone would have cost $800-$1000, I found it to be a great deal. You also have the option to purchase without air with good discounted rates.

That was for Lake Louise. They also have Banff Springs and Jasper on there.

Plus you get 1000 AAdvantage miles for booking the vacation, whether you purchase airfare or not.

Banff Springs:
Non-winter rates: http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer...YC&SETNO=2
Winter rates:
Go to this page, scroll down to bottom, and click "Back": http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer...&ACINDEX=5

Lake Louise:
Non-winter rates:
http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer...YC&SETNO=3
Winter rates:
http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer...&ACINDEX=5

Jasper:
Non-winter rates:
http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer...YC&SETNO=6
Winter rates:
http://aav8.aavacations.com/Consumer/aavaccom.asp

Make sure you look for any specials, like 5th night free, etc. that can help you choose your dates if you are flexible.

Oh, also...When you are looking at the rates, it appears as though the rate is PER PERSON. However, as you continue to go through the reservation steps, you'll notice that they never double the quoted price. So, until I got the the final confirmation page, I wasn't completely sure whether the total for 2 was going to be $1800 or $3600. Turned out to be $1800. Don't know if that's a glitch, but if it still works, then it's a great deal.

I've had good luck looking at

libertytravel.com

hotels.com

expedia.com

travelocity.com

(and I would try in that order) Cheers!

For less keyboard taps and mouse clicks, try www.tripadvisor.com.
You can select a hotel, put in your dates and it will search some of the big names for you, eg Expedia and co.

I'm in the UK and keep getting good prices through www.hotelpronto.com - no idea if bookings with them are accessible to non-UK based residents - but I can't see any reason why not.

I can't fully vouch for them until *after* my trip - however something that is appealing is the displayed rates always include taxes, plus the emailed voucher you recieve, clearly states the board-basis, eg if breakfast is included or not - plus a note to the hotel not to try and charge the customer for anything else (unless of course, I have hammered the mini-bar ;-) )!

Claire

Here's a better idea - stay at different hotels. The Rimrock Hotel in Banff is nicer than the Banff Springs and lower priced with better views. You can always go to the Fairmont properties to wander around and eat a meal.

Thanks so much everyone! I'll get to work!

Cruiseryyc: Rimrock had sounded wonderful-- then I read several reports-- can't remember where, probably Trip Advisor-- that talked about the horribly noisy heating/plumbing system there. We're hoping to find accommodations as quiet as possible, since we're not great sleepers, even at best.

Part of our problem, by the way, is that it's difficult to find discount prices this far in advance-- and yet there are other problems if one waits too long... (We'll be traveling either early July or early September-- haven't decided yet.)

Again: many thanks for various in-put!

>>>>>>We'll be traveling either early July or early September-- haven't decided yet<<<<<<

If you have a choice, I recommend early September over early July. Although September still is somewhat busy in the mountain resort towns, there are fewer people than there are in July and August.

Try hotwire.com.
It's either hit or miss because you don't know the name of the hotel you are booking but you can specify the 'star' rating, area/location and the amenities you're looking for.

We tried this in Montreal and got the Delta for $50/night - it is usually $130-150/night.
We also tried this for Barcelona, Spain and later found out we could get the same hotel for cheaper on the hotel's website.

Good luck!!

Delta Hotel for $50/night? Wow, that's impressive!