I am a representative of a major hotel chain here in Key West.
I would like to know why so many people wait til they get here to try and get a reservation at a hotel or guest house. Is it because of economic challenges that people wait to last minute to decide to come? Is it people think they can get a better deal last minute? Is it people are(probably floridians) are waiting to see weather predictions?
This weekend was valentine%26#39;s day, president%26#39;s day, winter break for some children, and also a beautiful weekend weatherwise. At my hotel we sold out at least a week ago and i seriously turned away 50 walk-ins yesterday and another 20-30 over the phone. I tried to help accomadate people but every hotel and guesthouse i called was completely booked.
There were hundreds on the island without rooms. Where do they go? The beach, miami, or sleep in their cars?
Any thoughts about this would be sincerely appreciated.
Going to Key West without a reservation!Most of the regular posters here recommend - no strongly suggest - that ravelers enter the keys with reservations.
There have been several posts this last month saying that they think that if they wait until they get down that they can negotiate a better rate.
I figure Good luck to you. if you%26#39;ve got the stones to do it, I hope it works for you.
Its good to know that the rooms are full - especially during the high season. It%26#39;d be a different story if it was September.
Going to Key West without a reservation!Hi Simon-S-Keywest,
I%26#39;d be happy to give you some valuable info and feedback, but if I recall correctly the TA Rules state that you have to provide 100% disclosure... so which hotel chain exactly do you represent?
Cheers!
Wine-4-2
The disclosure rule if for when He or she starts PROMOTING their establishment.
No promotion is happening. He /she does not have to disclose anything.
The OP was only looking for some insight on why people wait until the last minute to book, especially on a busy holiday weekend.
I%26#39;m sorry i didn%26#39;t disclose that, I wasn%26#39;t sure if that would be looked upon as advertising. The chain that I am a part of is Marriott. I don%26#39;t want to push people one way or the other about my chain as I hope to use this forum to gain information and opinions of the city i live in. If anyone has a negative or positive experience with marriott%26#39;s i will not comment. I appreciate the reply%26#39;s.
Hi Simon-S-Keywest,
Thank you for being open with us. In turn I will return the favour.
We came down at Christmastime with NO Reservation... although I did inquire about my chances here on the Forum before I left see a topic entitled ';Winging It Over the Christmas Holidays'; - tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g34345-i53-k239827鈥?/a>
Several of the DEs suggested that doing so was probably a mistake, and someone else said that I could take my chances, but it might entail some leg-work (literally) on my part to find a place.
As luck would have it we got a room at the Southernmost Resort immediately upon our arrival... just walked up and asked. They gave us a decent rate... maybe a tad less than the posted rate on the Internet that I checked before we left.
So why did we opt to do a walk-in?
Somewhat because ';winging it'; is part of our travelling style when we tour North America... and partly because we were driving down from Canada. Most places want a long term commitment and payment up front. We had no real idea when we%26#39;d arrive as our departure from home was going to be based on watching the weather fronts.
We were prepared for the worst... which could have meant driving back up the Keys to another location, or back to the mainland entirely.
We did meet another couple, who said on their first visit down one year (although I think they said it was March Break) they ended up sleeping in their car because they couldn%26#39;t find a hotel room.
Hope this is helpful for your research,
Cheers!
Wine-4-2
Thank you. That is very interesting and something I didn%26#39;t and should have thought about. It does make sense that many travelers are hitting many destinations and don%26#39;t have exact dates for each location.
I%26#39;m just glad you guys were filled along with so many other properties. (A huge thank you to all our visitors... You are truly valued.)
A question back to one in the industry....
Every other venue in Key West... Attractions, bars, restaraunts, tours etc, rely on the cost of lodgings in order to survive. It%26#39;s the B%26amp;B or hotel cost that will either make or break a vacation... People will either come to Key West or they won%26#39;t. (High prices and minimum stays seem to be big deciding factors on whether people will vacation) My question is %26#39;How much local control does a property that flies a major flag like Marriot, Best Western, Crowne Plaza etc have over room pricing?
Hi Simon
I shall be in Florida for a few days in December and I was intending to head down to the Keys and if I liked it stay for a couple of days. As its my first trip to Florida I didnt really want to hard wire my travel plans, but I take on board what you%26#39;re saying and will probably rethink my %26#39;just turn up%26#39; strategy.
Just letting you know that not everyone turns up on the off chance of getting a lower rate :-)
Suzie
I%26#39;ve never quite understood this practice myself... This isn%26#39;t bashing any of the above folks who chose to do it. But I guess we might be different as we know that we are going to the Keys and planning on being there for the week or what not. Seems like some of the above wanted to feel it out first.
I know some people on here seemed to think if they showed up the moment they wanted to check in that they could get a reduced rate. Of course others have told stories that walk ins got quoted significantly more for a room.
I%26#39;ve always been of the mindset that I don%26#39;t want to have hassle first thing on my vacation. Want to walk in, throw m bags down and head out to the action=)
Over here in Marathon we also had a lot wandering around trying to find a last minute room on Friday. Like already stated - it was a holiday weekend with incredible weather. There were some upset last min folk.
I too like winging it when I go on certain vacations, but I also do my best to watch the holidays and events in the area, it surprises me how many people don%26#39;t do that here.
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