Top tips for a cheap stay in a five-star hotel

IS YOUR love of the finer things in life larger than your holiday budget? Here’s how to stay in a luxury hotel without blowing your bank account.

Enjoy the perks of a five-star hotel without blowing your budget. Picture: iStock

IS YOUR love of the finer things in life larger than your holiday budget? Here are eight ways to enjoy the sweetest suites, champagne breakfasts, fluffy bathrobes and luxurious extra perks for a bargain price.

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Say goodbye to Mondayitis

Sunday is usually the cheapest night to stay at luxury hotels with Fridays being the most expensive. Instead of booking your romantic getaway from Friday to Sunday, consider taking Monday off instead. This money-saving tip is also a sure cure for Mondayitis.

Secret stays

Secret Hotels or Mystery Hotels can be found on booking sites such as lastminute.com.au and wotif.com.au. These deals offer rates so low that hotels don’t reveal their identity until after the room has been booked. Five-star Secret Hotels, in particular, offer exceptional value as their high rates allow for deep discounting. A “secret” or “mystery” hotel deal is a great way to save money and inject excitement into your life (or not, as it’s often possible to guess the hotel from the deal description on the website).

Spam can be tasty

Sign up for hotel e-newsletters to receive advance notice of upcoming offers and special deals. Large hotel groups such as Accor offer the most variety, with multiple luxurious hotel brands to choose from such as Raffles, Fairmont and Sofitel.

Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills.

Be spontaneous

Keep an eye out for last-minute cancellation deals, particularly at boutique hotels and luxury lodges. If a tour group cancels at short notice, for example, small luxury hotels can send out an email to people on their mailing list offering the unused rooms at a bargain price.

Timing is everything

Stay at city hotels on weekends when the business travellers have gone home and visit weekend leisure getaways during the week. Doing this can save up to 40 per cent off the usual rate. Even better, if you are staying at a boutique country retreat during the week, you are likely to have all that five-star luxury to yourself.

Holiday like a boss

Do you work for a large organisation? Companies pay up to 70 per cent less for accommodation at five-star hotels, which have cut them a deal based on volume. Ask the person who books your company’s executive travel for the names of preferred hotels at your destination. It is easy to call or email the hotel direct and book a room using your company’s corporate rate. This costs the boss nothing but can save you a fortune.

Ritz Carlton, Budapest.

Book a package

As economic times get tougher, five-star hotels have to work harder to come up with tempting promotional deals. Consumers are the winners as these packages frequently offer unbelievable value along with “added extras” and bargain room rates. Keep a look out for Romance Packages which include things like chocolate-dipped strawberries and a bottle of sparkling wine for around the same price as the room-only rate.

Share your celebration

If you are celebrating a special occasion, don’t be shy about letting the hotel know. Not that you should look for (or expect) a hand-out but five-star hotels love making guests happy. If they know how much you are looking forward to your stay, you will likely discover the staff members are even more fabulous than the hotel itself.

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