Many hotels will offer significant discounts for rooms booked within 24 hours of arrival. While traveling with kids doesn’t allow for much spontaneity, lower price points make last minute arrangements worthwhile. Here are a few tips for getting last minute hotel discounts:

Call the hotel directly

In this digital age, it seems like nobody wants to pick up a phone and call anymore. However, when time is of the essence, a slower channel like email just doesn’t cut it.

Avoid central hotel reservations

Many larger hotel chains use outside, centralized call centers for reservations, and often those staff members may not have authority to discount rates on the fly. Ask the operator to send you to the in-house reservations line. If an in-house line doesn’t exist, ask the hotel operator to send you to the front desk.

Speak to a manager if necessary

Get more last minute hotel discount travel tips.