How to Get a Free Hotel Room Upgrade

Vacations suck when you can’t get any sleep. There’s no sense paying for a room if you cannot get any sleep in it. Always be polite when asking for a better room.

Your hotel room may be great, but you can bet there are much better ones in the hotel you are staying at. Perhaps you want a room with luxury features such as a great view, mini bar or balcony.  You may also want a specific room in the hotel, such as the room closest to the hotel pool.  You may be able to get it without incurring any additional costs if you follow these tips.

When Booking a Room

Summer and holidays are the worst time to try and ask for a free room upgrade. It’s also hard to get a room when the hotel is fully booked because of a major sporting event or business conference. Your best bet in getting an upgrade is for when the hotel is not so busy at any other time. See if you can join the hotel rewards program. Members usually get first crack at any room upgrades.

Huffington Post blogger and frequent traveler Amy Chan advises customers to check in to their hotels as late as they possibly can. Always check with your hotel for check-in times. If you can put off checking in until the last hour you are allowed to do so, there is a better chance that someone who booked a luxury room has cancelled.

Before You Ask for an Upgrade

Make sure you look respectable and wear conservative or professional clothing before you ask a member of the hotel staff for an upgrade.  Do not wear trashy, overly-revealing clothes. Women especially need to keep this in mind. No hotel wants to be known as a home for prostitution. Unfortunately, many hotel workers will make an instant snap judgment about your profession based on your clothes, hair style and amount of makeup.

Be calm and smile when asking for an upgrade. Be polite at all times – even when you know that a luxury room is available and you are denied getting it. After all, you are asking for a favor. Ask if you could be considered for any room upgrades, should they become available. If you are at the hotel because of a special event like a family reunion, mention this to the clerk. Sometimes this is enough to push you to the front of the waiting list for a room upgrade.

Disappointment with Hotel Room

Although most regular hotel rooms are comfortable and adequate, some rooms are far from perfect. Perhaps the shower doesn’t work. Perhaps nearby construction is keeping you awake. Complain to the manager politely and suggest that you can be placated by a room upgrade. Only use this tactic if you have a genuine complaint, otherwise you may be branded as a troublemaker.

Image of Shanghai hotel bed by Daniel Case for Wikimedia Commons

Author's Note: This article first appeared on the late-lamented website Helium,com and I see it's up on some scraper sites on the web.