Do you know what a bakers dozen is?
Back in medieval times, bakers would offer an extra loaf of bread when you bought a dozen.
So if you were to walk in and buy twelve pastries, loaves, or anything else, you could expect to get thirteen in the bag.
It was a way for the baker to reward larger customers by giving them a little bonus.
Hotels offer these bonuses too
When you book over ten rooms at a hotel, you are considered a group. And depending on the size of your group, your group may get additional perks
These perks can be anything from free parking (comes in handy in Manhattan) to free breakfast (great for sports teams) to free meeting space (great for meetings). And in most cases, you can expect to get some kind of perk if you are booking more than thirty rooms per night.
And just about every hotel offers perks to groups
It’s in their best interest to do so as it provides a large piece of business that will otherwise go to a competitor. Since most hotels are not sold out every day, any kind of group business is sought after. By offering perks, a hotel is able to attract groups to their hotel.
And that perk can be either a product or a service
Common examples of service based perks for groups are:
- Free Wi-fi
- Express group check in
- Late checkout for a group
Product based perks for groups include free or heavily discounted:
- Hotel rooms (most popular)
- Parking
- Breakfast
- Shuttle service
- Meeting rooms
- Banquet pricing
The kind of perk that is suitable for your group may vary with the type of group you are. For example, military reunion groups want a complimentary hospitality suite but corporate groups would rather have a free breakfast for their attendees.
And the larger your group, the easier it is to negotiate
After all, if you’re going to be taking up a large number of rooms, it can have a significant impact on the hotels revenue. As such, the hotel will be more inclined to offer some of the product based perks mentioned in the list above. Smaller groups (less than 20 rooms per night) can expect low cost perks that are mostly service based.
Regardless of what perk your group ends up with, it will leads to savings
Parking in larger cities like Manhattan can be $40-50 a night. WiFi and breakfast usually runs around $15/month. And meeting room prices can be quite exorbitant too. So it’s easy to imagine how free perks can lead to savings for the group as a whole.
But are perks like free rooms really free?
Nothing in this world is free. The price of the perks is built into the pricing you’re getting from the hotel. But that should not dissuade you from booking as a group. It should actually give you more of a reason to ask for perks. You’re paying for them so you might as well maximize what the group gets out of it.
But hotels won’t just offer these perks on a silver platter
You have to ask for them. Hotels are a business and as such are looking to maximize their profits. Not every hotel will offer great perks right from the start. You have to negotiate them. Many planners wrongly assume that a proposal from a hotel is not negotiable and that is far from the truth.
In reality, a hotels initial offer will have 10-15% wiggle room in case they need to negotiate additional price concessions or perks. So don’t be shy about asking for concessions. If you don’t you’re just leaving money on the table.
We gone over quite a bit of material so it’s time to look at some of the highlights
Let’s summarize, shall we:
- Groups can expect to get some great perks when booking a hotel.
- Some popular perks include free hotel rooms and or free meeting space.
- Getting perks on top of the discounted room rate can add up to savings of over 20%
- Perks, though are not just handed out. They have to be negotiated with the hotel.
Booking your next reunion, meeting, wedding or any other event as a group can be extremely beneficial. Not only do you save money on discounted hotel rooms, you will also get some great perks.
And who knows, you may find an extra loaf of bread on your night stand.
What should you do next?
If you’re looking to block hotel rooms, get started by filling out this form today and you’ll get some great group rates and perks too!