We will be attending a family event in Chicago next month so I have been busy trying to find a decent price on a hotel room. We’ve spent many, many weekends in Chicago and I have always been able to find great deals on hotel rooms. This time was no exception. It took a bit longer than I had planned, but in the end it was time well spent.
While other children her age enjoy playing with dolls my two-year-old daughter loves animals, make that reptiles and dinosaurs (I have no idea why). I figured while we were down there we could take a side trip to Chicago’s Field Museum so she could visit SUE—“the world’s largest, most complete and most famous Tyrannosaurus Rex.” I happened to share this plan with the customer service representative who was helping me book my hotel room and asked if the concierge knew of a way we could get discounted tickets to the museum (mind you I already knew that the museum offered regular admission discounts on Mondays and Tuesdays). She put me on hold and when she returned she said she would be able to provide me with a free pass to the museum. WOW! (This is a great deal since my daughter is young enough to get in for free.) If that wasn’t enough she was also able to upgrade us to a corner room—something else I had inquired about since I had luck in the past getting an upgrade at the same hotel the last time we stayed there.
Which just goes to show—it never hurts to ask. I do it all the time. It doesn’t mean I get lucky every time I ask, but it doesn’t hurt to try. What’s more, I find that often it’s only in inquiring about services that you are told that they are complimentary. Case in point: when I was researching hotel rooms for our Hawaiian honeymoon I asked each hotel customer service representative about any and all complimentary amenities the hotel had to offer. I found out that the Big Island’s Mauna Lani Bay and Bungalows offered complimentary activities including:
Fish Feeding Tour: This free tour allows you to follow the resort’s fishpond manager on his rounds, feeding the colorful koi, baby turtles and sharks and learning about Hawaiian reef fish and the all of saltwater ponds located on the property.
Historic Tours: This guided tour gives you the chance to explore the ancient fishponds and petroglyphs around the resort.
Eva Parker Woods Cottage Museum: You will receive free admission to the resort’s museum. On view are historical displays of an ancient Hawaiian canoe, fishing gear, household items, spears, shark tooth objects and gourds.
Cultural Activities: Free ukulele, hula and Hawaiian weaving lessons are available for all guests.
These activities are all complimentary, but you would never know it unless you spent a lot of time digging around the resort’s website or had extensive knowledge of the property.
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