As travel heats up this summer, so are the prices of good hotels.

But, as KIRO 7 Eyewitness News Consumer Investigator Bebe Emerman has uncovered, there are ways to lower the bill.

So, you call your favorite hotel and -- surprise! The price they quote you is way out of whack. Well, don't check out just yet, we've got the key for unlocking rock-bottom room rates.

Tod Marks is an expert at getting great hotel deals. He checked rates for 100 rooms in five cities to find the best way to get the best price.

"Hotel rates are like airline rates. They vary all the time. You've got to call around. You've got to visit the Web sites," Marks said.

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Checking travel Web sites has gotten easier with new services like travelaxe.com. It searches many travel sites at once to help you compare prices.

"In this instance, we have a room priced $335, $253 and $149 and it's all the same place," he said.

But Tod had the best luck dealing with the hotel itself.

"Three out of four times we got the best deal going to the hotel's own Web site or calling the hotel directly," said Marks.

But don't stop there. Use that first price quote as a jumping off spot for an even better deal.

"That's a little out of my budget, but I really like your hotel chain."

Tod says 44 percent of the time when he negotiated with the hotels he wanted, he wound up with valuable extras.

"You can't cut the rate, but you can throw in the breakfast? Well, OK, that sounds pretty good."

To get the best deal, make your reservation as far in advance as possible, but call back a few days before departure to see if the rate has gone down.

You can usually cancel without penalty 24 to 72 hours before arrival and rebook if something better has turned up.