> It's not like there usually some magic involved, if they're willing to offer it to an aggregator, why wouldn't they at least consider offering it to you direct?
The magic is actually being given the direct authorization to give you a matching rate or if not then having to get management to authorize that rate for you. That depends entirely on the hotel. Some employees might also recognize a deal seeker as someone who's also more likely to be picky and complain more and so would rather deny your price negotiations and avoid working with you if they have the choice depending on how filled they already are.
The magic is actually being given the direct authorization to give you a matching rate or if not then having to get management to authorize that rate for you. That depends entirely on the hotel. Some employees might also recognize a deal seeker as someone who's also more likely to be picky and complain more and so would rather deny your price negotiations and avoid working with you if they have the choice depending on how filled they already are.