MIAMI—Last year at Art Basel Miami Beach, one rumor had it that the Swiss were moving the fair to Los Angeles. Why? Because Miami hotel prices were too high. The Miami Herald and the Art Newspaper piled on, complaining that owners were greedy. There was fear in the land. What if Art Basel left Miami? (In technical terms, this is called a “feint.”)

When ABMB started in 2002, early December was preseason in the city. Director Sam Keller said that he had chosen the dates because “hotel rates were reasonable.” But Basel has spurred its own High Season. By 2005, official hotels for the fair (the Delano, the Shore Club) were charging $3,000 a night for terrace suites and bungalows. The Setai clocked in at $3,250 for a two-bedroom suite with a balcony on the ocean.

In 2006, after the numbers went even higher, hoteliers promised to improve things. They would be greedy, but not too greedy. And the threat of moving the fair moved on.

This year? Surprisingly, even with a rate of $6,000 a night at the Setai for the prime dates between December 5 and 9, no one seems to be complaining. For one thing, the $6,000 rate is for a three-bedroom suite, and the luxurious Setai has a great position: It's on the beach, a few blocks from the Convention Center, and a block from Art Positions, the containers on the sand.

Besides, “high” prices are always relative. Fernando Canale, the general manager of the Hotel St. Augustine in South Beach, said that he considered this year's Basel rates reasonable. (The St. Augustine charges around $250 a night during Basel, but if you don’t have a room yet, don’t even try. They’ve been sold out for six months.) And he’s right—at least compared to what the hotels were charging for Super Bowl XLI in February.

How bad was it for the Super Bowl? That event, of course, was much bigger than Basel, with some 120,000 visitors. The Hotel Conrad upped its price from $1,000 to $1,599 a night. Houses and condos were available for stratospheric rents. And you could actually buy your way into one party, thrown by Maxim, for $1,750 a person, as long as you also bought a $6,000 package that included four nights at the Albion and tickets to the game.

By that standard, gouging this year at Basel? Not so bad.

Still Looking for a Place to Stay?
The 40,000 people coming to Basel pretty much want to stay in hotels along Collins Avenue, from the Setai to the Sagamore. Those hotels are Basel heaven, with the UBS party at the pool at the Delano on Wednesday night, Jeffrey Deitch celebrating with 800 friends at the Raleigh, and Marty Taplin throwing a brunch for Spencer Tunick on Sunday. Unfortunately, rooms at those hotels were sold out months ago.

But finding a room is still possible. Here are five ways to do it:

1. Try a hotel far away. The Art Miami satellite fair, located in Miami rather than Miami Beach, suggests hotels like the Alexander, at 52nd and Collins, and La Flora, at 123rd and Collins. Those are in the St. Augustine price range but without the amenities or the proximity. The Fontainebleau, at 44th and Collins, still has rooms for $500 to $800 a night. But anything on upper Collins is a bit of a schlep no matter how often people say, “just minutes from South Beach.” Unless you have a car or a driver, you’ll pay a fortune for cabs.

2. Wait for a cancellation. That’s what the journalist Vivianne Lapointe did a week ago. She is coming to Basel for the first time with Corno, a Canadian artist who lives in New York. “There were very few options,” Lapointe said. They nabbed a cancellation for a Very Very Victor suite at the Hotel Victor for December 5 through 12, at $5,180 (nonrefundable) for the eight nights. (That broke down into nightly rates ranging from $900 during the fair to considerably less after it ends on December 9.) When she found the cancellation, she said, “I honestly got the best service EVER.” (And as of late November there was still a Very Very Victor room available.) Try the South Beach Luxury Hotel Group for a cancellation at http://www.southbeachluxuryhotels.com/index.shtml.

3. Do like the high rollers do: Come early, leave early. Most of the big buyers come Monday, Tuesday at the latest, in their private jets. They go to the NetJets party on Tuesday night. They buy art on Wednesday and they are gone by the time Art Basel opens to the public, on Thursday, December 6. You will be, too. The Delano has a room—partial ocean view, king-size bed—available December 1 through 5 for $685 a night. The same kind of room would go for $1,875 a night during Art Basel, with a four-night minimum. If it were available.

4. Go way downscale. There are motels in Miami close to the Design District and Wynwood that offer real bargains. Yes, there may be hookers. In fact, hookers are pretty much guaranteed to be patrolling on Biscayne Boulevard. (Think the Reeperbahn.) But look at these rates: The Motel Blu, at 7700 Biscayne Boulevard, has rooms with Wi-Fi, DirectTV, and a pool available for around $64 a night. The King Motel at 7150 Biscayne is the same price. The key word here is “available.” Yes, you will need a car, but you will be able to drive to Wynwood in 10 minutes. 

5. Take advantage of the rotten real estate market. Since condos are in over-supply, why not rent one for Basel? Mitzi Koch has a string of rentals available, like this one in the Murano Grande, in the South of Fifth neighborhood. It’s $650 a night and can sleep four.

Linda Lee, a former editor at the New York Times and of the Art Basel Miami Beach magazine, runs Miami Architecture & Design Week, December 3–9, and the Web site www.ma2dweek.com.