Don't use the phone. Most people know by now that hotels charge an arm and a leg for even the shortest of local calls. A lot of people think they can get around this by bringing along a calling card. Forget about it. You will be charged for every second your room phone is off the hook, unless you are calling within the hotel. The biggest mistake you can make with the hotel phone is to take up those credit card direct dial offers that you often find by the bedside table. Avoid these at all costs! Not only will you be charged by the hotel per minute for the supposed "toll free" call, weeks later you will find out that those calls can cost up to five US Dollars a minute.