America features thousands of hotels, from luxury resorts bragging about their five stars to homely motels on the side of the road that look ancient. You can prevent a bad stay and have a good one by choosing a great hotel. Continue to read if you want to learn how to find the perfect hotel.
To get the very best prices for the hotels that you’d like to visit, use travel sites online like Orbitz and Expedia. If you are in a hotel loyalty program, put your information in. You might also have other discounts from a membership in the AARP or AAA.
Use online travel sites, such as Expedia and Orbitz, to find the best prices at the hotels you want to stay at. Make sure you notify the reservation clerk about any loyalty program you belong to with the hotel. Some organizations like AAA and AARP offer lodging discounts for a variety of hotel chains.
Would you like to enjoy the comfort of enjoying an incredible evening meal with your loved one without having to dress up and leave your room? If so, consider using room service. You will probably pay more for this meal, but for the convenience of having it delivered to your room, it is worth it.
Room service is great for late meals. The cost will be a bit higher, but not having to dress up and go out will be worth it.
If you belong to any organizations, check with them for travel deals. Hotel discounts are often one of the benefits offered. People frequently forget these discounts are available, and they can be 10 percent or more. This is a good discount that only gets better the longer you stay in a hotel. For a week of vacation time that adds up to an extra day!
If you wish to keep things safe in a hotel, use the hotel’s safe that’s in the closet of your room. Place your iPad, GPS and other small electronics in the safe when you are not in your room.
You want to look at a number of different things when booking a hotel stay. Of course price is a big deal, but a hotel close to where you are head is a big consideration. Things like free breakfast can make a big difference for some families. Try to get a room that fits your needs, then start shopping by price.
Always look for online deals before booking a hotel room. Lots of times, when you book a room, they don’t tell you about online discounts. So you should always search on your own for discounts prior to booking. Look at Jetsetter, Enrovia and Hotels.com.
If you want a nice massage for you and your loved one, book that as early as possible. Resorts that have masseurs often have very fully booked massage schedules, so it is important to plan ahead.
When you arrive at your hotel, thoroughly check your room previous to unpacking. Is the room clean and devoid of issues like mildew and mold? Do the plumbing fixtures function properly? Are linens and towels in ample supply? If you have any problem with the room, report it immediatlely to have it fixed as soon as possible.
If you have a AAA membership, it may qualify you for a hotel discount. You may not know that your membership to the auto club includes discounts on hotels. You may save 5% or even more on nationwide hotels. The savings can really add up nightly.
Verify the check-in time at the hotel. If you don’t know you may end up waiting a long time. Call the hotel if you are early and find out if your room is ready.
For people who are frequent travelers, consider signing up for some loyalty programs with your favorite hotels. They provide rewards to those who stay with them often. You can earn things like free upgrades, complimentary late check-out times and free stays if you accrue enough loyalty points.
There are three things you must do before bringing your pet along on your vacation. Confirm that pets are allowed in the room you are staying. Also, bring a lot of plastic sacks like ones from the grocery store so you can get your pet’s messes cleaned up. When you go to make the hotel reservation, see if there is room on the end that would prevent the other guests from hearing a noisy pet.
If you tend to stay at the same hotel a lot, see about signing up for their frequent guest program. Just like with a frequent flyer mile program, you can get points for staying a hotel. They will get you discounts on the hotel restaurants, spa deals, and just a number of great stuff.
If you want to keep up the running regimen you have while traveling you should get your GPS watch packed with some running clothes. You can still enjoy your early morning jog while on vacation if you have your gear and the right room booked. Running down city streets or country roads can give you a fresh view of the place you are visiting.
If you care about the environment, then you may be interested in taking a “green” vacation. There are plenty of “green” hotels that take the environment into consideration. Newer hotels are sometimes built according to green standards. Some of the older hotels do implement green practices to be sure they are eco-friendly. Finding hotels that are environmentally friendly can be as easy as asking your favorite travel agent.
You may wish to consider a “green” vacation if the environment is one of your concerns. The number of “green” hotels is steadily growing. Some of the newer hotels were built with green standards in mind. Some of the older hotels do implement green practices to be sure they are eco-friendly. Check online or ask a travel agent for help.
How much you’re going to pay for your hotel room will depend on when your room is booked. Rooms are typically priced according to availability. If you can, make your room reservations only a day in advance. This can net you a great deal. Hotels don’t like to have vacancies so they often provide better prices.
How much your hotel room will cost depends largely on the time you book. The price of a hotel room varies with availability. If it’s possible, your room should be booked around a day in advance or more. A late booking when the hotel is slow often results in a bargain. Hotels are often happy to slash prices on impending vacancies since they will get nothing if they can’t book the room.
If you do a great deal of traveling, consider joining hotel chain loyalty programs. These points can translate into some major perks when you’re vacationing.
Avoid making long distance calls from the hotel room phone. If you don’t have a cell phone or the Internet, buy a calling card to keep with you during your trip. With a Wi-Fi connection, you can use Skype for your calls. In this way, you can stay in touch with friends, relations and colleagues without racking up a big phone bill.
Sign up for AAA to ensure easier hotel arrangements when traveling. You’ll get discounts on hotel rooms, easier car rentals and more benefits. It’s great to know that you can count on both of these things.
If you are traveling with kids, make sure the hotel you book has a working pool. It can prove rather frustrating when you check in to your room with the kids screaming “pool” only to find out it’s closed.
If you wish to have happy kids while you’re on the road, be sure you call a hotel to see if they have a working pool at the time. Showing up at your hotel and finding out the pool isn’t in working order can ruin an otherwise great trip.
Look into the smoking policies in the hotel you are considering. If you are a non-smoker, you will enjoy a non-smoking room more. You can still get a room that’s non-smoking, but the smoke can flow in the air and get on all your clothes. You may find that a smoker has been in your non-smoking room before you and ignored the rules. If you don’t want to smell like cigarettes after leaving your hotel room, you might want to look for a non-smoking hotel.
Check in the bathroom first for bed bugs. This is usually one of the few places you won’t see any. Therefore, you can put your luggage here while you look over the remainder of the room. It is also a safe spot for your pets and kids.
Look into the hotel policy with regard to pets. If you fear pets or have allergies it would be best if you make reservations at hotels that have a strict no pets policy. The hotels may have the smell of pet odors on the linens and floor. Some hotels have an extra fee for pets, and the charge is not much in some places. The fee may be for any cleaning that needs to be done.
See if the hotel is non-smoking or smoking. If you’re someone who doesn’t like cigarette smoke, you may want to find a different hotel. The smoke flows through the hotel and can stick to you. In addition, some smokers will rent out non-smoking rooms and smoke in them. By choosing a hotel that does not allow smoking, you can completely avoid the smell of cigarettes.
Avoid sleeping under the bedspread. The top bedspread usually isn’t cleaned as often as the sheets or blankets underneath. This means you might find that the bedspread is carrying germs and bacteria. Simply remove it from your bed.
Determine what the policy on smoking is if you smoke. A lot of hotels have rooms designated for smokers. So if you are a smoker, be sure to ask for one of those rooms. Some hotels charge large penalties if they find that smoking occured in a room not designated for it, so make sure you follow the hotel’s smoking rules.
Be aware of your options in case a hotel “walks” you. If your hotel overbooks, your room may not be available when you get there. This means that you’re going to have to go somewhere else. Try to avoid this if you can, but if not, make sure that you are given a room that is equal to or better than the one you booked. They should also provide you with transportation to get to the other hotel.
Always find out the pet policy at any hotel you stay at. If you don’t like pets or are allergic, you want to avoid pet-friendly hotels. These hotels could have weird odors because of smells getting into the linens and the floor. Some hotels are pet-friendly and don’t charge for it, while other hotels will add a hefty fee for keeping a pet. It might not be adequate to the cost of cleaning demands.
Some people take the first reservation they can find when searching for a hotel. This approach may backfire. Use the tips here to find the best deals on great rooms.
You should know that you generally aren’t going to be able to do an early check-in at a hotel. Plan your trip right or you might end up waiting in a hotel lobby. Hotels need the time to clean your room so it is ready for you to check in. Having said that, don’t hesitate to ask the front desk about checking in if you do arrive early; however, you shouldn’t expect to be able to do this. The best thing you can do is arrive on time.
