Have you booked a hotel room and showed up to find that the hotel was dumpy? If you have, you know a bad hotel can ruin your vacation. Luckily, you can get good accommodations at a price that’s affordable. In order to book a room with a reasonable rate, continue reading.
Before booking your hotel room, look to online review sites for in depth reviews from recent travelers. Here, you can read what people had to say about their hotel stay. The information provided by patrons of the hotel will help you make a good choice of where to stay.
Use travel websites, like Expedia and Priceline to find great hotel deals. If you are a member of a particular hotel’s loyalty program, remember to include that information when you are checking on rates. You can also get additional discounts from any organization you are apart of, such as the AAA or the AARP.
If you take a lot of electronic gadgets with you on a trip, lock them up in the safe when away from the room. Place all electronics there along with important documents, such as your passport or plane tickets.
Consider the benefits of any organization memberships you have. There are times when an organization will give you great deals on the price of hotels. A lot of people don’t use these discounts, and you may save 10% or even more. These discounts can save you quite a bit of cash, particularly if your stay involves several nights. If you stay for a week, these discounts will almost add up for a free night.
Find out if any organization to which you belong offers good discounts. Some of them may provide discounts on hotel stays. Some of these discounts can be pretty substantial, but many people don’t take advantage of them. This is a good discount that only gets better the longer you stay in a hotel. Over the course of a week it’s nearly a free night!
Take advantage of tools provided online when searching for a hotel. These websites can help you get great deals quickly. They can also allow you to look at the average rates of a hotel. You can also use them to explore the area around the hotel for recreation.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking all hotels will accept pets. Even if the website says they are pet-friendly, always call in advance to verify. Ask what pet-friendly means at the establishment. There may be some restrictions.
Always check for online deals prior to booking your hotel room. Often, the person booking your room won’t tell you about discounts available online. It is your duty to perform due diligence. Websites like TripAdvisor, Expedia, and Jetsetter always have promising bargains for certain hotels that you won’t find anywhere else for a better price.
To ensure that you and your special someone get the right couples massage during your stay, book your appointment as early ahead of time as you can. That’s because the highest quality masseurs and masseuses are typically booked way in advance due to their good name. Therefore, by planning in advance, you can ensure you have the best possible experience during your massage.
Plan your trip as far in advance as possible. Many hotels offer the best discounts if you book a few months in advance. You may find yourself saving as much as half off of the room’s typical rates.
If you run regularly, continue your routine when traveling by bringing running clothes and your GPS. This makes it easy for you to wake in the morning and get in a run. Whether you are running on roads or city streets, you will gain more knowledge about the city you are visiting while you run.
Don’t assume your hotel is pet-friendly. Be sure to call in advance and find out about their policies, regardless of website info. Be sure you know what pet-friendly means because there could be specific restrictions on sizes or certain breeds of dogs.
If there’s a hotel chain you stay at often, check out their membership programs for frequent guests. Like the programs for frequent flyer, these programs the hotel offer give you points whenever you stay with them. These points can quickly add up to many perks such as a free night, discounts at the hotel restaurants, spa deals and much, much more.
If you want to have a massage with your partner on your vacation, make sure that you schedule an appointment with a masseuse as early as possible. The best massage therapists are usually booked up for months ahead of time, and you don’t want to miss out.
Choose a green vacation if you care for the environment. These are much more common today than they were in the past. There are newer hotels that were built to be environmentally friendly. Older hotels might change practices to be more green. Ask around for hotels that are friendly to the environment.
Auto Club
The cost of your hotel will vary depending on when you make your reservation. Hotel rooms are priced based on how many are available. If you can, don’t make your reservation more than one day prior to your stay. In this way, you will get good rates. Empty rooms don’t earn a hotel any money, so they are willing to slash the price.
Be sure to consult AAA to help you make excellent plans for your entire vacation. It may come as a surprise to find that an auto club membership offers hotel discounts, but that is the case. Membership in AARP, a union, an auto club or even being a police officer can get you a discount. The more nights you stay, the more you will save.
One way to get discounts on hotel rooms is to join AAA. AAA members receive excellent discounts on hotels, car rentals and other attractions. It’s great to know that you can count on both of these things.
If you are a runner, be sure to bring your running clothes and shoes. Jogging around the city before you start your day will add enjoyment to your vacation. Running not only provides you with great exercise, but it also helps you better learn the city in which you are residing.
You don’t want to make too many long distance calls while you’re staying in a hotel room. Use the Internet, instead. Skype connections that are accessed through Wi-Fi are offered by many hotels. Use these connections to keep in touch instead of costly long distance calls.
If you book accommodations often, hotel loyalty programs are good to participate in. They provide benefits to travelers who regularly stay in the same hotel chain. You can often earn free upgrades, free stays, and complimentary late check out with enough points accrued.
Call ahead to your hotels to make certain the swimming pools are ready for your kids. Nothing is worse than having excited kids who find out they cannot go to the pool.
How much your hotel room will cost depends largely on the time you book. Hotels price their rooms based on how many rooms are available. Whenever you can, maker your room reservation no more than a day ahead of time. You’ll end up with a great deal this way. Empty rooms don’t earn the hotel money, so they’re happy to cut the price and reserve a room.
If you are inspecting a room for bed bugs, then the bathroom is the best place to start. This room is usually free from bugs. So, that means it’s the best place to stash your luggage and other belongings as you inspect the remainder of your suite. Put kids and pets in there, too.
Membership Programs
Check if a hotel you’re looking to stay at is non-smoking or smoking. If you are a non-smoker, then you should probably stay away from hotels that allow smoking. Even if you reserve a non-smoking room, the smell of smoke can circulate through the hotel’s air vents and cause your clothes to pick up the odor. There are times when smokers end up staying in non-smoking rooms, and smoking in them. Request a non-smoking room if you do not want to smell like cigarettes.
In order to enhance your hotel visits, especially when traveling for work, you should consider joining membership programs that hotels provide. Examples include membership programs provided by Marriott or Choice Hotels. That way, each time you stay, you accrue points that you can turn into vacation freebies when it’s time to take the family on an adventure.
Know what the pet policy is before you book. If you fear pets or have allergies it may be best to make reservations at hotels which do not have a pet-friendly policy. Because odors have a tendency to linger on fabrics and rugs, the hotel may have an odor about it. Some hotels charge a nominal fee for pets, while others charge substantially more. The fee may cover the extra cleaning or it may not, it all depends on the hotel in question.
Being a member of AAA can save you money on hotels. Members of AAA receive many travel benefits including reduced hotel rates and lower car rental rates. Those with youngsters will be grateful for the free car seats.
If you are going to need a rollaway bed or crib, specify this when booking your room. Not all hotels supply these items, and those that do have limited quantities. Also, you may face extra charges for the use of these items. Talk about these things when you make your reservations.
If you wish to see if a hotel room has bed bugs, check out the bathroom. This is the least likely place for bedbugs to be. That makes the bathroom the safest place to keep the luggage while you look through the remainder of the accommodations. Put kids and pets in there, too.
No matter how clean your hotel seems, never use the hotel bedspread for sleeping. The bedspread usually isn’t washed like the linens are. That can make it rife with germs and bacteria and who knows what. Just remove it from the bed.
Be sure you know what the hotel smoking policy is if you smoke cigarettes. Some have rooms for smokers. If your selected hotel does, ask for one. 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.
Make sure you know your rights if any hotel ever tries to “walk” you. Sometimes a hotel will overbook and you will find the room you booked is not available. As a result, hotels will attempt to escort you to another hotel. Avoid this if you can, but if you must go someplace else, make sure the room you get is comparable to the one you booked, and you are paid to travel there.
Always let the hotel know if you need a crib for your stay at the hotel. Many hotels have a limited number of these, so it is important to mention this at booking. Sometimes, there are also extra charges for items like these. Before making reservations, explain this.
Do not open that bottled water! You may be thirsty and tired. You may decide to reach for that bottle of water calling to you from the mini fridge. Hotels are aware of this; therefore, their bottled water prices are very expensive. Some hotels offer free bottles of water in their gyms. It is best to simply bring your own bottled water.
Don’t check out early, if possible. Many hotels will charge a fee for early departure. Whenever you reserve a room, it isn’t available to anyone else and the hotel will lose money if you cancel. To earn back this money they will lose, they charge you an additional departure fee.
You can save money when traveling by booking your hotel and flight together. Many travel websites will offer a significant discount if you book a hotel room as well as a rental car or flight. Compare the rates from different websites to find the best deals.
Beware of an establishment that attempts to “walk you.” This happens when the room you requested is unavailable because of overbooking on the part of the hotel. When this happens, the hotel directs you to another property, “walking” you. Getting there early can usually prevent this, but if you do get “walked,” make sure your accommodations are not being downgraded in any way.
To get the best hotel rate, do not book at the height of the tourist season. Rates are highest during this time. Instead you should try booking a room when it’s not peak season as this is when a hotel wants more visitors. This will give you a better chance of actually getting a discounted rate.
You should now know how to find an excellent hotel at a great price. When you know how to look for a hotel reservation deal, it’s quite easy. Just use these tips to guide you and start planning your next great getaway.
You may be able to receive an upgrade without being charged for one. You might be able to do this by arriving on time. Your room may not be ready, so the hotel could offer to switch you to something more expensive as a result.
