June 14, 2011
Saving money on vacation lodging
Start planning early. We started looking about 6 months ahead of time, when it was still the dead of winter. The main reason I did this was to get the days off work that I wanted. We were also able to shop around for accomodations. Lodging fills up fast on the island where we are going, and tends to be expensive in the “High Season”. By starting our search early, we were able to find a cabin with a reasonable price and the amenities we wanted.
Decide what kind of accomodations you need. We usually do fine in fairly basic rooms. On our last real vacation, we spent 5 days in a hotel in San Francisco that didn’t have a fridge. We survived by chilling our beverages in an ice bucket filled from the ice machine down the hall. We ate all our meals out. Fortunately, food in San Francisco wasn’t very expensive. I do like to have a fridge, because it means I can bring more food from home. So this year, I made sure that all the rooms we are staying in on our vacation have fridges. Other than that, we don’t need much. We don’t need pools, weight rooms, cushy bathrobes, a pillow menu, or even Wi-Fi. I’m a pretty adventurous eater, but draw the line on powdered eggs reconstituted in a warming tray, so continental breakfast is also a non-essential. However, a coffee maker is essential because my husband cannot think straight in the morning without a big cup of coffee.
Stay away from chains (unless you really like a particular chain, stay there a lot, and get reward points for each stay). I find them to be sterile and boring at best. The last time I stayed at a chain, my husband and I were miserable because compact fluorescent bulbs glared from every light fixture in the room (and there were about 10 in the room). The hotel was located on the outskirts of town, surrounded by abandoned strip malls from the 70′s and cracked asphalt. It was less than romantic. We are visiting the same town again on this vacation, and this time we are spending about $10 more for a hotel in the center of town, in walking distance to restaurants and shops, and with a better view. Hopefully the lighting and ambiance will be better as well. We like independently owned hotels. I find that I can get good discounts at these types of places. I use online codes, coupon books, and Triple A discounts to get a good value.
I also tend to avoid Bed and Breakfasts. I have stayed at a few in my time, but found the decor is usually stuffy and overwhelming, and the walls are very thin. Sometimes the owners have lots of rules about their homes and are nosy. I have even seen B&Bs that do not allow unmarried couples to stay there! You have to be a real people person to stay in a B&B, because you will encounter the owners and other guests at close quarters, and most likely they will want to chat. It also helps to be an early riser and a morning person, because the breakfasts are often served in the early morning, around a communal table. While off-season bargains do exist, usually you will find that you are paying a premium for the stuffy decor and high-calorie breakfast.
I use Trip Advisor to find hotels with good ratings, and then I go to the hotel’s website directly to check rates. I find that by going to the hotel’s website and checking to see if they offer a Triple A discount, I can get better prices than if I book through Orbitz, Expedia, or Hotels.com. Some hotels don’t offer Triple A discounts, but sometimes doing a Google search for “hotel name” + “coupon code” or “discount” might turn up some results. Or the hotel might offer a discount for booking in advance or booking online, or staying a certain number of nights. Another good rule of thumb is to book at hotels that cater primarily to business travelers on the weekend, when they are less full. Conversely, vacation resorts might have lower rates on the weekdays.
