Accommodation costs can take up a sizeable portion of your traveling expenses, regardless of what the intended destination is. That’s why effective strategies aimed at reducing hotel costs are such a valuable tool for the modern traveler, and we’ve got you covered with our top tips on how you can employ such tools to significantly reduce your hotel bill the next time you travel, leaving you with more cash in your pocket at the end of the trip!
Consider airport hotels:
Airport hotels typically cost less than centrally located ones, especially in major cities where travelers have a wider selection to choose from. One of the benefits of staying close to the airport is the ability to take early morning flights, which often cost much less than flying late morning or in the afternoon.
In addition, a lot of airport hotels will throw in unique sweeteners like providing free parking for up to four days, or offering a free 24-hour airport shuttle for your convenience. Plus, staying close to the airport means spending less time traveling there, so you’ll have a few more minutes to snooze or enjoy breakfast before catching your flight.
Join a membership rewards system:
Quite a few organizations, from your credit card company to the AAA and golfing clubs, offer membership benefits that include rebates on certain hotels that belong to hotelier groups such as the LUX*, Hilton, Marriott and Beachcomber etc. The only requirement they have in order for you to earn points and access discounts is to spend a certain amount at any of their partner organizations and you’ll soon be reaping the rewards.
Check online prices:
Most hotels publish an online price list of all their rooms, and if you view it you’ll notice that prices for the rooms change from one season to the next, and differ according to size and positioning inside the hotel. Taking time to study this list will not only give you more control over choosing the specific room that you want, but can help you save more than you would if you were just booking haphazardly.
Checking prices online is also crucial for when you want to extend your stay, as you’ll be able to access information that lets you know whether the extra night is part of a peak or slow period for the hotel. Typically, weeknights are priced lower while rates tend to spike considerably during weekends and certain holidays. Should the room you’re after be priced higher, you’ll have leeway to negotiate a lower rate based on your current stay, while a lower rate will obviously translate to more savings for you. So always do your research before making a booking, whether it’s for the first time, or for an extended stay.
Pit hotels against each other:
When making your hotel booking, make sure that it’s a ‘cancellable’ reservation so that you can use it as proxy to shop around for a better deal. You see, it’s possible to pit hotels against each other by booking into one hotel and then calling into another to see if you can get a better price. Once the second hotel knows that you have an existing booking, they’ll want to outdo the other hotel by making you a better offer. Just be sure to speak directly to the clerk at the front desk, because they’ll have more authority to negotiate a lower rate than a call agent from the hotel’s toll free reservations line.
Check out international websites:
“Online travel start-ups like Groupon, LivingSocial and others, are always eager to attract and please customers with a constant supply of one-of-a-kind deals that you won’t find anywhere else. And these are just a few of the online based hotel search tools that you can use to diversify your search next time you make a hotel booking,” suggests backpacker Adrian from AtlantisGozo Malta.
More often than not, travelers look to U.S. based websites like Expedia when making hotel reservations- even when traveling to international destinations. Little do most people know that there are other online resources that they can use to access a diverse selection of international listings, such as Agoda.com, Momondo.com, Booking.com and Venere.com to name but a few.
