When I plan a trip, I want to
know I got a great deal. The number of online hotel booking sites available today make the decision-making even harder, but there are definitely ways to save on hotels and guarantee a great deal for your summer getaway.
How to save on hotels this summer
1. Look at package deals, air and hotel.
Book through sites that offer package deals such as Orbitz, Expedia and Travelocity. When you combine air, hotel and rental car you can save up to 20% over purchasing each item separately.
2. Check great websites.
Not all websites are created equal. I’ve written about kayak.com in the past. Another site similar to kayak is dealangel.com. This site compares deals across brands to help you find the best deal for your destination.
Ebates.com offers cash back on hotel stays. I compared Ebates prices to hotel chain “best price” and other online discounters and found that the cash back through ebates offered a great value. Hotel discounters offering blind bidding did offer a greater value, but I didn’t know which chain I’d be booking with. I’m fairly brand loyal, so the ebates offer was fabulous.
3. Use social media.
Communicate with favorite hotel brands through social media. Use Twitter, Facebook and Instragram to communicate with your favorite hotel chain. You might get an upgrade or free perk. This advice falls under the category of “it never hurts to ask.”
Starwood Hotels (@StarwoodBuzz on Twitter) post Tuesday travel deals of 40-50% off. (Sadly for me, I never seem to be traveling to those destinations… but maybe you are.)
4. Consistently use your favorite hotel brand.
Brand loyalty points add up and travelers can earn free nights for travel. Using the same hotel brand, most of which offer economy and upscale chains, you can earn credits toward free nights or upgrades.
5. Consider economy hotels for free wifi, parking and breakfast.
Economy hotel chains offer better deals to travelers. While 80% of high end hotels charge for wifi usage, only 8% percent of economy hotel chains charge for wifi. Economy hotel chains are more likely to offer free parking and breakfast included packages as well.
6. Check in late!
Hotel chains are more likely to offer room upgrades to guests who check in late. They want to fill upgraded rooms with paying customers, so they’ll hold those rooms until they know if they’re likely to be booked. The later you check in, the greater the chance they’ll give you an upgrade — assuming there’s a room available.
Do you have a tried-and-true tip for saving money on summer hotel savings? Please share!
Join in the conversation at Facebook and on Twitter. We love hearing from you!
I love the tips about late check in and upgrades and also communicating with them through twitter – great ideas. You are right, it never hurts to ask!
And love your new blog design!!
Leigh
Thanks! So far twitter campaign is not working — but my trip is still six days away.
If you have to check into a hotel while already in transit, ask the front desk if they have any discounts and specials to offer. The savings most of the time aren’t significant but saving any amount of money is a good thing. If you know that you are stopping soon and have access to a computer, try booking the hotel online from a restaurant or some place that has free WI-FI.
Excellent tips. Those who travel with smartphones can research rack rates and AAA/AARP discounts and ask for it at the front desk.
Never thought to check social media for perks! What a great idea! I’m always searching for the best deal!
I’m “courting” my favorite hotel chain by tweet right now. I’ll let you know if it works.
You are right about all travel booking websites being created equal. We used hotels.com a couple years ago for an overnight stay but found out that 1. it didn’t go toward the “qualifying” 10 nights stay to get 1 nights stay and 2. because we had booked through their site we didn’t get the points for the rewards at that hotel chain. We lost out on both sides! We still never figured out why it wasn’t a “qualifying” night!
I hate when that happens! I think you should join the cruise in January. I know that’s a good deal! 🙂
I find that by staying in rental apartments I get a much better deal, but when I have to stay in a hotel I look at their calendar and see what days are cheaper and then book those days. And hotels.com have actually had some great rates for me over the past few years, I have used them several times, as well as hotwire.com. I’m glad I found you on twitter!
Great advice. We use rental apartments whenever we can for travel — and saved hundreds last year renting an apartment in Paris, France. You sound like a savvy traveler! I appreciate your comment.
These are great tips! I didn’t know that Ebates did hotels and I had no idea about dealangel. I will have to check these out! Thanks
Glad to have helped.
Ooh… I love ebates. I wouldn’t have thought about checking for hotels on there! Thanks for the tip!
I’m trying all these tips to secure a hotel room for next week. I’ll let you know which one wins… well, not the late check-in. It’s just me. I don’t need a room upgrade for one person for one night. 🙂
Great tips, Karen! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
You’re welcome.