How to Save Money on Hotel Reservations
Most everyone loves taking a vacation, but sometimes the total cost of traveling prevents some from going where they would like or for as long as they would like. There are ways to help cut costs on nearly every part of a vacation from airline tickets, car rentals, hotel prices and even tourist sites.
Hotel costs can be outrageous, but there are ways to rope them in a bit making them more reasonable. You do not have to pitch a tent on the side of the road, if that is what you are thinking. But, you do not have to stay at the costliest hotels either. If you are on a budget, consider more the middle of the road priced hotels. Most of these include a very nice continental breakfast. Some even include a manager’s reception in the evening, often including a glass of wine or beer and heavy snacks which would be enough for dinner. The high end hotels do not offer continental breakfasts or the evening social. The lower end hotels usually include a continental breakfast, but usually that is a packaged pastry and coffee.
Make sure you always sign up for the hotels rewards program. These can give you points that build whenever you stay at those chains, and can then be redeemed in the form of free nights or gift cards. If you do not think you will be staying at those hotels very often, many hotels instead will offer points to go toward frequent flyer miles on most any major airline. Some even offer you the ability to collect both points and airline miles. If you do end up staying in those chains often, you can find that you may just have several free nights by the end of the year.
When making reservations online, there is a rate section. Check out the different types of rates available, such as senior discount, AAA discount, military or government discount or internet discount. Everyone can qualify for at least the internet discount which is usually ten percent off the basic rack rate. But check every one that you qualify for every time you make a reservation because sometimes the senior discount is the best and other times the government discount is the best. Also, many times the hotel will have an advance pay discount. This means that you pay a much lower fee but you need to know that if you cancel that reservation for any reason, no matter what, you will not get your money refunded. Be very careful on those. Most of the other reservations can be changed without charge.
There are many other ways to save on hotel reservations, but these suggestions should get you started on your way to having a less expensive vacation. There are so many other things you can use that extra money for, why spend it when you do not need to. Have fun!