How to save money on hotels.
There are many ways to save money on a hotel room. You can use everything from free online discount codes to travel comparison sites, loyalty programs and more. These tips will make any type of travel much more affordable. Find some of the best ways to save money on a hotel below.
Travelling can be expensive, especially for most families who live paycheck to paycheck and need to budget their income. Hotels can often take a huge chunk out of your travel budget - especially if you're planning to stay in a tourist-heavy location. However, you should never take the first deal you see. With a few effective life hacks, you can save money on hotels or even get a free room. Or learn how to travel for cheaper, and even stay for longer, as some jobs pay for housing as well as other expenses. Learn more here on jobs that pay for travel and housing.
Some of these free tips for saving money on a hotel or motel room will save you tens or hundreds of dollars by themselves. By combining them, you'll consistently benefit from incredible hotel deals, allowing you to stay in some amazing accommodations without overpaying. No matter where you're planning to go, here are several free tips for saving money on hotels.
1. Use price comparison sites
Whenever you're booking a hotel, it's important to check multiple booking sites to ensure you're getting the best deal. For instance, you might find that a hotel is $54 a night on one website and $49 a night on another. With that said, manually inputting your details on each site can be tedious - that's why hotel comparison sites, in particular aggregator websites, are a godsend for travelers.
There are many hotel booking comparison sites out there, such as Trivago, Skyscanner, and Kayak. These will aggregate and then compare deals from all of the top hotel booking sites to help you get the best deal. All of them are free to use. Google Maps also includes a handy hotel search feature that aggregates the prices from each booking site.
Keep in mind that sometimes you'll find even better deals by booking or reserving a room with the hotel directly rather than using a booking site. As many online sites take a “commission” from the hotel company or charge them a fee. Therefore contact the hotel or motel directly eliminates that third part commission, so some companies will pass those savings on you, the traveler.
You should also consider that you might get extra perks from booking with one site rather than another, such as special member discounts or loyalty points. Some will even give a free room if you spend enough money with them over time. Nonetheless, comparing prices is always a good way to lower your hotel expenditure.
2. Use hotel loyalty programs to save money or get a free room
Many hotel chains love to reward their loyal customers. As such, if you regularly stay at a particular location or even in a particular chain of hotels, make sure you take advantage of any loyalty programs out there. Some hotels offer reward points to customers, but you could also ask the hotel for a discount directly if you've stayed there before.
Alternatively, utilize the loyalty programs provided by some of the top booking sites. Booking.com offers a Genius Discount for members that can often reduce the price of your stay. Agoda also offers rewards in the form of Agoda cash. In these cases, it often helps to book with one booking site regularly.
Sometimes you can even get points to exchange for hotel stays from travel credit cards or airlines. If you travel regularly, it helps to take advantage of any loyalty programs available to you. Even if you don't travel too often, look for member deals on hotel and booking sites as you can often get an instant discount.
Note hotel and motel loyalty programs come and go, and can often change, often by the money. It can be difficult for anyone to keep track of. To keep up on the latest discount programs, and where to find the best deals, use the Points Guy for the latest.
3. Book the hotel and trip in advance
Getting the best hotel deals often comes down to booking at the right time. If you wait until a week before your trip to book a room, you'll usually find that prices have soared as hotels won't have as many rooms left at short notice. That's why it generally helps to book your hotel rooms in advance.
It's usually best to book your room at least 6 to 8 weeks before your trip. That way, many hotels will still have tons of affordable rooms available and you won't be stressed out about having to find a room. In some cases, hotels will have cheap last-minute deals, but these are usually harder to find and get snapped up quickly.
In addition you want to keep track of any price changes. As if you book a room several weeks in advance, if the hotel ends up having more inventory as that tip gets closer, the prices may come down. This is where other websites can help you track changes after you have book. Sites such as Rebookey, Hopper, and others will notify you of any changes and allow you to rebook the hotel room at the lower, less expensive rate.
It also helps to take advantage of generous cancellation policies. If you find an affordable hotel room 2 months out that allows you to cancel until a week before your trip, book it as soon as possible. That way, you still have 7 weeks to browse and find a better deal if you're not 100% sold on the original booking. It also gives you the flexibility to change the dates of your trip if necessary.
4. Look for free or very cheap hotel rooms
Low-income families or people that need to travel for a medical condition, such as cancer treatment or surgery, may be able to get a free hotel room voucher from a charity. There are also non-profit agencies that help cancer patients, such as CancerCare or National Charities Cancer Foundation. These and others can help a low-income family or someone with no money travel with their kids, loved ones or others for needed treatment.
The assistance programs are not that common, and some have waiting lists, but a free or affordable hotel room may be provided. These will also generally be income based vouchers and require proof of condition. Learn how to get an emergency hotel voucher.
5. Adjust your travel dates
Sometimes reducing the cost of your hotel stay is as simple as changing the dates. Hotels often change their rates based on demand, so you might find that you save a ton of money simply by altering the dates of your trip. Avoiding peak travel times is usually the key, but sometimes even changing your dates by a week or two can help.
There are also a few general tips that often help travelers save money. For instance, hotel room rates often soar on the weekends, so consider booking from Sunday night to Friday morning for a cheaper trip. You should also avoid booking while popular local events are going on such as sports games or festivals - hotel rooms will be especially expensive during these times.
Hotel booking sites can often help you find the cheapest dates for your trip, so use them to your advantage and be as flexible as possible. Of course, you should also factor in the cost of your flights - sometimes changing the date will help you get cheaper flights, but if the flight prices go up too much, you might want to stick to your original planned dates.
6. Look for discount codes
Looking for discount codes or cash back websites or apps is smart whenever you're making an online purchase. People often save hundreds or thousands of dollars each year by using discount codes when they're buying clothes, electronics, and even major purchases such as vehicles. You can also find tons of discount codes for hotels or cash back sites. Some of the leading ones include Rakuten, Swagbucks and others.
Whenever you're booking a hotel, look for the latest discounts from the hotel website. You should also look for discount codes for booking sites or cash back shopping apps. For instance, you might get a hotel room at significantly less than the normal rate by using a booking site with a 20% discount code available. Read more on cashback apps.
As for finding discount codes, you can use apps like Honey, check for student discounts, or even do a simple Google search. You might even want to join a travel forum or Discord group where people often share discount codes. Signing up for newsletters on hotel and booking sites can also help you nab discounts.
Conclusion
Whether you're taking a quick weekend trip or traveling around the world, these strategies will help you significantly cut your accommodation costs. In addition to that, these life hacks will bolster your savings and allow you to travel more frequently without financial dread, so remember to bookmark this page and come back to it whenever you're planning a trip.
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