I’m all for alternative lodging — everything from hostels to camping to staying with friends — but there are times when a motel is the best or only option, so this post I’m going to stick specifically to how I try to find good motel rooms without shelling out a bunch of money, and I’ll cover other forms of lodging another time. Depending on location, a motel doesn’t have to be terribly expensive. The places viewed as prime locations, of course, are usually more expensive, so you’re not going to find super budget prices near airports or in downtown areas. Small towns often have cheaper lodging, and if you’re in the city you could look for something a little more off the beaten trek.
There are several things we all unconsciously take into consideration when we look for a place to stay, besides price. Location: is it where we need to be? Is it too difficult to find, or too far out of the way to make even a cheaper rate worthwhile? Quality: is it clean? Safe? Legit? Amenities (I can’t say that word, can you?): do you need breakfast? An airport shuttle? A pool to keep the kids from bouncing off the walls so you don’t have to live in fear of your next-room neighbor banging for you to keep the uproar down?
Location is the most basic starting point. If you don’t know where you will be on a given night, exactly, then the most worthwhile motel will be one that is easy to find when you’re ready to crash. But if you are planning ahead, either a stay in a certain area or a stop along your route, you can do some comparison shopping. For a stop on a road trip, chances are a couple of different towns might work, so you have more options that way. If you don’t have your own transportation or you need to be close to a certain location, your choices will be narrowed down into a smaller area.
I usually start by looking for any hotel chains that I have a rewards membership with or ones I’ve had good results with in the past, sometimes followed up by a search on a site like Expedia to get an idea what kind of prices are out there. Some locations, let me warn you, simply aren’t cheap. That was what I found out with downtown Boston, where it seemed impossible to get a room for less than $150 per night, and many were close to $200. (See my trip to Boston, starting here, to find out how I dealt with it). Remember that when you see a room price, you can add about another $10 (nice round number) for taxes — often, taxes aren’t included in the quote you see, although sometimes they are. Events in the area can drive prices up, so that’s why I like to check in more than one town if at all possible.
Now, I often lean toward chain motels. It seems easier to find and compare prices, and you usually have a pretty good idea what you’re going to get. But if I have time, I never turn my nose up at looking for independent motels, either. There can be good ones and bad ones, just like chains. I’m not wiling to sacrifice cleanliness and safety for price, so I’m cautious about those small independent motels you find in every town, just because what you can find out about them before showing up on the doorstep is often limited. Some have websites, some just show up on a search engine where you can maybe find a phone number, and that’s it. And that’s my only caution about the little places. I’ve stayed in some that were fine, and some even have a character all their own, but some just look run down, if you can find photos online, and not like a place I would like to stay. There was one in particular . . . I don’t even remember the name of the town, but it was a little town, around a bunch of other little towns. We were tired and behind schedule, and there didn’t look like there was any other lodging coming up for a while. The carpeting in that motel was not something you wanted to step on with your bare feet, there were some odd pipes and things sticking out of the bathroom wall, and the mattresses felt like puffy marshmallows. But, all’s well that ends well, right? We slept and left the next day, and nobody got any cooties or anything.
After finding some options, I often like to call the motels, unless I’m convinced I can get the best possible rate online. Sometimes you can get discounts if you’re a member of certain organizations, or your company may have a corporate rate with some motel chains, or at least you can ask if they have any discounts that might fit you. Be honest and courteous and don’t ask for a discount you’re not entitled to! But we got a funeral discount once, and a returning customer discount another time. Last summer I frequented a Super 8 when I was in town on business several times, and a couple times they gave me a free upgrade to the king-size jacuzzi suite — ahhhh! My family has even been known to take sleeping bags along — you can usually get a couple sleeping bags on the floor of a motel room with beds for four. Some motels ask how many people are in the room, and won’t allow more than the stated number, but some don’t ask.
Rates don’t usually seem to go up as the date of your stay gets closer, but you could certainly experience all the cheap rooms getting filled up, leaving you with only more expensive options — or sometimes, none at all. That’s why I like to book in advance.
Your turn! Any tips or advice you can add for us?
Travel and Fun on a Shoestring 