Do you like saving money when you travel? Do you enjoy scoring the best hotel deal when you are booking your vacation? There are four simple steps Bonnie uses to get the best hotel deals. If you use these tips you will enjoy luxury Four and Five Star hotel resorts at three star prices.
Step One
First check prices on Trip Advisor for your destination. Bonnie selects four-star and five-star hotels to narrow the search. You can search by lowest price or by traveler ranking. Trip Advisor is good place to start because you see the best prices on various booking sites all in one place. It is almost a one stop shop. On Trip Advisor you can read reviews and get a feel for which property you would prefer to stay. This is why step 1 is important.
Step Two
Go to Hotwire. Bonnie uses Hotwire to get screaming deals. If you book a HotRate Hotel it is a mystery. You don’t know your hotel but if you click on the map of the area you want to be in and aren’t picky about the hotel chain you can score a great deal. If Hotwire says, the last person got the ( _________ hotel) You are fairly certain you will get the same one when booking in the USA. Some people complain about Hotwire because they book a low approval hotel, lower star or get an area they didn’t want to be in. Bonnie uses Hotwire for 4 & 5 star hotels and she has never been disappointed. Bonnie only books the Hotrate hotels with high Trip Advisor reviews or approval ratings of 80% or more. Using the Hotwire map will ensure a stay in the area you wish to be in.
For example, Bonnie is heading to Denver for a wedding this month. All the downtown four-star Denver hotels are over $200 a night. On Hotwire a new hotel with a high approval rating is $98 plus tax so she booked it. It was the Hilton Denver City Center and it was over $239 a night. This is how Bonnie has scored incredible hotel deals for luxury hotels around the world in Venice, Rome, London, San Diego and Hawaii.
It is icing on the cake if you get a promo code from Hotwire to save even more. There are times Hotwire doesn’t have the best deals that is why Step 1 is so important as you will compare the star ratings to the prices. Sometimes it may even be obvious of which hotel you will get by comparing the amenities and trip advisor rating if it is shown.
Step Three
You’ve already seen the rates on TripAdvisor for most third-party travel sites in step one. Check your email for any promo codes from Hotels.com, Orbitz, Expedia or Travelocity. Expedia, Inc. owns these sites. If you don’t have member accounts with these third-party travel sites, sign up. Each of them offer 10% off discounts to their members on every booking. Recently, Orbitz and Travelocity emailed 15% off promo codes to members. This is good when you know exactly which hotel you want to stay at and not risk a surprise. When using the promo codes you can sometimes beat the HotRate hotel and know exactly which hotel you are getting at the time of booking. Sometimes these rates will be better than booking direct.
(When you book with a third-party travel site you don’t get points or any loyalty perks)
Step Four
Go direct. Once you know where you would like to stay, go direct. Sign up for the hotel brands loyalty program. If you have loyalty with a hotel brand, you can score bonus points and as a member will have the best rates. You usually get some perks with status such as complimentary water, free wi-fi, or late check out. Usually they will match rates you see online, except Hotwire hot rate hotels price. Call them and say, ” I found this rate on Orbitz and I was wondering if you will match it.”
Ways to get free hotels– using your credit card points, or getting a credit card for that chain. Once a month, go online and sign up for bonus point promotions with the hotel brands you use. Once you have built up loyalty rewards, check for a free night using points.
After researching, Bonnie will go one step further and check her loyalty accounts and see how many points they are asking for a free reward night. If you are short on my points, you may consider purchasing additional points if it makes financial sense. Look for promotions using rewards such as Marriott’s and SPG’s program of booking Four reward nights and getting the Fifth night free.
Using a combination of points and purchasing points, Bonnie scored a reward night at the Bora Bora Le Moana Hotel
Intercontinental Bora Bora Le Moana Resort
It’s best to use your reward points on very expensive hotels like in Bora Bora- where rooms are more than $700 a night, Bonnie used a reward night and purchased additional points on a bonus offer with IHG rewards. When she arrived at the Intercontinental Bora Bora Le Moana they upgraded her to their finest room that is usually $1,300 a night. By purchasing the additional points she got her room for less than $400. It was partially luck to get the upgrade but a great way to use her reward points.
Using each of these steps will help you find the best hotel deals when traveling. You will be satisfied knowing you got the best hotel for the best price. It may be a little time-consuming but enjoying luxury for less is worth it. Bonnie thinks the more you save on traveling the more travel you get to enjoy.
Cheers,
Bonnie
