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My wife and I do a lot of traveling in our career as musical performers, and it often happens that a motel room is preferable to camping. I find it ludicrous that it usually costs close to $100 just to get a place to sleep for the night. If I can find something around $50, that's a bargain, and I won't pay above $60 unless it's an emergency. Really - all we want is a place to sleep, with a bathroom. We don't smoke, we've never damaged a room, and it's not like we're a liability.
I'd rather get rooms for less than $50. So I want to know - are there any truly GOOD rewards programs or other ways to get cheap rooms, which would reduce the average cost to below $60 at well-known chains? It becomes fatiguing always calling Joe's Motel type places and getting people who are barely understandable in their inability to speak the English language properly, having to make sometimes five or six calls to find a place that doesn't cost a fortune... every single stinking night we have to get a room.
I'd really like to find a rewards program, but I'll take any ideas you have (except "rewards credit cards" - I don't want to do that, as it would likely not save me any money above and beyond the rewards credit cards I already use for other things).
In South Florida, being that cheap could likely cost you your life.
I am assuming you are talking about the US and not some third world country?
In season, a dangerous Ramada Inn will run you $150 a night minimum.
Maybe you find a new line of work?
Hotwire or Priceline are the only things I can think of. Pay for it with a points credit card.
NO hotel chain offers '5 nights get the sixth free'.
The ADR for US hotels is $137 a night. That is almost three times your budget.
There's no way we could spend that much on a room. If you think about it, even at $50, we're paying, in round numbers, $5 per hour. $40 per hour just to SLEEP. This is why I thought about a rewards or loyalty program. If a particular chain got to know us as good clients that cause no trouble and make no mess, you'd think they'd give us a break just to get the business. After all, a hotelier once told me "next time don't book us on [major travel website], instead, call us directly". She then showed me a printout verifying that for my $45 booking (this was just a few months ago), the hotel got $25. If they'll take such a low amount for a room, one would think that they'd give a good client a room for $30 if it meant that the room would otherwise sit empty that night and make $0 for them. It's not like they have to do anything to the room after we leave except clean (and since we don't make a mess, even with a quick full bathroom cleaning, that should only take about 15 minutes) and replace linens. Assume a half hour of work for a housekeeper, plus the cost of laundering the linens. It doesn't come to $10, so they're making a hefty profit anyway. I could understand sticking to your high rates on a high-demand day, but if you have 60 rooms and only 14 are booked for tonight, and I want a room for tonight, why hit me for a huge amount, you know?
Sorry man, but you're not going to find any loyalty program or anything that will offer you the type of deals you are looking for. In my industry, we are on the road year round (I don't even live anywhere, I just travel from city to city 365 days per year living in hotel rooms). Again, if you're primarily travelling to cities in the middle of the country, you might be fine, $300-400/week is still doable for those cities, and you can usually stay at decent places for those prices, often with free breakfast as well. But go to the coastal cities or go anywhere during peak travel season and your budget will be impossible. Prices have gone up A LOT in the last five years. For example, I am currently in the Seattle area. In the past, I used to be able to bid $45 for a 3 star in the SeaTac or Bellevue zone and pretty much always got something. Right now I am paying almost $600/week for a crappy tweaker infested ExtendedStay America and that's after a negotiated corporate rate discount. Hotels aren't cheap anymore, you need to up your budget.
Maybe some of the Priceline type sites where you bid for a room? Also, I think there's some sort of a website out there were people discuss which hotels participate, so you have some idea before you bid as to what you might get.
NO hotel chain offers '5 nights get the sixth free'.
If you vigorously pay attention to the assorted promotions out there, you can sometimes do far better than that in the right circumstances. IHG (Holiday Inn and related brands) has its 'Accelerate' promotion right now where people just signing up to the IHG Rewards Club are being offered 'complete fours stays, get two nights free' which can be played awesomely with four one night stays at cheap Holiday Inns and Candlewood Suites getting you a free weekend at an Intercontinental.
Loyalty Lobby is pretty good at compiling current bonus point offers for assorted chains. The problem is that the good promo offers are for hotels above the OP's budget. Even the cheap HIX or Candlewood is probably a $80+ tax option in most locations.
The problem with Priceline snd the opaques at the 2.5-3 star level is that you get a lt of inconsistency at that type of accommodation. So you've narrowed it down to a cluster of hotels off exit 37 where there are five different options that meet the parameters of the bid. You could get the nice interior corridor La Quinta that is so squeaky clean that the only sign it's a 'pet-friendly chain' is the bowl of dog biscuits at check-in. Or you could get the Casa de Bedbugs with bonus stained shower curtain that gets a one star rating from Tripadvisor. And if you get CDB, you're stuck paying for it.
My wife and I do a lot of traveling in our career as musical performers, and it often happens that a motel room is preferable to camping.
Just because a motel is preferable doesn't mean you should choose it. If you don't always like camping, maybe you need better camping equipment, a better camper or RV or whatever. Motels are for short trips, usually when you fly somewhere and rent a car. They can get away with charging a lot because it's usually only a fraction of the total trip cost. Or if you frequently travel to the same place, consider getting a room there, year round, in a house with roommates, so it will always be ready for you. If you perform late at night, you will sometimes be annoyed that you have to check out of a motel by a certain time. If you have a room in a house, or if you camp, you can sleep as late as you want.
Agree with the camper/rv/minivan/truck camper suggestions. Usually you can find a spot for around $25 or less a night. I always consider myself lucky when I can get a motel/hotel room for $60-$80 a night. Smaller motels, outside of town are usually $75 or less. Less than $50 is probably not going to happen to often. I do always try to negotiate the price with hotels, sometimes it works.
airbnb.com --that is the best deal sometimes. I use them often.
I have done priceline a few times and have gotten excellent deals. I am just never 100% sure I am going someplace so I cannot cancel with priceline--so it is not a good deal for me.
Other than that--I feel anything less than a $100, well it makes me uncomfortable. I want a safe, clean, comfortable bed and pillow. A good night's sleep is important to me. Chances are good if I pay at least a $100 I will get that.
Last year I visited some friends near Dayton, OH for a weekend and booked online through Kayak.com. They got me in a Super 8 for $45.00 a night. I drove down, pulled into the parking lot of the Super 8, took one look at the building and didn't even get out of my car. Drove across the street and spent $150.00 a night to stay in a Hampton Inn.
When I contract with out-of-town musicians and actors for a musical production, I'd sometimes have to find them housing within our community of patrons and advertisers. Quite often, a local motel or inn is willing to trade a room for advertising at the musical event... Granted, It's always while working in the non-profit world that I did this contracting... plus, being in a tourist destination spot, housing sweetened the pot up for most performers.
Hit up the venue when you book your next gig. Someone there may have a granny unit or a studio, cabin... yurt, or something, available for the weekend. Tell 'em you need housing for the gig. Worth a try, anyway.
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