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Trusted motels?

mdf

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i use the hotels button in google maps to get a sense of what the geographic options are.
Then I usually book through the HIlton website or booking.com, but compare prices going direct.
I like Hampton Inn because it usually has good coffee... hotel lobby coffee can be pretty weak and bad.

That said, I did recently stay in a nearly-new Best Western in Maine and an independent mom-and-pop between Reno and Mammoth, and both were nice.
 

Jim Kenney

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What's priceline express? Is it different from priceline.com?
It's a lower cost function on the priceline website where you buy a motel room without knowing the exact motel until after purchase. You do know cost, rating, class, and location within a couple miles. Nonrefundable! Won't be acceptable for many folks, but if traveling solo or pairs can be good value.
 
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Tom K.

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Such a random roll of the dice. I've stayed in upper-middle level brands and had "not so great" experiences, if only a couple of times.

Then last summer, out of dire necessity -- bike race! -- we very reluctantly checked into a Motel 6. It was managed (owned?) by a vibrant young couple and the place was so spotless and shiny it almost required indoor sunglasses.
 

teejaywhy

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I generally look for newer places and have had good luck with Holiday Inn Express.

I also do the geographical survey using Google maps, look at photos and read reviews. Book directly because it's easier to make changes.
 

markojp

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Generally do a quick bit of research and go with price/rating, and don't mind local hotels at all. Chain wise, BW or BW+, Days Inn in Sandpoint was a nice and affordable surprise. When I used to travel with the pup, La Qinta was a go-to.
 

Uncle-A

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I don't travel as much as I use to, but always book in advance and have had good luck with Marriott.
 

crosscountry

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Then last summer, out of dire necessity -- bike race! -- we very reluctantly checked into a Motel 6. It was managed (owned?) by a vibrant young couple and the place was so spotless and shiny it almost required indoor sunglasses.
Last year was the "happy time" motel-wise. I think a large portion (90%?) of the motels did major update and remodeling during the down time of the pandemic!

I've stayed in quite a few budget motels last year. They were all spotless. Many got brand new interior, furniture and appliance. With that kind of condition, why pay more for the premium brands? So much so, I happily "downgraded" myself from Holiday Inns to Quality Inns and even Motel 6. :geek:

But those conditions didn't last. This year, those same new furniture and appliance were showing wear and tear. And the accumulation of dirt and grime over only a year...who would have guessed? I have by now been forced to upgrade myself back to Marriot and Holiday Inns.

(I've not have too much good experience with the Hilton brand. Maybe I expected too much. Found them disappointing)
 

Bad Bob

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When working on a project will often spend several months in a Small ttown getting paid a federal per diem rate. I try to stay in a BW or preferably a Sure Stay. It helps build the points and streches the per diem. All I need is a clean bed, good wifi, and a breakfast is good but often monotonous.
The lower the living expenses the more untaxed income left to play with.
 

PinnacleJim

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I have been using the Choice hotels (Comfort Inns and Suites and Sleep Inns) the last few years have been pretty happy overall. Generally lots of options, good prices and the Choice app works well. When doing a long drive (like to CO from NY) I will book the night before based on the weather forecast. Don't like scrambling for a room at the last minute when I am tired and hungry.
 

Tricia

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When we feel like its getting late, I'll often look ahead for a booking option while @Philpug drives.
Interestingly, where we stop changes over time as lodging options tend to be really nice then get a bit run down over time, then they get a facelift then run down.

Recently we've been happy with IHG and Hampton.
For longer stays we'll look for suites.
 

Jim Kenney

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A good link for sensible travel advice: https://www.checkbook.org/washington-area/60-travel-booking-tips/

Here's an informative excerpt from above link on booking cheap motels, I'll emphasize last sentence of this excerpt, "although you don’t earn points when booking mystery deals, we think forsaking some points to save 40 percent is a great tradeoff." Of course, if you're collecting tons of motel points from another source (work funded travel), then applying those points for free ski lodging is hard to beat. :)

-----------------------------------------------​

Best sites for hotel savings: Hotwire and Priceline.

While it may look like dozens of companies are competing for your hotel booking business, just two companies—Booking.com and Expedia—own most of the websites, including Agoda, Hotels.com, Hotwire, Kayak, Momondo, Orbitz, Priceline, Travelocity, Trivago, and many others. The lack of competition, combined with the agreements these heavyweight booking operations have struck with hotels, means you’ll typically find the same per-night rates displayed across various websites for the same stays—including prices offered by hotels themselves. Our researchers looked up nearly 2,000 hotel rates for 75 stays using 25 different booking sites (including hotel company websites) and found very little price variation among most options.

The only way we found to consistently save on hotel stays is to book a Hotwire “Hot Rate” or Priceline “Express Deal.” These “mystery deal” booking options on average knocked 28 percent off the prevailing rates offered by other travel websites and the hotels themselves.

Mystery deals present a slight gamble: You don’t learn hotel names until after you’ve paid—no backing out. It sounds risky, but you get plenty of info and filters to control key criteria and ensure you land at a good spot. And you often can match reported counts of ratings and property features with those displayed further down in search results for specific hotels, which allows you to figure out which mystery deals belong to which hotels.

I have booked hundreds of mystery deals and seldom had any trouble. The main risk is that they require prepayment—when I have to cancel or change a trip, I must rely on the goodwill of the hotel to make the switch. Fortunately, they’re usually happy to make changes.


hotel.jpg
Want to stay at a specific hotel? Book direct.

Since booking websites and hotels mostly offer the same rates for specific stays, you may as well book directly with the hotel, which might provide you better room selection, free upgrades, or other perks. Booking direct is also usually the best way to maximize any rewards points (although you don’t earn points when booking mystery deals, we think forsaking some points to save 40 percent is a great tradeoff).
 
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crosscountry

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although you don’t earn points when booking mystery deals, we think forsaking some points to save 40 percent is a great tradeoff
I get to use corporate rate from work even when on non-work related travels, I never pay the "market" rates. I don't often find the "mystery rate" all that much appealing in comparison.

I've used it occasionally when I don't have a strong preference ("one night stand": late arrival, early departure) in out of way places without chain hotels. But for the most part, I don't waste time to do what the author did, "matching rating counts and property feature".
 

Jim Kenney

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I get to use corporate rate from work even when on non-work related travels, I never pay the "market" rates. I don't often find the "mystery rate" all that much appealing in comparison.

I've used it occasionally when I don't have a strong preference ("one night stand": late arrival, early departure) in out of way places without chain hotels. But for the most part, I don't waste time to do what the author did, "matching rating counts and property feature".
Whatever works for you is the way to go. :thumb:

Regarding whatever works, I tell the story of the guy I chatted with about 7 or 8 years ago at Vail as we rode a chairlift. He looked pretty well-heeled and somehow it came up that he paid full price at the window that day for his ticket. I was thinking this guy may be wealthy and makes bank, but he is not very savvy about ski passes/tickets. Then he went on to explain that he had made the decision to go on this ski trip at the last minute based on current outstanding ski conditions, an opening in his heavy work schedule, AND that he was able to use hotel reward points to stay for free in a very nice slopeside property at Vail. He also mentioned frequent flyer miles had reduced the cost of his airfare. He turned out to be a lot more savvy than I initially gave him credit for.
 

tch

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^^^^ Ah...the reverse of the "bargain that isn't a bargain" trip. Prime example: "KIDS SKI FREE!" So you take an expensive flight cross country, rent an expensive condo, and buy two adult tickets at the window so...your kids can ski "FREE". Whoo-hoo!
 

crosscountry

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This being a ski forum, there's this huge focus on lift ticket prices.

But as someone who live away from the mountain, every skiing day is associated with accommodation in addition to lift tickets!

For the longest time, I avoided the Vail/Epic "empire". The killer part is the cost of lodging of the Colorado front range! It wasn't until Vail Corp added mountains outside of Colorado that I even start to THINK about the Epic pass!

Eventually, I finagled a place to stay in Summit county. And knowing that's a temporary setup, I skied in Vail/Breck/BC as much as I could find time. In the mean time, Vail bought a bunch of northeast resorts. So the equation changed. But as my setup in Colorado is likely coming to an end in the not too far future, I'll probably be getting off the Epic train following that.
 

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