It's a Good Day When You Book The Right Hotel At the Right Price

main of Hotel Booking How-To

There’s plenty of reasons to book a hotel. Maybe you need to head somewhere for a work trip. You could be visiting friends or family who don’t have extra room. Hopefully you’re heading off for a vacation. Finding the best deals and booking your next hotel is often a hassle. This guide identifies discount choices and resources for comparison and booking solutions. The extent of most people’s hotel booking experience starts with googling the nearest hotel and soon ends with a room reservation having the most “reasonable-sounding” price. What exactly is considered reasonable, they wonder? While having general equitable knowledge is helpful, finding the best deal goes beyond that. Not only will the next hotel stay be affordable, one will surely benefit from the most competitive prices in the area. 

Finding a Discount on Hotel Bookings

Most of us do not want to waste time or money when planning. Luckily, the internet has brought users innumerable resources and booking sites to choose from, all of which many do not know exist. If you want to get a discount, follow these steps. 

  1. Make An Account - Many booking sites offer member-only savings options. By signing up on a booking site, members gain access to reward programs where you can earn free nights after a specified number of bookings or exclusive discounts. If one finds the bombardment of emails vexatious, clicking “unsubscribe” after their one-time sign-up is an option.
  2. Book Ahead - By booking ahead, people can “hold” competitive rates and cancel free of charge should they need to. If they know they are keeping the trip and will not cancel, booking a non-refundable rate gives you an even more significant discount. So, it is safe to say that it pays to plan ahead.
  3. Collect Points - An advantage of rewards programs is you can collect points to earn free or upgraded hotel stays. Most are aware that many major hotel chains offer rewards programs. Similarly, hotel booking sites do as well. Becoming a rewards member on a booking site means you are required to book through that same site each time, but you can stay at multiple hotel chains. So, you still get rewarded for staying at the Hilton tonight and the Marriott next month.
  4. Become a Card Holder - Arguably one of the easiest ways to save on traveling is signing up for a hotel rewards credit card. Because card issuers continuously compete for their business, huge bonuses can be earned through using their card for your everyday purchases.

Hotel Comparison Options

When someone is ready to find a hotel in their area, it is recommended to check out some of the most popular hotel comparison sites. Using these sites, they can identify features (such as size and number of beds) and compare them to the prices offered at other nearby motels. Here are four of the most accessible and known Hotel Price Comparison sites:

  • Trivago: A global hotel search website. The site offers visitors a comparison of hotel pices across 190 countries and 1.3 million hotels. As one of the most popular online booking engines, Trivago lets one quickly compare hotel deals and identify the best prices.
  • Kayak: The site compares hotel, flight, and car rental prices. To ensure people find their best rate and never miss a deal, price alerts go directly to his or her smartphone or via email.
  • Momondo: Not only can they compare hotel prices across hundreds of sites, but hotel and car hire prices are also differentiated all on one platform.
  • HotelsCombined: This site is one of the most prominent players in the hotel comparison space. It brings all the top travel sites and their prices into one place.

Hotel Booking Apps

Using handheld smartphones daily, there are more and more apps being designed for the convenience of users. Before planning your next vacation, download hotel booking apps for free to unlock last-minute deals, get rewards, and provide additional accessibility.Some of the most popular apps, free for Android and iPhone users are:

  • Hotels.com
  • Priceline.com
  • Hilton
  • Marriott
  • Expedia
  • Hyatt
  • Hotels Tonight

For additional information, including details about the listed apps and other popular apps unmentioned, check out this article.