When organizing a holiday, one of the most vital features is accommodation; however, this also tends to be one of the most expensive factors. Therefore, holiday goers across the globe find themselves on the hunt for cost-cutting tips and tricks when it comes to booking travel accommodation. With this being said, make sure you clear your cache after conducting your research; otherwise, the price will likely have increased by the time you return to the site at a later date. Similarly, you should always remain conscious of the dates, as prices will increase during school holidays. Read on to discover more cost-cutting measures.
Book Early and Monitor Rates
Although you may hear of great last-minute deals, it’s not always guaranteed that you’ll be able to find them. As a result, taking the opposite approach and booking well in advance is your best bet. Despite this, hotel prices also fluctuate from a weekly to a daily basis, meaning you should check back regularly. Usually, you’re able to cancel your reservation up until a couple of days before check-in so, if you find that a last-minute deal is on the cards, you can always rebook and cancel your existing booking. It may sound like hassle but, in reality, it takes a couple of minutes and will save you a lot of money.
Prepay
Oftentimes, you’ll be able to get your hands on the best deal by paying in advance for your reservation. This is particularly true of larger hotel chains, which also provides you with some security when it comes to paying in advance. Despite this, you need to be certain of your plans before taking this route, as such rates will be non-refundable. Despite this, you can get travel insurance or a credit card that offers trip protection in order to protect yourself against unforeseen circumstances. If everything runs smoothly, you can save up to £100 for a nightly room rate.
Break Up Your Stay with Multiple Reservations
Understandably, you might think that a three-night stay and three one-night stays cost the same amount; however, this isn’t necessarily the case. You might want to try fiddling with your dates to see whether chunking the reservation results in a different cost. If this presents you with a reduced cost, you can contact the hotel to see whether they’re capable of linking your reservations to keep you in the same room. They’ll typically be able to do this, but you’ll likely have to exchange keys between each reservation. Otherwise, you might split your trip between two separate hotels.
Join Hotel Loyalty Programes
Hotel loyalty programs tend to be free to join, meaning that signing up could save you a few pennies on every reservation. Similarly, this helps you collect points, which can cut costs further in the future. Large chains tend to offer a reduced rate for their members, whilst independent hotels are often part of loyalty schemes. Therefore, you shouldn’t rule out the possibility of a loyalty programe, as there are many ways of making them happen.
Use Hotel Points
As previously mentioned, joining a hotel loyalty scheme can help you collect points, which can reduce the costs of hotels in the future. Despite this, staying in the hotel isn’t the only way that you can gain hotel points; you can also dine in participating restaurants or shop at participating retailers. As a result, making small changes to your leisure life can bring you closer and closer to saving costs on hotel rooms. After long enough, you may not have to pay for your room at all!
