Tips and Suggestions to Find Information About Cheap Hotel Deals
Staying in hotels is expensive, but sometimes we cannot simply avoid it. You might have to check in to a hotel room for business, family, personal, and other reasons. In this post, we shall point out some of the best ways to find cheap hotel deals.Finding a good hotel can be a little hard, because you would want a place that is safe yet affordable. The tariff plans will vary from hotels to hotels, according to their categories, and the services they offer. Hospitality industry is booming, and hoteliers are coming up with attractive discounts and deals to encourage more and more guests to stay with them.Ideally, you will have to make reservations for your hotel rooms in advance, in order to enjoy the available offers and best deals. You could also keep a track of hotel tariffs online too, especially if you have plans of travelling to some place in the near future. Websites like the Hotels.com can be very resourceful for finding cheaper hotels.There are some smart ways to check for the cheapest rates on hotel rooms, some of the suggestions and tips are mentioned below:Travel agents-Travel agents can be of very great help to plan your entire trip including travel, shopping, local sightseeing, car rentals, and accommodation. They also offer all inclusive family tour packages for competitive prices. They can help you find the best hotels according to your needs and budget.These days most of the top travel agencies like the Travelodge UK also serve their customers from their official websites. Now you don’t have to call them up, or drive all the way to their offices to book your tickets.You can easily search for hotel availability on their websites, and plan your travel accordingly. They also come up with seasonal deals and discounts, which can help you in saving a significant amount of money on your travel and accommodation.Cheap hotel finder websites:Cheap hotel finder websites can help you easily locate or find decent and safe hotels. They provide you with smart online search tools, where you can search for availability of hotel rooms for a certain range of dates, and according to the destination of your choice. The search results will give you a very good idea about the hotels that will perfectly suit your budgets.These types of hotels search directories are more convenient to the users, because you won’t have to visit each and every hotel websites individually to check the prices. Travelling to a new place can be a little confusing, which is why you should make it a point to book your travel and accommodation in advance.You could also check out the travel websites to learn more about the places that you are visiting. There you will get to learn more about the place from the past experiences of others. That will help you in making the informed choices, and bagging great hotel deals at the same time.
Disney Here We Come! Free Flights and Hotel Included!
Every parent knows that Walt Disney World is a great vacation destination, and they also know it is an extremely expensive one. So, what’s this “free flights and stay” stuff? Glad you asked…Recently, Marci and I realized that our soon-to-be 9-year-old daughter last experienced Disney at age 4, and she does not remember much of it. So, we made a decision: 5 nights at Disney World in Spring 2016!Being the cost-minded guy I am, the first thing I thought was “the tickets are going to absolutely slay me, and there are no awesome discounts on those, so what can I get for free?” Air and hotel instantly leaped to my mind. And this is where having a diversified points and miles strategy really comes into play. Let me explain.The two cards that made this whole trip possible (Chase Sapphire Preferred and Starwood American Express), both earn flexible points, which are the best kinds of points to have. I can redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points for a fixed rate of 1.25 cents per point toward travel (through the Chase website), but I can also transfer my points to the loyalty programs of Chase partners such as Southwest, United, Hyatt, and others (hence the “flexible” part). When I transfer my points, I can get greater value out of them (for example, Southwest is typically going to yield somewhere between 1.4 and 1.6 cents per point, which is obviously better than the 1.25 cents per point I just mentioned). For our trip, we will fly Southwest to Orlando from Atlanta, and we won’t need a ton of points to do so (since Atlanta to Orlando is a low fare and Southwest bases the points required on the fare), For the four of us, we are probably looking at around 45,000 – 50,000 Southwest points to get there and back. So, our airfare is covered with Chase points after we transfer them to my Southwest account. Incidentally, Starwood points can be transferred to over 30 different airlines, hence their placement in the “flexible” category. They can be used both at Starwood hotels and for a wide variety of flights.For this Disney trip, Marci and I wanted to stay somewhere fairly nice and close to the parks without having to a) spend a ton of money or b) commit to Disney’s “Deluxe” hotels, which easily run $300-$500 a night during busy seasons. As many of you Disney aficionados already know, Starwood owns the Dolphin and Swan hotels, which are on Disney property and are incredibly close to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios, but they are not actually owned by Disney. As such, I can use Starwood points toward my stay at either of these two hotels. The Swan and Dolphin hotels are Category 4 hotels, which means they cost 10,000 points per night. If I had to rely on just my points earned from my everyday spend, it would take me forever to save enough points for 5 nights one night. But, when I signed up for the card, I got 25,000 points after meeting the spend requirement. After putting $15,000 total on the card, I have 40,000 points, and that is enough for 5 nights… wait, I thought you just said it was 10,000 points per night, Jim! Ah, the even better part. With Starwood stays paid with points, your fifth night is free! So, 40,000 points gets me 5 nights rather than just 4.Now, how much is this really saving me? Well, the flights (as priced today) are around $900 for the four of us. The hotel would be about $300 a night, but I also do not have to pay the tax since there is nothing to tax. So, that’s between $1600 and $1700 in hotel savings right there. Note: we do have to pay a resort fee and parking (for our rental car), but to save that much for that hotel? It’s a no brainer. All totaled, that’s around $2500 in savings, which for us working families is a life saver. But as I always say… when I have saved this much on the trip, I will put some of that back into the other aspects of the vacation, e.g. dining, souvenirs, and tickets. I’m not looking to be a cheap skate… I am looking to live large without spending large! And so can you!My tip for couples who want to duplicate what I am doing (assuming you are comfortable with signing up for credit cards): first, only one of you needs to apply for the Starwood American Express, though you can both apply and combine your points and reach the 40,000 point goal faster if you don’t have the time to put the extra spend on one card. The other person, or both of you, can apply for the Sapphire Preferred, assuming you can meet the combined minimum spends on all of the cards. If you can’t meet the spend on these cards simultaneously, then get the Starwood card first since room availability will get tougher as time goes on. Then move on to the Sapphire card. Southwest will always let you use points for their flight if a seat is available, and that is one of the reasons I love them. One last note: if Southwest is not a great option where you live, you can also transfer your Chase points to your United account (if that airline works better for you) or simply use the Chase points through Chase’s travel portal for slightly less value, but unlimited flexibility.If you want to stay on Disney property at a non-Disney hotel, then the Swan and Dolphin are just about the best you can get. With regard to the flights portion of your trip, I am merely using the Chase Sapphire Preferred as an example of how to get there. There are lots of other cards that can help you get there as well, but the point of the article is: you can have this vacation, too!
Ski Vacations Tips – Where Should You Go? Which Ski Destination Is Right for You?
With so many ski destinations out there, from Aspen to the Swiss Alps, you’ve got plenty of options for your vacation. Whether you plan on going with your family or friends, you will find some great deals on ski vacations online. All it takes is a bit of research. Consider your personal preferences and needs and look for the ideal vacation. Since there are so many destinations, resorts, and slopes, you should be able to find one that is perfect for you.If anything, you might have trouble narrowing down all of the choices! Here are a few tips to help you make your decision:The most important thing is for you to consider your vacation’s focus. Are you interested in staying at a family-friendly resort? Or would you prefer to stay in a town with lively nightlife? Do you want to fly to a faraway destination for a week-long trip, or would you rather drive to a nearby resort for the weekend?
Whether your main goals are to explore a backcountry, visit a faraway country, or enjoy an exciting weekend getaway, you need to make a list of things you want in a resort. If you’re planning a romantic getaway, you might want to rent a cabin so you can get some privacy. If you want to be pampered, stay in a luxury resort. There is no end to the accommodations at ski destinations.
Consider doing some activities outside of skiing. You won’t want to spend all of your time on the slopes. What kind of dining options are you interested in? Are there other sports, such as snowboarding and ice skating available? When comparing ski vacations, take a look at the activities available in each area.
It’s important that you choose a ski destination that offers slopes appropriate for your skiing level. If you’re traveling with others, make sure that the destination offers a good variety of slopes, for beginners, intermediates, and experts.
If you’re traveling with children, make sure the destination you choose has babysitting services, just in case you want to spend some time alone with the adults in your party. The hotel or inn you stay at should have amenities and activities to keep children entertained.Once you finally decide on your ski vacation, you can compare packages and travel deals for that destination. Determine whether it would be cheaper to buy an all inclusive package or pay for everything separately. No matter where you choose to go, you should be able to find discounts on ski vacations.