Cheap Hotels

It ain’t where you stay, it’s the way that you book it. Do it right, and you can end up in the same room for half the price. This is a step-by-step guide to getting the cheapest hotel prices, whether overseas or in the UK; for five star luxury, just a place to lay your head or finding unnamed hotel mega-bargains.

Also See: Cheap Hotel Sales

Picking the perfect solution

To get the ultimate bargain, you first need to define your requirements for the trip.

Still to book a flight…

• Do you want a week or two in a traditional resort? Don't ignore good old-fashioned package holidays. For holidays in traditional destinations, they can undercut DIY online booked separate flights and hotels and give extra ATOL protection if something goes wrong. Read the full Cheap Package Holidays guide.

• Want flexibility, long-haul, city breaks, top hotels, hostels or off-the-beaten-track? Here DIY on the web’s the winner, so use the info in this article in conjunction with the Cheap Flight guide.

Already got a flight…

• Do you want to pick a specific hotel? Jump to the picking a hotel and booking for less sections.

• Would you risk an unspecified hotel to get a better deal? Jump to the Unnamed Hotel mega-bargains section

• Do you just want the cheapest possible room? Jump to the dirt cheap deals and hostels section.

Staying in the UK…

The methods for hotel picking and booking for less work in the UK as well as elsewhere, but do also read the specific UK hotels tips section to finesse the deals. The Cheap Train Tickets article, which details fare loopholes, may be a help too.

Finding the right hotel

The first aim’s to find a top venue, within your budget, then to try and get it as cheaply as possible. Though if you're on a tight budget, also consider a hostel. This involves cutting through vast swathes of information, yet there’s a golden rule to start with:

Don’t trust the star system. It’s based on facilities not quality, and there’s no ranking standardisation whatsoever.

The hotel star system’s a mess: there's limited standardisation within countries never mind worldwide. Stars may be given by governments, review organisations or even the hotel itself. Package tour operators tend to be overly generous; often a star higher than independent reviews. At best use it as a rough benchmark, see a full guide to what stars mean.

Step 1: Use an online travel broker

Start by putting details into a travel broker like Expedia*, Ebookers* or Travelocity as they’re pretty competitive and thus will give you a decent benchmark price at a legit hotel. Plus they sometimes have special offers on specific hotels, so you may get lucky at the off.

Step 2: Then check Tripadvisor

Fast becoming a worldwide institution, Tripadvisor* lists detailed reviews and customer ratings for hotels, and pictures taken by past guests. Try searching different hotels, including the ones you found on the broker sites to see whether they’re palaces or pigsties. For more read the quick Tips for using Tripadvisor note.

For UK hotels, the independent hotel guidebook, The Good Hotel Guide, has a website, reviewing hotels in the UK. Entries in the guide are based on visits by undercover inspectors, and it’s well worth a look. You have to register to read full reviews, but it’s free.

Pay less for the same hotel room

Never assume one price fits all for a hotel or room. Just like a Kylie CD’s sold at different prices in different shops, so the same hotel or B&B room is sold in different places at different prices. The impact can be huge. As an example, the same plush Dubai hotel for a fortnight was on sale between £1,700 and £2,300 on different sites.

Step 1. Check the hotel’s own price

Always check what the hotel itself offers, and whether it has any special offers. This is your benchmark price, though usually it’s easy to beat, as hotels know most people going direct to their websites have already made their mind up.

Step 2. Use a cheap hotel comparison site

Three sites compare prices on different cheap hotel websites:

• Broad search but clumsy. Searching by far the most sites is Travelsupermarket* but its search can be jumbled – a shame, as with its reach, it should be the best. For some reason it focuses on finding any hotel rather than a specific one, and bizarrely you need to know what star rating your specific hotel is before searching for it. Yet its breadth can provide good results.

• A limited range, but quick. For a quick hit, try Hotelscomparison, for a speedy and effective search, over a much more limited range.

• Bespoke hotel by hotel comparison. If you’re using Tripadvisor*, it also allows you to do quick comparisons as you’re comparing hotels. Do ensure you’re on the UK site, not the US, if you want to see prices in pounds.

Yet there’s one thing to check for whether you’re searching for a hotel which can mean some sites unfairly come up cheapest...

Many countries have room taxes (c.£10/day). Some sites include this, others don’t. Always check or it can skew comparisons.

Also watch for sites which have rooms 'On Request', this only means it's being requested from the hotel, not that there’s actually a room available. Be careful not to go for one of these and lose a firm cheap deal elsewhere.

Four extra steps to boost the savings

Hopefully at this point you’ll have sourced a great deal, yet if you really want a belt ‘n’ braces, search for the ultimate cheapest deal; read this special note for Extra Savings.

Unnamed Hotel Mega-Bargains

If you want to stay in top grade hotels, but pay a lot less, it’s possible to take a gamble, and go for an unnamed hotel at a super-hot discount price. All you do is specify the star level and your particulars, and see what comes up.

Hotels do this to get rid of unused rooms, without cannibalising their usual customer base, who’d either get annoyed or book the super-cheap deals themselves.

• Find secret hotel rooms with detective skills

  

  Mega hotel bargains are available from Lastminute.com* if you use a bit of detective skill. It has a section called ‘top secret hotels’. Here, you don’t know the star level till you’ve paid, and only then are you told the hotel’s name. Yet this means rock-bottom prices, as hotels then needn’t worry it’ll cannibalise their direct trade.
  
  Yet there’s a SNEAKY way to work out what the hotel really is and whether it’s worth it. Simply copy & paste all or part of the hotel description into Google. Often, it just uses the hotels standard description text that also appears on its website.
  
  For example, one 4* Barcelona hotel charging £180 for three nights was listed as a “first class hotel just a step away from Gaudi´s most emblematic buildings”. I chucked that into google, and found its name. Even the cheapest price comparison listing for the same time was £270 – that’s 50% more.

  If that doesn't work, sort the list of hotels on lastminute.com into ‘closest to’ order from a given point, and compare this to the distance the secret hotel is away. If the descriptions and distance are similar, it's likely you've found the hotel. This is best for British, European & Middle Eastern hotels but you can use a similar technique for Australia’s Lastminute.com.au.
  
  You will also find secret hotel rooms on Hotelopia. Having said that, we have not found any deals that are substantially cheaper than the non-sale rooms, so don’t spend that much time on it.

• With Priceline’s multi-bid loophole you can get 70% off

  Hotel bidding site Priceline.co.uk flogs posh hotel rooms at colossal discounts, and it’s especially strong for US hotels.
  
  The way it normally operates is you tell it the area, star level and price you’re willing to pay. You don’t get told which specific hotel you’re booking, but you have to agree you’ll pay immediately if your bid’s accepted. If you bid too low, you have to wait a day to bid again.

  Yet there’s a trick which can supercharge even these discounts. It’s how the six nights in a super-hot New York hotel at 75% off happened.
  
  It’s a loophole allowing you place multiple bids in a day. In other words, if you want a three-star Miami hotel, which would normally cost £80 a night, you bid first at £30. If that doesn’t work try £35, then £40. This way you always succeed near the minimum acceptable price.

  Read the full Priceline hotel bidding guide for all the tips.

• Secret rooms in the U.S.A.

  Heading Stateside? U.S. hotel booking website Hotwire.com also sells secret hotel rooms. While it divulges the hotel location and facilities, the exact hotel remains a mystery until payment. Yet it’s possible to sneakily discover which hotel you’re buying. This works for stays of two days and up in the most popular destinations. Here’s How To Do It.

Hostels and Dirt Cheap Hotel Deals

If you’re just looking for a nice place to stay, without breaking the bank, there are lots of ways to get super-cheap accommodation. While they may lack facilities, get it right and you will get clean and functional rooms at a fraction of the cost.

• Hostels all over the world

  Hostels can offer massive savings over hotel prices. While some can be grotty, many are clean and friendly, with free internet access and breakfast. You’re also more likely to strike up a conversation in a hostel than a Marriot. And don’t think it’s automatically a dorm bunk; many offer singles, twins and doubles.

  To check out prices and availability use Hostelbookers.com* and Hostelworld*, both of which give hostels a percentage rating, based on users’ experiences. Though even if they say a hostel’s full, always try emailing direct, in case there’s a spare room that doesn’t show up. To read more reviews from past hostel guests try hostelz.com.

  Plus if you’re planning to stay at a Hostelling International hostel, then you can get £3 a night off by joining the Youth Hostel Association for £16; so more than five nights away a year and you’re winning.

• Try Thomsons £1 plus deals

  Travel agent Thomsons often sells off hard-to-flog hotel rooms and apartments at huge discounts, for as little as £1 per night. These are commonly for slower dates, around June and September, in newer, unestablished hotels – though they can crop up anytime.

  Sometimes hotels are in ‘young and lively’ resorts, out of the Club 18-30 season; it knows families are more likely to risk a few excitable youngsters, if it only costs a quid. MoneySaver Savapenny is especially talented at spotting these crackers, and posts them on a special Thomsons thread in this site’s Forum.

• Special opening rates

  New hotels often offer special rates to drum up custom; commonly 50%, or even complimentary stays. To find new hotel openings, first scour industry publications, like Hotelnewsresource and Hoteldesigns, or try searching for ‘new hotel opening’ on Google news. Then, call up the hotel to ask about special rates (a bit of sweet-talk goes a long way).

Other ways to cut accommodations costs

If you’re feeling brave, there are a few other routes to cutting the cost of accommodation. Of course, always check out thoroughly and consider safety.

• Try Camping

  Good old camping’s a fun way to explore the great outdoors and get away on the cheap. Read the Great Camping Hunt for a full list of MoneySavers’ top tips on safe, hassle-free camping.

• Stay on someone's couch

  The Couchsurfing website allows you to sign up to stay on people’s sofas around the world. It’s a reciprocal deal, so be prepared to allow people to stay on your sofa in return, and, of course, take safety precautions.

• Exchange homes

  There are a number of home swapping sites like Homebase-hols, Homelink, Homeexchange, that allow you to switch your home with someone elsewhere in the world. Reports vary from a way to make lifelong friends to holidays from hell. See the Great Travel Swapping Hunt for tons more tips on this.

• Work for food & board

  It’s possible to bag free food and accommodation, in exchange for a few hours work a day, usually on farms. Helpx.net and Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms are two of the biggest programmes.

And just for fun, if you’re feeling really desperate there’s always Sleep in the airport!

Top Tips for Cheap UK Hotels

The first port of call for hotels in the UK are the same Cheap Hotel Finding websites as for anywhere in the world. Yet once you’ve done that, there are many more ways to keep down the cost in our Isles.

• Hotels at a quarter of the price if you’ve got Tesco points

  Regular Tesco shoppers who have collected up Tesco Clubcard points can trade them in for ClubCard Vouchers, which can then be spent on some hotel rooms. The big advantage is a voucher worth £5 for in-store spending is worth £20 of vouchers, so effectively you’re getting the hotel for a quarter of the price. For more on the vouchers, read the Boost Your Loyalty Points guide.

• Travelodge £19 and upwards room deals

  The hotel chain Travelodge offers some £19 a night rooms, though you need to book more than three weeks ahead, and even then they’re not guaranteed. The earlier you book, the greater the chance.

  The rooms are clean and functional and offer the basics. Yet the real savings come when it has one of its occasional even cheaper promotions. These are always included in the free weekly MoneySaving e-mail.

• Get Youth Hostels at a discount

  For British breaks, the Youth Hostel Association is a decent bet. If you’re planning to stay more than five nights a year, consider YHA membership, which saves you paying the non-member supplement of £3 per person per night. This costs £16 a year per person; £10 for under 26s; and £23 for a family.

• Stay in halls of residence outside term time

  The website Travelstay lists cheap rooms across the UK, including hostels and student halls of residence (outside term time). These can be especially good value for a cheap clean place to stay in London.



• Try a cheap Easyhotels if you’re in London

  As long as you’ve no aversion to orange, Easyhotels.com is another option. They have three hotels in London, with simple rooms from £25 a night, again the earlier you book, the better the chance of a lower price.

• Frequent travellers slash the cost

  Those who regularly stay in hotels; it's possible you could save by joining a directory club. Pay a fixed amount of £30 to £60 annually and you get "free" accommodation from a list of hotels. The catch is you must have, and pay for, your evening meal and breakfast in the hotel – these aren’t always cheap.

  Some clubs limit you to off-peak stays, but membership often covers the member, plus another adult and regular tourists can save using these schemes. Clubs include Travel-offers, which covers the UK, and Dineandstayclub (covers Ireland and NI).

• Hoxton Hotels for £1

  This is a chic hotel in London which occasionally runs £1 room promotions. Rooms sell out incredibly quickly, but, again, are always in the weekly e-mail so you get to know in advance when to go for it.

• Try to get £100 cashback

  Website Londontown promises if you book a hotel with it and then find it cheaper elsewhere within 48 hours it’ll give you a refund and £100. Many MoneySavers have successfully used this, by first sourcing hotels cheaper elsewhere then deliberately booking on Londontown to get the price promise (see MoneySavers' stories).