Learn as much as you can about different travel and booking sites in order to save money on your upcoming trip, whether it is for business or for a vacation with your family.
1. Kayak
2. Priceline
3. Expedia
4. HotelTonight
5. Booking.com
6. Travelocity
7. Hotels.com
8. Trivago
9. Hotwire
10. Orbitz
How to Save Money When Booking Hotels Online with These 3 Tips
You can save a significant amount of money by approaching the organization of your trip arrangements in a methodical and strategic manner. Do you wish to begin saving but are unsure how to do so?
If you plan your vacation well, you can save time, money, and a significant amount of worry. You will be able to make the best decisions for your trip, whether it is a vacation with your family to Hawaii or a business trip to London, if you are knowledgeable about the various internet booking and travel sites that are available.
During COVID, Guests Staying in Hotels
Travel has been significantly impacted as a result of COVID-19. Many people have completely canceled their trips away and decided to remain at their homes instead. However, there are other people whose professions, families, or other obligations require them to travel. These individuals have been left wondering whether or not it is safe to stay in hotels during the pandemic.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, staying in your own house is the safest approach to reduce the likelihood of getting sick. If you do find yourself traveling and need to book hotels or other accommodations, the Frequently Asked Questions page on hotel safety during COVID that is maintained by the World Health Organization contains information and suggestions that will help make your stay as safe as possible.
It is also a good idea to check out the Safe Stay project that was created by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). This effort provides hotels with best-practice criteria that they should adhere to during COVID-19. You will then be able to verify that the hotel you are considering adheres to the standards that are mentioned there. During your time here, the Guest Safety Checklist provided by the AHLA can also serve as a useful reference.
Naturally, the situation is always developing, and it is strongly advised that you monitor websites such as the CDC and WHO as well as local, state, and national guidelines for changes before and during your trip.
1. Plan Well
Planning beforehand is essential if you want to travel in a responsible manner. In general, the cost of your flight will increase the closer you get to the day of your departure. This has traditionally been the case since business travelers arrange their meetings at the eleventh hour and then pay a premium to fly as soon as possible after the booking date. We recommend making reservations at least three weeks in advance, and if at all feasible, even further in advance than that.
Even while it may sound like “going direct” would help you save money, choosing an airline and booking your flight directly through their website is not a good financial move. Even comparing just a few airlines to each other in terms of your travel dates will take you a significant amount of time, and there is no guarantee that you will find the best offer. Price comparison websites do the heavy work for you by evaluating thousands of deals across hundreds of airlines, travel sites, and hotel booking platforms in order to bring you the best results that are tailored to your specific preferences.
There are a small number of large websites that compare prices by searching the content of hundreds of other websites to get the very best offers. Booking.com and Kayak are two of the most well-known and respected names in the industry. Cruises, travel guides, a trip planner, and a one-of-a-kind feature called “Price Forecast” are all included in the Kayak package. This feature enables you to anticipate pricing and determine whether or not you are getting a fair deal. In addition to that, it is integrated with Slack bots, Facebook Messenger, and Alexa. Booking.com allows you to plan your entire trip on one platform by providing a variety of travel options like flights, hotels, car rentals, and even airport taxis. You may make sure that the reality measures up to your expectations thanks to the over 150 million reviews that have been left by actual guests, and the so-called “sea view” does not require you to lean over a balcony while looking through binoculars. Other websites that aggregate information and offer great deals include Trivago and Travelocity, the latter of which promises a “Price Match guarantee.” If you find a similar trip elsewhere within twenty-four hours of booking it, Travelocity will refund the difference in price and give you a travel credit for $50 to use on a future booking with them. If you’re looking for some excellent ideas for your next trip, follow @roaminggnome on Instagram, which belongs to Travelocity.
When should the reservation be made, is it another important question? It is common for local flights to be less expensive on Saturdays, and flights during the middle of the week are typically less expensive than flights on Mondays, Thursdays, or Fridays. It is likely that you will be able to save even more money if you are flexible with the dates of your trip. If you select a certain month for which you like to view available bookings, you will be able to select times that are convenient for you and that provide the best value. You can also adjust the settings for additional filters, such as the length of the flight and the number of stops, according to your particular tastes.
2. Get Rewarded
Who is to say that if you are going to be spending money on a vacation, you shouldn’t also get something in return? When you are making plans for your trips, you should make sure that you take advantage of the various rewarding program options that are available to you. Expedia provides a selection of Rewards Credit Cards from Citi, which are characterized by advantageous rewards and cost-cutting options. In addition to this, the Expedia platform provides “Things To Do,” which is an excellent way to get the most out of your location, and you will not pay Expedia cancellation fees to amend or cancel virtually any hotel reservation. This is an excellent way to get the most out of your destination. Another great rewards program is the one offered by the Priceline Rewards Visa Card. When you sign up, you’ll receive bonus points, and you may earn up to five times as many points on qualifying purchases.
Hotels.com is now running a promotion in which customers can receive a free night’s stay after booking 10 consecutive nights through the website. Keep an eye out for its Secret Prices, which can be found on a restricted number of hotels and offer savings that are much more attractive than those found elsewhere. You can earn “Orbucks” on flights and hotels booked through the popular aggregator platform Orbitz, and then use those “Orbucks” to get discounts at over 200,000 hotels all over the world. In addition, services such as TSA Pre-Check and hotel bonuses are included. Always make sure that your purchases are eligible for rewards before you book, and sign up for exclusive offers to be sent to your email inbox before you do so. These are frequently not yet publicized on the sites themselves, despite the fact that they offer significant potential cost savings.
3. Be Different
We’ve got you covered if you’re looking for something that’s a little bit different from the norm! Check out the HotelTonight mobile app. The idea is brilliant: hotels provide HotelTonight their unsold rooms, and the app displays you the best deals of the day for those rooms. If you make your hotel reservations using this method, you can take advantage of significant savings opportunities. Another one of these excellent ideas is hotwire. If you book a room at one of its Hot Rate Hotels before you find out what the hotel’s name is, you can save a large amount of money. You will still be aware of the fundamentals, such as the location and other essential details, but the actual hotel will not be disclosed to you until after you have booked it – of course, at a substantial price reduction. Its Hot Rate Flight operates in a manner that is analogous to this, which means that you won’t be aware of the airline or the precise flight timings until after you have booked, but you will be eligible for significant savings on the cost of your tickets.
Being unique can also be beneficial when traveling through airports. Flights that arrive at non-traditional airports, such as Luton instead of London Heathrow or Long Beach instead of LAX, frequently provide significant cost savings. You’ll also encounter significantly less traffic, shorter wait times, and even lower prices for auto rentals.
Take Off
Making travel arrangements doesn’t have to be a stressful or difficult process. You could, in point of fact, save money while also having a fantastic time if you used some of these websites. The most important thing is to plan ahead and determine if you want the peace of mind and cost savings that come with an early booking or the excitement and savings that come with bookings made right up until the moment before you leave.
Get an early start on the planning, and take advantage of the thrills, adventures, and lifelong experiences that come with traveling.