When you travel do you shop around?

[JBloggs]

Do you try to find a good rate, do you book online to get a discount? Do you use AAA or AARP or Military ID? Do you look at an inn or hotel or lodges packages or discounts?
Do you feel that as innkeepers we should be more cognizant of this ourselves when guests are also looking to stretch their dollar and get the most bang for their buck? What do you do to make your guests happy in this area?
Even Bill Gates flies coach. I know I have stood in line in San Fran as he boarded next to me. (For anyone who does not know him as the richest man in the world or one of the top 10 richest as it is this year.)

 

[Morticia]

Yes, I look for deals. I won't pay more for a room than I charge and I would prefer to pay less. I don't generally look at pkgs, tho. Maybe if I was going someplace completely new or a big city I would want a pkg so I didn't have to decide on everything.
We'll go back to NY this year and stay the same place that has the 50% discount midweek. It was clean enough, close to where we want to be and the innkeeper was nice to us. And, maybe, we'll get to meet Bwirt this time around!
I do ask if there is a 'professional' discount. But not if the prices are low to start with. ($125 or under and I won't ask.)

 

[Don Draper]

Never. I look for where I want to be first, then amenities, then price. I usually have a pretty firm picture of what I want...if it's a romantic getaway I'll look for hot tub, fireplace, etc. but if it's just general vacation/site seeing I want the location first, then clean and comfortable.
I do have a threshold though, it's $200/night...would have to be someplace pretty spectacular to pay more than that, but most places are comfortably under that range.
I am sad to admit that for our several most recent trips I did not even consider b&b's...the areas where we were looking had only small (less than 4 room) b&b's and we just didn't want to have to talk to anyone. We chose a historic hotel instead which was lovely. This makes me sad, but this work has changed us.

 

[Copperhead]

Yes we look, but it all depends on what the trip is designed for..romantic, pleasure, business or family and how much time we will spend at the place.
We just came back from a quick family trip. We did not look (long) at B&B's as we were not going to spend much time at the place - sleep, shower only and the prices for the B&B's were on the upper end, with only 1 bed in each room so we would need 2.
So we settled looking at chains in the area and did look at price as well as comfort and amenites with WiFi being a must. And I do check for tack ons - which I despise; fees for wifi or safe is sooo wrong in my book. WiFi is too cheap (now) for them to tack on a fee, and a $2 safe charge automatically added to your bill is absurd, can you imagine how much money that generates in a year!!! And it is most likely they got a cut on their insurance by having these available.
I did not ask about discounts, but the person on the phone did ask if we had AAA or several others, when I said yes he cut the rate $10 a night. BTW - they didn't ask me to show proof of my membership when I arrived.

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

Yes, I always shop around looking for the best deals at the places I want to stay.
Even if I don't book in advance, I have a list with me of places I've checked out beforehand.
And yes, I always ask if they have a last-minute special. Most of the time they do.

 

[Samster]

I try to stay in B&Bs unless we're just trying to get to another destination and then we'll stay in an Interstate chain hotel where we always ask for a discount. I almost always book online and an online booking discount is really, really nice.
I don't generally tell B&Bs who don't know me that I'm an innkeeper when I book, it may come out in conversation once I'm there and most innkeepers have been very generous and given me a discount. When this happens, I leave a very nice tip. I KNOW how hard they work!
I just planned a 9 day driving trip and we are staying in 4 different B&Bs (I have stayed at 3 out of the 4 inns in the past but in different rooms) and 3 days with a family member. 2 of the B&Bs are people that know me - I NEVER expect a discount at all. If a discount isn't available and it's someplace that I really want to stay, that won't eliminate the place for me BUT I will look for the best VALUE.
I've never been able to really find a package that fits what I'm doing when we've taken these trips. But, I have purchased add-ons when we've stayed at B&Bs in the past if we were there for a special occasion. My dh is not the best about doing that. haha.

 

[YellowSocks]

I always shop around. Last year when we went to Kelley's Island I made a list of every single lodging place on the island, and their rates. Where we stayed was a combination of price, wifi, and space (we rented a house with linens provided which was cheaper than staying at a B&B... it was not waterfront, and it had wifi).
Now I'm planning a vacation somewhere near Chattanooga, TN. (I got a map and went a day's drive south.) Our budget is very tight, so I'm looking at campsites and camping cabins. By the time I'm done I'll have a list of every campground in the region, and their price. Right now the leading choices are based on price, location, and wifi. I checked into chain hotel prices and dh just about had a cow. Why would I do that to him?? Well, they have a pool and a bagel and I wouldn't have to pack sheets... but for the same price I can have a cabin all to ourselves.
=)
Kk.

 

[YellowSocks]

Oh, and yes, I consider how my prices compare to others in the area, whether we are a "good deal." My goal, though, is to be comparable to the DBCH (decent big chain hotel), and not comparable to the discount hotels. We charge more than the DBCH, but not much more...
=)
Kk.