Accommodation is the biggest spend of family travel, after airfares. If you rather spend your money on incredible experiences than on a place to sleep, you will be looking for the best deals on cheap or budget family travel accommodation.
When it comes to finding best deal family accommodation, you will find bargains. But you will need to do some research, time your holiday correctly and get a little lucky.
Where to Look for Great Deals
There are almost too many options these days. We prefer to make reservations via Booking.com because of their FREE cancellation policy. You can lock in hotel rates in advance. Plus if your plans change or you find better deal closer to your travel date you have the flexibility to cancel and make changes.
Others swear by AirBnb. In cities where hotels are ultra small and expensive, Airbnb is definitely worth considering. Sign up for AirBnb here and get money off your first booking. Checkout our full Airbnb V Hotel guide here.
So.. here are Letsgobeartravels guide on How to find the best deal when booking accommodation online:
Go during low season
Not only it will be easier to find cheaper hotels, you will also pay cheaper airfares.
Search like a Ninja
This means using you browser’s Incognito or Inprivate mode.
Sometimes you will see different hotel rates depending on whether you are visiting the local version of the site or the foreigner version.
Sign up for booking sites savings
That one minute it takes to sign up on a hotel or booking website can amount to some serious members’ exclusive savings. Sign up on multiple booking sites to get a feel for pricing.
Different site can give different prices.
Book free cancellation early bird rates (4 to 6 months before travel)
Do this via Booking.com – at least ahead of schedule to “hold” the best options and deals. if you find a better deal at other hotels or booking sites before you travel, you can cancel with nothing to pay.
Compare prices again (1 month before travel)
You’ve locked in your early bird rates, but advertised prices will most likely change since you made your initial booking.
At this point your options are:
- Keep your initial booking
- Pay the hotel in advance (usually you can receive a discount)
- Cancel your booking and switch to another hotel
- Or cancel your booking and rebook via a different site.
Contact the Hotel directly
You can also contact hotels directly to see if they can offer rates cheaper than booking websites.
Never pay extra for hotel breakfast
If breakfast is included, great! If it is not, leave it out.
You will be better off enjoying breakfast at a nearby local cafe. It is more authentic, you get a local experience and it is likely to be much cheaper.
Don’t dismiss Bed & Breakfasts
Especially when you are visiting England. Many of them are very well managed. The obvious advantage of a B&B over a hotel is the personal touch of the owner.
Read the accommodation description
Many places in Europe often offer great deals for loft apartments. You will come across something like: “4th level apartment with panoramic views”… but where is the elevator?!
Never assume your accommodation will have elevator. If carrying luggage up multiple flights of stairs is not your thing, give these places a miss and look elsewhere.
Whether it is hotels, apartments or B&Bs, we usually have 6 requirements when searching for a place to stay: Big room, Central location, Extra bed, Elevator, Decent sized bathroom and Bonuses. Check out the full post here.
