Hello Nairalanders!

It's your girl Ms. Travelin Diva with more travel saving tips!

When searching for the best deals on hotels, what websites do you use? I use mega search engines such as: Skyscanner, Kayak and Hopper (Hopper is actually an app). What's nice about each of these is, they search sites like booking.com, expedia, orbitz, etc. so they do their due diligence when locating the cheapest prices. In addition, let's say you book a hotel and would like to track it for price dropss, you can set-up an alert notification for all price drops. If the price drops and you have a refundable and/or cancellable reservation, you can easily claim the cheaper price and SAVE.

Here's another tip: Once I find a hotel that meets my budget and star rating, before I book I ALWAYS read the reviews on sites such as Tripadvisor FIRST before booking. I almost never book before reading the reviews. Reading reviews on unbiased sites such as Tripadvisor, Google Reviews, Yelp, etc., allows you to see pictures and read reviews from regular guests (like you and I) to better understand the true experience, level/quality of service and see if what is advertised is truly what's being offered. I can't tell you how many times hotels have overrated or over embellished themselves only for guests to arrive and realize the pictures were a lie. Now as a word of caution, some reviews should be taken with a grain of salt, but if you start to see a common theme amongst the reviews you should consider that their is probably truth to what is being said (both good and bad).

Also, always make sure you book with a reputable company, preferably directly with the hotel/resort if possible. Many hotel/resorts offer what's called the “lowest price guarantee” policy which basically means that if you find a lower price elsewhere they will match it and give you an additional % off if you book directly with them. Why do they do this you might ask? Well it cuts out the middle-man and they don't have to pay a commission when you book direct, so for them it's a cost savings. Also, you may notice that freebies like breakfast, wifi, happy hour or evening hors d'oeuvres might be complimentary when you book direct as well.

However, if booking through a third party is cheaper, by all means do so, but I would still strongly encourage you to do your research first before booking to ensure you're getting the best price. Lastly, if you have to make changes or cancel a reservation, you'll find it's much easier (and usually cheaper) to do this when you book your reservations directly with the hotel/resort, just be sure to read all the fine print prior to booking. You don’t want any surprises due to any hidden cancellation/change fees.

If this was helpful, comment below or share what sites you use to get the best deals.

Until next time - safe travels and be well my friends!

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Great content, keep it up

Bitbibx:
Great content, keep it up

Thank you so much friend! I created a video around this topic if you’d like to learn more on how to save with lodging. Feel free to check it out!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3L1kbs5hTM