Liberated Traveler Series #4 - Hotel Alternatives

TWiBT Presents
Liberated Traveler Series – Alternative Accommodations
Chapter 4

 

Be sure to read Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and Chapter 3 of the Liberated Traveler Series to help yourself get started.

 

I chose to separate split the accommodations topic into two chapters mainly because the people who might ONLY be interested in staying in hotels would have no interest in these alternative accommodations.

 

There is quite a variety of alternative accommodations for all styles of traveler.  Just like hotels, you can do these for super cheap or spend a ton of money.  A true liberated traveler always considers alternatives to hotels when planning travel.  Here’s a look at some popular options.

 

1.)  Hostels



Typical hostels are like college dormitories, with bunk beds, shared bathrooms, lockers, a common area and sometimes a kitchen.  Hostels are most frequented by students, long term travelers, and backpackers of all ages.  Do not let age or budget prevent you from staying in a hostel.  They are a great place to meet fellow travelers or a friend to explore the destination. While some hostels can indeed be quite filthy, it is just as easy to find a hostel that is squeaky clean!  A common mistake is that travelers simply book the cheapest hostel in an area.  You should spend a few extra dollars for a hostel that has a high review rating.  There are many sites that you can search for hostels and read reviews at, but my personal favorite is HostelBookers.  If you want a bit more privacy, you can even get private rooms in most hostels.  Hostels get a bad reputation, but give them a chance!

 

2.)   CouchSurfing



This one is one that gets misconstrued a lot.  Let us focus on what it is and is not:

 

What CouchSurfing is NOT about:  People who are offering space in their home for you to stay at as if it were a hotel.

What CouchSurfing is about:  People who are offering a space in their home for you to stay at and become friends with!

 

Think of this as a cultural home stay.  You make a profile on CouchSurfing and find people that interest you in cities you may be traveling to.  You then go and stay with them to get to know them!  It is important to set and understand any ground rules as you are a guest in people’s homes.  While they are letting you stay there for free, you should respect their wishes.  While CouchSurfing does have a rating system to leave positive or negative feedback for people you are staying with, I would suggest messaging people who have stayed with your potential host for a more personal review of their stay.  I have not heard of any CouchSurfing horror stories and have never experienced any.  It is a great way to experience another culture as a member of it.  CouchSurfing is free to join and a great way to get free accommodations AND make friends!

 

3.)  WWOOF - World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms



While the days of indentured servitude are long over, this will provide you with a much more positive learning experience!  WWOOF is a website that helps you find organic farms all over the world.  Once you find a farm, you can get the opportunity to volunteer to work on their farm for the duration of your visit.  In return, they will provide you with food and a place to stay.  The idea is to share knowledge of organic farming.  You can stay with your host for anywhere from a couple days to a couple years!  There are all types of organic farms, so I’m sure you can find something that interests you.  This is also something you might want to consider for a weekend trip even.  The nearest WWOOF farm to me is less than an hour away and I’m considering contacting them for what I am sure will be a great experience.  Expect to work a full day, as you will be considered a member of the farm.

 

4.)    Camping



My limited camping experience has always resulted in nothing more than uninhibited pyromania and excessive hot dog consumption, so I can’t comment too much on this.  However, I did just buy a tent.  Camping is a great way to truly become immersed in an environment.  Camp sites are either free or very cheap.  If you want to find a specific place to pop tent check out some sites that index them HERE and HERE.  Also check out KOA.

 

5.)  Short Term Accommodations



If you like the idea of CouchSurfing, but want more say in the terms of staying over at the house.  There are ways to rent accommodations from a homeowner.  Sites like Airbnb and Roomorama let you rent anything from a single bedroom in someone’s home to the entire house.  Despite having “bnb” in the title of Airbnb, this usually never includes breakfast like a traditional Bed & Breakfast would.  The benefit here is that you get to be part of a neighborhood and experience what day to day life is like in an area, without the removal of being in a hotel.  Rates & locations vary.

 

These are 5 great alternatives to staying in a hotel.  You’ll save money, you’ll make friends, and you’ll have a great experience!

 

Enjoy!

 

-Jason of TWiBT

Liberated Traveler Series #3 - Hotels

TWiBT Presents
Liberated Traveler Series – Hotels
Chapter 3

 

Be sure to read Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 of the Liberated Traveler Series to help yourself get started.

 

Last summer, I took a road trip from Miami to Montreal for an entire summer.  Aside from visiting a few friends, we stayed in hotels a majority of the time.  Every single hotel we stayed at was rated as a 4-star hotel, yet we never paid more than $40 per night at a hotel.  Although this is already a pretty good deal, this post is going to show you how to obtain that and possibly do better for yourselves.  There are many different ways to find accommodations to stay at when you travel and you don’t need to break the bank.  This post will explain some of the methods in detail.  This chapter will cover the most common form of travel accommodations, hotels.

First off, hotels will usually be one of the more expensive options, so if you are on a super tight budget, just read on.  In order to get a really good deal, you will sometimes need to be flexible.  Let’s talk about your options.

 

-Hotel Points.  Just like frequent flyer miles to airlines, hotel points allow you to stay at many properties in a given hotel chain for free.  Personally, I don’t value hotel points nearly as much as frequent flyer miles.  Its not that they are worth so much less than frequent flyer miles, but rather I have an easy enough time finding accommodations that suit my style of travel for really cheap.  On the other hand, if you’re planning to stay at ultra-luxury resorts and get room upgrades, you’ll definitely want to consider getting a credit card that has affiliations and bonuses with a hotel chain you’re interested in.  As a side note, I do keep my American Express Platinum card for upgrades in Starwood Hotels.

 

-Search Sites.  Travelocity, Orbitz, Experia, Priceline, where to start!?  While many of the popular travel sites turn up the same results, some other sites like Kayak and Momondo scour a variety of travel search sites and give you the results.  Although I don’t often book through them, it gives me a good scope of what hotels in a particular area cost.  You might even find a good enough deal just on these sites alone.

 

-Priceline “Name Your Own Price” Feature.  At Priceline.com, you can search for hotels listings OR you can use the NYOP (Name Your Own Price) Feature.  How the NYOP feature works is that you type in how much money you are willing to spend (they recommend 50% off of the average price), select a few geographic regions in or around your city, and you wait to see if a hotel accepts it.  Your results are usually given to you within a minute or so.  If a hotel accepts, you are automatically booked and charged, so don’t play around with it unless you are serious about getting a hotel.  If your bid is not accepted, you either need to change some aspect of your original bid or wait 24 hours to try again.  You can use sites like BiddingForTravel.com, BetterBidding.com, or BiddingTraveler.com to actually see what other people have bid so you can learn what to bid from their results.

These are the basics of booking a hotel with a decent discount.  You must also consider being flexible.  For example, if you go to New York.  You will most likely get a much better price if you stay outside of Manhattan.  Last time I went, I stayed at a 3-star hotel in Queens for about $43 per night.  The hotel was barely one street away from the metro station, where I'd take the subway to all points in Manhattan.  Make use of public transit, it'll save you a ton of money.  Use sites like HopStop or Google Maps to help you find out routes to use public transit!  Other times, I've stayed in airport hotels which often have free shuttles to the city center.  Be Flexible!

The next chapter of the liberated traveler series will focus on alternative methods of accommodations that can save you even more money!

 

-Jason of TWiBT