Changing Hotel Locations Can Help You Save

Don Nadeau, the president of BidonTravel.com,coastline toward San Francisco, with stops in
often discusses how to bid on Priceline hotels, butcharming Sausalito and the redwoods of Muir
here he talks about location as another powerfulWoods National Monument before heading over
way to save on hotel rooms.the Golden Gate Bridge.
When you’re planningThat night, you could even end up dining at one
to spend some time in or near a place likeof the many fabulous San Francisco restaurants
Boston, Zurich, London, or San Francisco, you canusing money you’d
save by not staying in the same hotel everysaved on hotels! You’d
night.be staying in San Francisco two nights.
And, even if you’reAfter your last night in San Francisco, you
just spending a couple of nights, you canwouldn’t need to head
sometimes save as much as 50out right away. You could still spend most of the
â€" 70% by choosing the rightday exploring the city.
hotel location, as explained below.Then, timing your drive before or after any rush
Let’s sayhour traffic, you could take scenic southbound
you’re a coupleInterstate 280, which runs in a greenbelt along a
planning a trip to the San Francisco Bay Area forridge, giving you views of San Francisco Bay. Near
a special occasion.San Jose, you’d switch
You would like to spend the week: visitingto State Highway 85 and then U.S. 101, and
wineries, hiking in Point Reyes National Seashorecontinue toward Carmel and Monterey.
and Muir Woods, exploring Big Sur, Carmel andIn the Carmel and Monterey area, you would
Monterey, and experiencing the highlights of Sanhave a choice: You could either use some of your
Francisco. It would be simple for you to bookhotel savings to stay in a fantastically romantic
seven nights in a San Francisco hotel. After all,place, such as the Tickle Pink Inn along the shore,
you would be within an easyor continue to save by booking a quality place
day’s drive ofinland. For the latter, the ultimate hotel money
everything you want to see.saver in the Carmel and Monterey area is the
However, seven nights in a San Francisco hotelnearby town of Salinas.
would be expensiveâ€"and evenThe Grapes of Wrath no longer haunt John
more so as you probably want an especially niceSteinbeck’s Salinas.
place for this trip. And, on top of that, you wouldIt’s become a pleasant
have to pay about $30 â€" 45 aworking-class town with a center city that people
day for parking in a safe area.enjoy in the evening.
Instead, why not spend the first three nightsSalinas puts you a mere 25 minutes from Carmel,
closer to the Wine Country and the nationalbut in a different price range altogether.
seashore?So, what have you done here?
You could book a very nice resort-style hotel inYou’ve had three
or near Santa Rosa for a fraction of the cost ofnights in Santa Rosa, two in San Francisco, and
a similar hotel in San Francisco.two in the Monterey area.
You would end up really close to many of theNot only have you saved a lot on
finest Napa Valley wineries, the Calistoga hothotelsâ€"even if you splurged in
springs spas, and even the exceptional restaurantžÂ¢ve also saved a lot of time commuting from
of the Culinary Institute of America. Moreover,a San Francisco hotel. This is time
you’d be just a fewyou’ve been able to
minutes from beautiful Point Reyes Nationaluse visiting fun and memorable places, rather than
Seashore.on the road.
Then, after your last night in Santa Rosa, youWhen saving money helps you have a better
could enjoy a scenic drive along the Marin Countyvacation, you have travel savings at its finest.