Hotel learnings, Pt. 1

This is what I've learned after two days of getting hotels on the road, coupled with a lot of other knowledge along the way.

Hotwire is good. They get great deals on unused inventory. We stayed at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark. Hiltons though, in general, are over-rated. This was considered a four-star hotel, but the room was decidedly two to three-star at best. The only four-star feature of the hotel was the doorman and the lobby bar. I knew when Hotwire said they had a four-star property downtown for $59 it was going to be a Hilton. A quick visit to the Hilton site, showed a $199 rate, so I feel pretty vindicated. My biggest issue with Hilton is they nickle-and-dime you for everything. Internet is $9.99 / day. Parking was $16/day, or $24 for valet. I couldn't leave my car for 10 minutes to unload, and had to drive to the parking garage and then schlep my stuff across the street.

I had considered using my Starwood or other points, but $59 for a 4-star hotel seemed like a better cash exchange.

Tonight we're staying in a Baymont Inn, and honestly the room is just as nice as the Hilton. Perhaps the bedding is of a lesser grade, or the mattress not as high-end, but the room has everything, AS WELL AS a fridge, which the Hilton did not. You can't possibly expect to get 4-stars and not have a minibar, in my humble opinion. Oh, and this hotel has free internet and free parking, right outside my window, for $69. And my children are just as happen. I booked this hotel on the travel site from my company using my corporate discount (we are allowed to use this discount for personal travel). Its the same rate as a AAA rate, but I don't have my card and didn't want to be asked for it. Add the free breakfast tomorrow, and I think its overall a better deal than the Hilton, and my kids like this one just fine (I asked them and they didn't have a strong opinion).

Now I'm also setting a precedent with $60 and $70 (+tax, license, dock-fee and registration) hotels, versus $40 hotels, but I've seen those, and I've stayed in those, and they are scary. I don't need to save $20 or $30 and be in a dump.

Kayak.com, Expedia, and Travelocity are also excellent, as is word-of-mouth. I'll add more details as I know them. Oh, and all things considered, the Hilton was barely worth it at $59 a night.

OK, we'll see what happens with Oklahoma City or perhaps Amarillo tomorrow night (or Elk City or Clinton), depending on what time we get out of here, health of my kids, and bathroom stops.