Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Jul 30, 2017 8:54:09 GMT -5
For us, we like space and free breakfast. I like having a 2 room suite at least a bit of room so that you feel like you have a living room. But, the free breakfast is the big winner. I know it's not really free but there is no hassle with that.
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billisonboard
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Post by billisonboard on Jul 30, 2017 9:17:27 GMT -5
Location and price (I am cheap but needs to be reasonable quality).
Totally agree on the breakfast. It allows me a place to go while my wife gets ready for the day.
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milee
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Post by milee on Jul 30, 2017 9:21:16 GMT -5
Location, cleanliness and layout. Not a free breakfast fan since so many of the buffets are really disgusting. Crappy food and people touching everything... yuck. If we're somewhere with a free breakfast and we won't be near any other breakfast alternative, I'll get a couple of pieces of whole fruit but that's about it.
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dee27
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Post by dee27 on Jul 30, 2017 9:30:17 GMT -5
Clean, bug free, secure, and location. I need coffee to wake up, but breakfast can wait until I find a restaurant with decent food.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Jul 30, 2017 9:30:22 GMT -5
It depends on our needs.
When we've had to do 16 hours of driving in 2 days, a room that's big enough for us and is clean is about all we need. We usually pack pop tarts so we can have a quick breakfast and get on the road.
If we are staying someplace for a few days as part of a 2+ week long driving trip, then we want a decent sided indoor pool and a room big enough to fit us, and breakfast.
I'm finding that we do look for VBROs if it makes sense.
Dh and I are taking a trip soon. We're staying at VBRO for half of it. The place has a living room, small kitchen and a bedroom. It's half the price of a hotel room.
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Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Jul 30, 2017 9:54:26 GMT -5
If i am just staying one night, then I don't mind so much what it does or doesn't have. I do want a clean room. Moldy bathrooms, no. I will check out and leave if that is the case. When DD does her AAU tourneys, we usually stay at Courtyard by Marriot, or something like that. Those are usually pretty nice. I really don't want overly fussy hotels. I dont' want valet parking and I don't care if they have restaurant, bar, conference rooms, etc. An indoor pool is nice as we like to swim.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2017 10:23:56 GMT -5
I'm not real picky. For the most part, when I'm comparison shopping, price is what I zoom in on, but we rarely go to a hotel for the experience, it's just that we're passing through and need a place to stay, so I don't spend a lot of time on reviews or anything. I tend to stick to the larger chains though.
I do really like the free breakfast though, and most of the time we do stay where this is offered. A lot of times if we're traveling, we can fill up enough and grab some fruit and rolls for the drive that we can skip lunch too. On our trip our last night was at a really nice Marriott and no breakfast. We ended up having to pay a fortune to eat at the airport which kind of sucked.
I do like having a suite now that the kids are older. It's nice to have two separate rooms (and two separate TVs) so we can have our own space, but again, if we're just needing a place to crash for the night, it's not a big deal.
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phil5185
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Post by phil5185 on Jul 30, 2017 10:47:15 GMT -5
It's kinda funny to see how far we've progressed with our 'First World' Problems.
When I was a kid, motels had not yet been invented, car travelers stayed in a 'cabin' at night. We had an outhouse - -so not a lot of issues about mold or valet parking. No free breakfast - the cabins had a kitchen so we brought eggs & bacon - and coffee. They had electric lights and a fridge. No TVs, no TV channels out along the highways until about 1954 or '56 (depending on what part of the US you were traveling thru.
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Rob Base 2.0
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Post by Rob Base 2.0 on Jul 30, 2017 10:54:45 GMT -5
if the hotel charges by the hour and there are hot chicks standing right outside the hotel, that is my kinda place.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2017 10:55:18 GMT -5
It's kinda funny to see how far we've progressed with our 'First World' Problems. When I was a kid, motels had not yet been invented, car travelers stayed in a 'cabin' at night. We had an outhouse - -so not a lot of issues about mold or valet parking. No free breakfast - the cabins had a kitchen so we brought eggs & bacon - and coffee. They had electric lights and a fridge. No TVs, no TV channels out along the highways until about 1954 or '56 (depending on what part of the US you were traveling thru. Yeah, and the generations before you can laugh at you and your cars outhouses and electricity, when they had to travel by horse and buggy, sleep in tents and bring their own oil lamps. I'm not sure what the point is. It IS nice for the kids to have their own room. I'll bet your parents would have thought the same thing!
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Jul 30, 2017 11:08:22 GMT -5
Depends on why I'm staying there. If I have an early am flight, I spend the night in a hotel near the airport. I want good sound proofing and a free shuttle to the airport.
If I'm staying in a city where I want to sightsee, I want a good location: walking distance to major atractipns and/or easy walking distance to public transportation. Also a good selection of restaurants and eateries nearby.
Cleanliness, of course. I do check reviews. I don't care about breakfast as long as there is a Starbucs (or similar) nearby.
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milee
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Post by milee on Jul 30, 2017 11:14:42 GMT -5
I'm trying to remember the last time I even turned on a TV at a hotel or rental house/condo.
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NancysSummerSip
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Post by NancysSummerSip on Jul 30, 2017 12:10:33 GMT -5
I told my husband what it was like when we did the NY to Florida drive as kids with my folks. Our biggest disappointment was the lack of color TV. He is 14 years old than I am, so he recalls NO TVs in hotels rooms. If I travel alone, I like security - so that means a room not on a ground floor and secured parking. I am big on a clean room - I will leave if I see evidence of anything like bed bugs or roaches. A dirty hotel room is not acceptable. I get that perfect is a standard that an establishment aims for, but to really get it horribly wrong is not what I pay for. And I let both local and corporate management know about it. But it's been a rare thing. Certain chains get it consistently right, and those are the places I tend to stay. I do have loyalty memberships with several chains, and it does pay off if you travel regularly. Free breakfast I can do without - I prefer to dine where the locals eat. I can do without a pool, exercise room and spa, though if any or all are kept nice, I will use them. Room size not really a big thing for me; I am not in the room other than to shower and sleep. We stayed in a really small room in Toronto (it was a very old hotel and the room was about 400 square feet for two of us) but the age of the place made it really charming. Hotel location matters - I like to walk and use public transit, so I try to find a hotel near a public transit station.
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Knee Deep in Water Chloe
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Post by Knee Deep in Water Chloe on Jul 30, 2017 12:20:55 GMT -5
The words holiday,inn, and express.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Jul 30, 2017 12:23:35 GMT -5
Depends on why I am there. If it is a stop on a road trip, I don't care too much about room size, I'm just looking to shower and flop. Normally, I don't care too much about breakfast as we will usually get on the road with coffee and get breakfast an hour or 2 down the road. I try to stick to chains.
When I was making reservations for South Africa, where we were staying several days in each spot, the search criteria was 4-5 stars, free secure parking, Wifi, free breakfast. I did look for larger sized rooms......after the place we stayed in Istanbul, your hotel room CAN be too small (when 2 people cannot open their suitcase or get dressed at the same time).
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Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Jul 30, 2017 12:52:21 GMT -5
The words holiday,inn, and express. I haven't had good luck at Holiday Inns or Holiday Inn Express. Maybe depends on what part of the country.
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Lizard Queen
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Post by Lizard Queen on Jul 30, 2017 13:10:26 GMT -5
Price, location, amenities. Cleanliness is a given. Wi-Fi is important. Couldn't care less about TV, but my kids do care if they can't use the computer. I can see an indoor pool becoming more important as they learn to swim. Haven't been staying much anywhere in the last several years. Just got back from the annual family beach weekend where we stay at a conference center on Lake Michigan. We really need a real vacation, though. *Sigh*
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Jul 30, 2017 14:06:04 GMT -5
We are Marriott people and generally stay at their mid-level brands. When we vacation, we start with location. We will pay extra to be near the things we want to do, and then we skip renting a car. We like the free breakfast because we aren't big breakfast eaters. We save our calories for awesome dinners. So we can get oatmeal or yogurt and a piece of fruit. The kids will make waffles. The kids like when we get a suite, and then one sleeps on the fold out couch. I never feel bad for them when they have to share a bed, but they seem to fight less during the day when they can get their own space while sleeping.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Jul 30, 2017 14:10:46 GMT -5
I don't care too much about hotels having a restaurant, if they are in an area where there are other restaurants. Normally, I prefer to dine outside the hotel because I have found some very good restaurants (not chains) this way.
That being said, when we were in Durban we had spent the day running around getting wedding things (rings, clothes) done. I was beat, hungry and it was raining out. We went to the hotel restaurant that night. There were only 4 things on the menu. I had the chicken and prawn curry and it was outstanding. In fact, we went back the next night and got it again. When I got back to the US, I emailed the manager asking if her chef would be willing to share his recipe....and he was!
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hoops902
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Post by hoops902 on Jul 30, 2017 15:34:20 GMT -5
A gym, a hot tub, and decent dining options within the hotel (decent meaning at least a hot breakfast option) or within walking distance. Typically if I'm staying in a hotel it's because I'm visiting someplace for work. It's not generally with the family.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jul 30, 2017 16:17:07 GMT -5
Location and cleanliness
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lund
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Post by lund on Jul 30, 2017 17:27:54 GMT -5
Clean (including bug-free!!!) Close (to where I'm headed) Cheap (I rather spend on other thing than the space where I park my body and luggage for the night)
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Jake 48
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keeping the faith
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Post by Jake 48 on Jul 30, 2017 18:15:02 GMT -5
if the hotel charges by the hour and there are hot chicks standing right outside the hotel, that is my kinda place. I'm all in!!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2017 18:49:07 GMT -5
Beds
I have a tempurpedic which I love but the drawback is it makes it very difficult to sleep when I travel. Also doesn't help I'm an insomniac. When I go on vacations I have been able to find places that have tempurpedics.
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Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Jul 30, 2017 19:02:45 GMT -5
We just stayed at a candlewood suites and it was super nice!
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jeffreymo
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Post by jeffreymo on Jul 30, 2017 19:55:24 GMT -5
Nice beds and free breakfast.
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Lizard Queen
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Post by Lizard Queen on Jul 30, 2017 20:31:53 GMT -5
I like the free breakfasts, too, if they have more than things like donuts and coffee. Breakfast always seems to become an afterthought with everyone who I travel with, or we end up spending too much time and money at a sit-down place. 1) I can't skip breakfast or just eat carbs--I feel like I'm going to pass out if I do. 2) I don't believe in spending a lot on breakfast. There's a place that's just north of my town--tons of great food for cheap. That's the way it should be, except it gets packed, and you have to wait.
That all said, free breakfast isn't a deal maker or breaker. It's just often super-duper convenient.
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busymom
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Post by busymom on Jul 30, 2017 21:20:16 GMT -5
Cleanliness. Comfortable beds. Quiet when I want to sleep. Free breakfast, free parking, & free wifi is nice, too.
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Jul 30, 2017 21:26:29 GMT -5
One of my pet peeves are high end hotels who ding you for wifi, parking etc. I recently stayed in a hotel in Spokane that actually charged $25 each way for the 20 minute airport shuttle, The hotel was around $250/ night. They also charged for wifi and parking. (Had to stay there to attend a convention of a group I belng to). Grrrr
When I reviewed them, I gave them a piece of my mind about the nickel and dimeing
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Jul 31, 2017 1:52:16 GMT -5
No bedbugs.
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