Travel Site Countdown-Hotels

Hey everyone! I apologize for not posting anything for a while. However, I am back with a great post that you don't want to miss out on. Over the past few weeks I have been planning a road trip down to Nashville for my friends and I. We are staying in a hotel while we are there so while doing my research I used a few travel sites. They can be helpful but some are difficult to navigate and don't provide the information needed. Here is my breakdown and rating of the top travel sites for booking hotels.

7. Hotwire
I put Hotwire last on my list because you do not book a specific hotel, rather an area in which you want to stay in. You can end up in any of a number of hotels. They do give you a list of the hotel companies that are in the area, but again not the specific hotel until after you book. For me this was not something I could use. When I was booking my trip to Nashville I was looking for a specific hotel. On top of the their rates were extremely high. The rate per night in the area I would be staying in was $138.00 average a night. The total came to $663.84. That was just out of the question. I do like how Hotwire does give you a total with taxes and fees before you put your credit card in. I prefer knowing exactly how much I will be paying before the last second.

6. Priceline
Priceline does have competitive rates with the other travel sites, however you have to put in all of your information before you see the total cost. It was only a few cents more for the subtotal than most of the other sites, but again it does not show you taxes and fees until the very end. I do not like this concept because it takes up some time to fill everything out to have to find out how much you will be charged.

5. Hotels.com
Hotels.com had the second highest rates of all of the sites I visited. For one night that Travelocity was charging me $159.99, Hotels.com was going to charge me $207.99. The total was going to come to $633.53. That price was just unacceptable.

4. Expedia
The same problem I had with Hotels.com was the exact same problem I had with Expedia, the prices were the same. I do not understand how these sites can market themselves as discount travel sites that offer you the best deals, when some of them have outrageous rates.

3. The Hotel's Website (I used Best Western)
I plan on staying in a certain Best Western while in Nashville so I decided to check out the rates they have posted on their website. I was surprised with just how competitive their rates were. The total price came to $551.63 which was around $13 difference from the cheapest rates I found. I was especially surprised by this because of how much lower it was compared to Expedia and Hotels.com. Best Western's rates were $112.21 cheaper than these two sites.

2. Kayak
This was my first time using Kayak so I was not sure what to expect. I had seen their commercials all of the time and they truly hone in on the fact of their prices and how you can compare all of the sites. They did have the lowest rates along with Travelocity. I used the comparing rates tool they feature so much on their commercials. I did not like this feature at all. When you do the search with the comparing rates tool all of the sites you are comparing pop up in different windows. This drove me nuts. In order to compare them all you have to keep clicking back and forth to and from different windows. If they ever want to adjust their site they should have all of the prices listed side by side when you click on the hotel you want so you can compare it all in one window.

1. Travelocity
Travelocity for my list gets number 1, not just because it had the lowest rates, but it was also the easiest to navigate. Travelocity shows you a break down of each night, the subtotal, and final total once you click on the hotel you want. I love this feature. Everything is on one page. Travelocity also had the lowest rates along with Kayak. From my experience Travelocity is the best travel site out there for booking hotels.

My Apologies

Hey everyone! I just wanted to apologize for the lack of posts here and on my podcast. The end of the semester has been a tad hectic. I hope to get back to posting! Stay tuned for more!

Podcast is up!

Follow the link Click Here for iTunes Or Here for Podbean it You Do Not Have iTunes Both places you can download the Mp3 and don't forget to subscribe and rate.

NEW PODCAST TODAY

Recording my Podcast 50 Things in 50 States today, Alabama episode 1! Subscribe on iTunes under "Traveling Through" or on Podbean.com

PODCAST

Finally after much work, I have posted my first Podcast to iTunes and has been published. I will be starting a show entitled "50 Things in 50 States" where I will highlight 50 fun and inexpensive things to do in the 50 states. Follow this link 50 Things in 50 States Podcast and click "View in iTunes" to subscribe.

FACEBOOK

Don't forget to check out the Facebook page. Like us on Facebook.


Traveling Through Facebook

Washington DC

Washington DC is a great place to go on a budget! Most of the sites of DC are free and within walking distance of each other. I have gone to DC more times than I can count, with all but 3 times being day trips. If you are going to DC definitely check out these places:

• Air and Space Museum-FREE
  
• National Museum of American History-FREE
  
• National Museum of Natural History-FREE
  
• Lincoln Memorial-FREE
  
• WWII Memorial-FREE
  
• Korean War Memorial-FREE
  
• Vietnam Memorial-FREE
  
• Ford's Theathre-FREE
  
• Martin Luther King Memorial>-FREE
  
• National Mall-FREE
  
• Old Post Office Tower-FREE
  
• Thomas Jefferson Memorial-FREE
  
• Washington Monument-FREE
  
• National Museum of the American Indian-FREE
  
• Smithsonian American Art Museum-FREE
  
• National Zoo-FREE
  
• FDR Memorial-FREE
  
• Bureau of Engraving and Printing-FREE
  
• National Archives-FREE
  
• Library of Congress-FREE
  
• Arlington Cemetery-FREE
  
• Supreme Court-FREE
  
• Union Station-FREE
  
• Holocaust Memorial Museum-Free
  

Acadia National Park

Acadia is such a gem on in the northeast. Every which way you look the scenery is breath taking. Off the coast of Maine lies an island that doubled as a National Park. Beautiful lakes, majestic mountains, and breathtaking forests make up this gorgeous place. I was fortunate to travel here in the beginning of August. Fortunately for you there are so many different places to stay in Acadia! From tent camping, to five star hotels, to small cozy cottages, there is lodging for every budget! For any of these options do your research! Campsites have such a wide range in prices so make sure you do your research. Campsites are a great way to save on money for families!  Many of them are family campgrounds so they have people constantly there so make sure you book a good time ahead of time so that you make sure you get a reservation.  National Park Campgrounds There are also plenty of other campgrounds not in the National Park!  Acadia over all is pretty inexpensive to visit.

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK PASSES

Entrance Pass - $20 June 23-early October; $10 May 1-June 22 and early October-October 31
Good for entrance into Acadia National Park for one vehicle for seven days, including the date of purchase.

Individual Entrance Pass - $5
Good for entrance into Acadia National Park for one individual (pedestrian, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.) for seven days, including date of purchase.

Acadia Annual Pass - $40
Good for entrance into Acadia National Park for one vehicle for one year from date of purchase.

Acadia Fees
Bar Harbor is only a short drive away from the National Park and has many small stores and waterfront views to window shop all day.

Acadia Website

Roughing It in Beverly Hills

In the summer of 2008 I traveled the US on a ten day road trip through the southwest. In only ten days we hit California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona! It may seem a tad insane, but it was a great experience that is truly unforgettable! While visiting the land of make believe we camped out in the gorgeous Santa Monica Mountains at the Malibu Creek State Park. During the day we walked amongst the stars and at night we slept under the stars. LA is quite costly pretty everything, so camping was a great way for us to save some money. We woke up in the morning to a beautiful view of the mountains. The sunrise over the mountains was breathtaking and as the fog lifted it created a magical piece of scenery. It was an amazing way to wake up every morning.

Not so SUPER SHUTTLE

Now normally i would not use this space to complain, however I believe it benefits you. Over the past week I went to Houston for a convention. When the group arrived we of course got our bags and waited for the Shuttle. We had previously booked the shuttle to ensure I speedy pick up to get us to the hotel in a timely manner. We waited at the baggage claim for around 2 hours! They claimed to do conventions all of the time, but were not prepared for this one. Some of our group were late to an event because of their lack of preparedness. As our trip was coming to a close we were weary of Super Shuttle and their capability of getting us to our flight on time. We sat and waited for the shuttle in the hotel lobby. A half an hour after the time in which the shuttle was supposed to pick us up we find out they cannot pick us up because they did not have enough shuttles for us. We had to find another form of transportation and we were running late. We needed four taxis all costing of $45 one costing over $60. I would have to say that Super Shuttle is not so "super" after all.