booking hotels, US and UK

[seldear]

Does anyone know if it's better to wait until the last minute to book hotels? Are you likely to get cheaper deals?

What about for somewhere that's pretty popular, such as Boston in very late October? Better to book ahead, or go risky and try my luck at a last minute deal?

Comments

[dragonlady-gnrd.livejournal.com]

Don't know about the US but in th UK, it all depends on when you're coming & where you're going to be. If it's London November - December, then get booked early, coz of Christmas & shopping/shows etc. Other than that, I'd check out the net for the place you're coming to & see if there are any big events on during that time. That should tell you whether rooms'll be booked up in advance. I know that Lincoln & surrounding area is booked solid months in advance whilst the Christmas market is running, & am thinking other places will be the same during any special events.

[chiroho.livejournal.com]

In the US there are web sites like hotels.com which claim to be able to get you much cheaper rates than you might otherwise be able to get. Unfortunately I can't verify as to the veracity of this information since I've never used the site - most of my travel is business related and hence has completely different priorities.

If you're looking at Boston in October, I guess it all depends on where you want to stay in relation to the city. Boston, like NYC, is a very expensive city to stay in for any of the big chain hotels - though I know that may not be where you're looking anyway. My recommendation would be to book early if you can, but it's also possible you could get a decent last minute deal. You can also end up paying a lot more - which obviously isn't ideal.

And let me know when you're likely to be in Boston, as we can at least do lunch or something. It looks like I will be travelling on business in the middle of the month, but let me know anyway. Do you have specific stuff planned for your time in Beantown?