What is your favorite budget hotel chain?

[disney_5]

I am wondering what your favorite hotel chain is. We have stayed at several Red Roof Inns and liked them but on our next trip there are none nearby. Any other suggestions for similar chains? Just looking for something nice that will have a nice pool and be a bit updated and clean but not too expensive.

Thanks, Jen

 

[PrincessHeather'sMom]

I don't know if it is 'Budget' or not, bur we prefer Hampton Inns, if we can find one. Otherwise, we stay at Best Westerns because we have some kinda of membership with them. Best Westerns, in my experience are a gamble on what you get. Hamptons in my experience have nice pools and great breakfast layout!

 

[gracie1]

I like the Sleep Inns. And Country Inn and suites. Very clean. Sleep Inns normally have continental breakfast with danish and cereal, but Country Inn and Suites have waffles, a breakfast meat, potatoes, danish muffins, etc. Very delicious!

 

[Danibelle]

I really like Fairfield (Marriott) and Hampton Inn (Hilton). You can earn points in these chains for free nights later on. They both have clean, simple rooms, and include a breakfast.

 

[bartleby1]

We have found that hotels/motels vary dramatically even within the same chain depending on who is running them.

Typically we try to stay at Choice Hotels (comfort inn, sleep inn, quality inn, etc). They generally have a nice continental breakfast and are usually fairly priced. If you join their rewards program you can earn points toward free nights.

If you are looking to book something in advance at a specific location though, I would advise going on tripadvisor.com and looking for reviews of hotels in the area you want to stay to give you a better idea of what kind of condition the hotels are in. People post about their stays and experiences in hotels and you can usually get a good idea of what the hotel is like.

 

[Carina]

Best Western 9 times out of 10 WITH a check on trip advisor first (just in case). Never had a problem yet!

 

[ICF]

Hampton Inns.....always nice to get a free breakfast.

 

[Princesca]

I go to whichever one is cheapest, has the best review, and isn't on bedbugregistry.com.

We've had good luck with Super 8, but always check on TripAdvisor because, when you get into the smaller franchised motels/hotels, quality can vary wildly from one town to the next. Super 8 offers breakfast, but it's purely continental, and no waffle machine (at least not at the one we stay at) so don't expect a whole lot.

We stayed at an awesome Red Roof a couple of months ago that had a heated indoor pool, a professionally-decorated lobby, and breakfast that included belgian waffles. I wish they were all like that!

Don't forget to Google the hotel for promo codes, too! And our Entertainment coupon book paid for itself this year at the Super 8 with the discount we got. I think it was 20% off.

 

[kydisneyfans]

We like Wingate Inns, always clean, roomy, and a good breakfast.
We were impressed with Drury Inns also, but it is a little more pricey than the Wingates. They have a dinner.

Homewood Suites is also nice, but even higher in cost. Most Hamptons I have inquired about run well over $100 a night, not a good option for a 9 hour overnight stop IMO.

Normally we just try to pin down whatever pops up on Hotwire or Priceline through betterbidding or biddingfortravel.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We like Hilton Garden Inns, except that they don't have free breakfasts. The beds are comfortable (and adjustable like Sleep Number beds) and the rooms are clean and comfortable. It is our usual stop for a night on the road.

We also like Springhill Suites by Marriott. We usually stop at one in Savannah on the way to WDW.

 

[minushka72]

Best Western 9 times out of 10 WITH a check on trip advisor first (just in case). Never had a problem yet!

Us also, and the ones we've stayed at have always had a great breakfast buffet.

 

[Judyat]

We've always had good experiences at Holiday Inn Express. Free breakfast and a few offer a happy hour with free beer and wine with appetizers. Also using the AAA or senior rate you have until 6pm the day of arrival to cancel. We rarely have to do that but it helps to know that if something comes up you can cancel without being charged for that night.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

Check out choice hotels. The pools aren't always that great but most have a continental breakfast which is free and includes waffles.

If you sign up for their free membership thing, you can earn points towards free stays. I've lost count of the number of free nights I've gotten from them.

 

[disneymarie]

I am wondering what your favorite hotel chain is. We have stayed at several Red Roof Inns and liked them but on our next trip there are none nearby. Any other suggestions for similar chains? Just looking for something nice that will have a nice pool and be a bit updated and clean but not too expensive.

Thanks, Jen

I like Red Roof or Econo lodge for a one or two night stay, but in Disney several days there are a few more things I want.

Off site I had stayed at the Quality Suites near Old Town on Irlo Bronson Dr. several times, pre onsite value trips using ME.
Quality Inn & Suites Eastgate (FL722) 4960 W. Irlo Bronson Hwy, Kissimmee, FL, US, 34746
Phone: (407) 396-1376
but reviews are not so good now.[/COLOR]

This one:
Quality Suites Lake Buena Vista Hotel Guest Rating: 8.8/10[/COLOR]8200 Palm Parkway
Orlando, FL 32836 Would be my first choice by the current reviews
If I am doing an off site stay next trip I will not hesitate to stay again at a Quality Suiets. The pool is great, near many places to eat. You can cook in the real kitchen with a dishwasher. They have pots to rent for a few dollars a week, any other items you need.

A real living room, many TV's, snack bar and a kitchen table. Sofa bed to if you have two bedrooms with King or double beds combo...mega privacy and sleeping. That being said, I have not been there in 10 years. I assume there must have been repainting and updating, just do not know for sure.

There is a nice Tiki bar outside with a breakfast set up in the morning. Cereal, bagals, muffins, and pastry. Great OJ, and other drinks. Free Wifi, and shuttles if interested.

When checking last night a roomonly with AP at Music suite was $1500 for 5. The Quality Suite 2 double bed one bedroom came to $600.($75.00 a night not incl. 18%) For a regular room 2 dble bed reg $49 a night , PREPAY was only $39 a night on the web site.
Priceline folks have gotten for $25 which is concerning and saying it is dated. If that is true I will definatly try the Quality Suites Lake Buena Vista instead.

Still researching. I know Celebrity has some condo type units too on the main site, not the smaller building. The smaller building has mini suite which is very very small for family of 4.

 

[auntmeme7577]

I travel for work and stay in hotels on average, 3-4 nights per week
I like the Choice Hotels brand and I really like their rewards program!
Quick to hit rewards...hotels, gift cards
We have used it to take 2 trips to Florida each year
Nice and clean, decent breakfast, good locations

 

[maleficentmom]

We LOVE Drury Inns, although I think they are more in the Southeast than a national chain. Free full breakfast buffet(eggs,meat,etc),free popcorn and soft drinks, and free evening appetizers and cocktails. All this and we have payed as low as $54 with them. We stayed there in Greensboro area and Atlanta.
Also,while it's a timeshare resort type thing rather than a hotel, we have found that renting through an owner of Diamond Resorts (found them on ebay,and stuck with them for future trips) has been very economical for us,especially offseason...we use them for Grand Resort in Orlando and Powhatan Plantation in Williamsburg...we have been able to get extremely nice 2-3 bedroom condos for the price of a Hampton or less.

 

[momto2inKC]

We LOVE Drury Inns, although I think they are more in the Southeast than a national chain. Free full breakfast buffet(eggs,meat,etc),free popcorn and soft drinks, and free evening appetizers and cocktails. All this and we have payed as low as $54 with them. We stayed there in Greensboro area and Atlanta.
Also,while it's a timeshare resort type thing rather than a hotel, we have found that renting through an owner of Diamond Resorts (found them on ebay,and stuck with them for future trips) has been very economical for us,especially offseason...we use them for Grand Resort in Orlando and Powhatan Plantation in Williamsburg...we have been able to get extremely nice 2-3 bedroom condos for the price of a Hampton or less.

We just stayed at a Drury for the first time in San Antonio last month and loved it! We paid $90 for the first 2 nights and $70 for our last night, it was such a deal! We saved so much money on food during our vacation. Free breakfast, the evening kickback was free and worked for us for dinner (salad, baked potatoes, nachos, fresh veggies/dips, hot dogs, chicken strips, mac & cheese, chips, chili, fruit). 3 free alcoholic drinks per night per adult and free popcorn/soda for the kids all evening! The hotel was new and very nice! And the staff were awesome.

 

[StephMK]

We have been Choice hotel rewards members for at least 5 years but I'm about to give up on them. We have stayed at some really nice ones but a handful & growing list of terrible stays. I'm not a picky traveler, we just need a clean bed en route to family. However, our last Comfort Inn stay was horrible. Dirty, falling apart room, carpet that required us to leave our shoes on. It was my go-to budget choice but probably not for much longer.

Our favorite is Country Inn & Suites and I just saw that they have a reward program.

If you are a member of AAA, that will get you discounted rates at many places. Definitely check tripadvisor!

 

[antmaril]

I recently spent two weeks in a Staybridge Suites in Houston and couldn't have been more pleased. My friend was seeking cancer treatment in Houston and we needed a two-bedroom suite. After a lot of research of the area, we decided on the Staybridge Suites. It was terrific. Complimentary breakfast buffet, dinner buffet on T-W-Th. It was VERY clean, with a lovely atmosphere and a friendly staff. I was not familiar with this brand and I was pleasantly surprised.

 

[disykat]

We also stay budget - red roof, econo lodge, days inn, super 8, travelodge, and motel 6 at times. When staying in this catagory I always check tripadvisor. Mileage definitely varies!

You are definitely safer with some of the 3 star chains people are mentioning, but some of the 2 stars can be clean and functional.