We understand that planning a trip can be daunting for some. Of the many questions we get, people often ask us how we go about selecting our hotels. It seems like over the years we have become quite adept in picking great hotels that meet our travel needs. We’ve been fortunate to stay at a range of wonderful establishments and have noted what works for us. On the flip side, we have also had a few horrible hotel experiences which taught us things we are never willing to compromise on again. We can’t advise you on hostels, couchsurfing or AirBnBs, but if you’re looking for a great hotel, read on!
By learning your personal preferences and following a few easy tips, you can easily pick hotels that will satisfy all of your travel needs! There is no need to rely on a travel agent to pick hotels for your or face the uncertainty of blindly guessing where it might be best to stay.
I am a firm believer that different types of trips require different types of hotels. Sometimes all you need is a safe, clean place to rest your head for the night. Other times, the hotel is an integral part of the overall travel experience. One of the first things you will need to figure out is the type of trip you are hoping to go on, and of course the destination.

These initial choices will factor into the type of hotel you choose to stay at. They are the first ingredients in planning the recipe for a super trip! You will also want to determine your overall budget for your trip, as that will allow you to know what your accommodation options are. Hotels are one of the most expensive elements in planning a trip, so be sure to figure out what works for you. We tend to stay in mid-range hotels.
By now, you should have three things figured out.
1. The type of trip you are hoping to go on.
2. The destination
3. Your budget
Armed with these key pieces you are now ready to start browsing hotels.
Again, I am a firm believer that there are different types of hotels that meet different needs during different types of trips. Generally, there isn’t a one size fits all accommodation option. What we suggest for a beach vacation is entirely different than what we would look into for historical visit to Europe. But, I also don’t see the point in staying in a high-end, 5 star hotel when you will merely be crashing there after a busy day of exploring.

How to pick your hotel
Booking Sites
Visit whatever website you do your hotel searches on. We often use third-party booking sites and especially like those that have some reward options. There are pros and cons to booking sites vs. direct websites. Again, do what works for you here! Be sure to know your dates and room preferences.
Initial Searches
By typing in my destinations I can see a variety of top properties. I type in exactly where we are planning to stay. For example, if I need a hotel near a certain airport, I will type that airport in my search, not just the city.
Oftentimes, the first properties you see are the ones which the booking site earns more of a commission on when you book. You might need to do a little filtering and digging.
Filters
Adjust your filters to reflect what you are looking for. This will help you narrow down your selection. I typically filter to include the following items:
- Distance from destination
- Price Range
- Free Cancellation
- Non-Smoking
Depending on what type of travel experience we are going for, I may also choose to filter for hotels that offer things like free airport shuttles and breakfast. But, this is typically something I narrow down a bit later on.
Brand Recognition
By now, you will also start to notice that several of the property names are familiar. Some people prefer to stick to a certain hotel chain while others are fine with independently owned properties. This may vary if you are booking hotels in places like the US which are filled with chain properties vs. foreign cities which have more independent hotels. There are pros and cons to each of these booking choices, some of which will be discussed later in this post.
Deeper Searches
Once the results are filtered and you’ve narrowed where you think you might want to stay, look at properties a little more closely. Start paying attention to the overall ratings each place has. On a scale of 1-5, we personally won’t stay at any place rated less than a 3 on the booking site’s scale.
Additional Amenities
Competition amongst hotels can be fierce. They offer a variety of additional amenities to encourage booking. Here is where I start to look for things that will lure us in. These might include:
- Access to public transportation
- Evening receptions
- No resort fees
- Proximity to major sites
- Breakfast included
A Picture Says 1000 Words
When you have identified a handful of appealing properties that appear to meet your needs, start looking at the photos. Many times the pictures tell a great story. Here are the things that I look for and can make decisions about just from the pictures:
- If the hotel looks dirty, dingy, and dated I am immediately turned off.
- A full, floral bedspread in a photo will automatically make me take the hotel off my list.
- I also always make sure to look at the photos of the bathroom to see what types of toiletries they provide. While mini hotel toiletries are on their way out, and you may not even use them, you can still tell a lot about a place based on the type of product they provide. If it’s a nicer product, they likely take a little more pride in their brand and guest experience. And, if they are stationed next to a cream colored plastic ice bucket… nope!
- Look at the carpet. I can identify a dated carpet pattern in a matter of minutes.
- Check out the decor. If it has not been updated we are less likely to stay there.
Some of these things might sound silly or superficial. But they are very telling. There is a certain standard and aesthetic that appeals to us and it is automatically identifiable within a few photos. And, as you might have guessed, I am a very visual person. Looking at pictures really works for me.
Reviews
I also make sure to read a handful of reviews on the booking site. I believe these are very subjective, but I still look for a common theme. If the reviews are generally good, it puts me at ease. When they are general bad, I move on. If I hear about bedbugs, mold, or safety concerns, it is immediately off my list.
Once I’ve finished skimming reviews on the booking site, I pop over to TripAdvisor. Here, I take a quick glance through reviews again, looking for the same info. And, I also take a quick peek at the traveler’s photos too because these are more honest.
Map Views
I also check out the hotel on Google Maps. This gives me the lay of the land and is another visual queue. If there is nothing around it, we won’t book. If there are plenty of restaurants, shops, businesses, etc. it is more convenient and appealing.
And, if you happen to be booking a place near the airport, look at how close the hotel is to the runways. Being in close proximity can make a huge difference in noise levels every time planes take off or land.
Final Decision
By now, you should have no more than three hotels to choose from in your funnel. At this point, the decision ultimately lies on which of these final choices offers the most bang for our buck? It may not always be the cheapest hotel. It is all about what offers the most elements for us. That is the one we go with!
We realize this may sound like a lot of steps to pick a hotel. But, the more familiar you get with your preferences, the faster this will go for you. At this point in our travels, we can usually pick a great hotel in less than 30 minutes these days. Visit our hotel recommendations page for listings in top tourist destinations!

Corporate Chains vs. Independent Hotels
There is much debate regarding deciding to stay at a corporate chain hotel vs. an independent hotel. We do a mix of both throughout our travels. If you’re not familiar with the pros and the cons, read on!
Corporate Chains
These are the big names that are synonymous with hotels. Think along the lines of Marriott, Holiday Inn, Hyatt, and more! Easily recognizable, many travelers find a brand or two they are comfortable with and stick to it. The offer familiarity in oftentimes unfamiliar places and give people an underlying sense of security and comfort. Travelers know what to expect here and often appreciate what these places have to offer. Oftentimes, these places offer great brand loyalty rewards programs too, which is of course a bonus!
But, not all that glitters is gold. While many of these hotels chains are great, there are often unseen issues with sustainability. These range from considerations regarding the resources they consume, low wages paid and limited growth opportunities for workers, and leakage. I find this to be especially true in destinations that are not as developed as the United States. Don’t get me wrong, corporate hotels provide some positive impacts for their host communities, but not as much as you might think on the surface.
Independent Hotels
These little gems are often overlooked in the shadow of their corporate hotel neighbors. But, there are so many benefits to staying at one. Oftentimes, you get better prices, better perks, and even better service. They aren’t held down by the same corporate standards of the big guys. And, for those that are operated on a local level, this is a great way to really support the local community. Even better are those hotels which have initiatives to work with other local providers, making this a more sustainable choice.
Independent hotels certainly can’t compete with the corporate giants. You might have to sacrifice some things…like only having access to one pool instead of 3. If you’re looking for a full-package stay, these places might not be an option for you. They simply can’t offer things like free airport shuttle or 24 hour reception.

Sustainability
Whichever route you decide to go, there are always things you can do to make your hotel stay a bit more sustainable. Here are a few super easy ideas for you to incorporate into your next trip:
- Bring your own toiletries in refillable containers
- Turn the lights and air conditioning/heat off when you’re not in your room
- Reuse towels and linens
- Look for hotels that are LEED certified
- Book at hotels that partner with other local businesses for things like food service or activities
- Think about conservation and seek this out. Covered pools are an easy bonus, as is xeriscaping!
I am a firm believer that if everybody did a little something, it would add up to bigger positive impacts. Armed with information, you are now ready to pick your next hotel!
Picking the right hotel is an important part of traveling. There is a lot to consider. Over time, you will be able to learn your preferences, use these tips and ace picking a top place to stay.

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This is a unique blog post. Thank you for sharing some great tips on choosing a hotel!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Great info! Thanks for sharing.
Glad you found it helpful! Thanks for commenting!
Great tips on how to pick your next hotel/accommodation. Many of the tips are applicable to staying a guesthouse, hostel, and Airbnb. I agree with you that it’s best to look at another site to compare the reviews vs on the booking site. I’ve been relying on Google Reviews to see other reviews.
I’m glad to hear that the suggestions are helpful in other accommodation style selections as well!
I usually pick up a hotel based on location and price. But the most important thing is the location, how easy I can get there from train station, airport, bus station. And also if I can walk to the city center and the key sights in town. Recently, I have also added the reading reviews criteria because I have had some bad experiences with noisy hotels (but that’s another story).
Noisy hotels can certainly be a downer, especially when you really really need somw sleep! Location can impact this at times too!
Great tips here! A great hotel can make a vacation even better!
Agreed! And a bad hotel can ruin a perfectly good vacation… We know from experience!
I love all the detailed instructions here and I have to pin it for my followers to see. I do the same thing every time I am looking for accommodation for our travels. Accessibility to other areas is important to me especially with younger children. I love this post and I enjoyed reading this.
Thanks for the pin! I’m glad you found this post helpful. Yes, accessibility is very important for many populations.
This is a very comprehensive list to help everyone chose the best hotel for them. After travelling for 50 years, you forget that if you have never travelled before, choosing a hotel could be completely overwhelming.
Yes, it’s something definitely we don’t think of when we do a ton of traveling. But, it’s definitely a question we’ve been getting a lot inquiries about lately.
We usually travel based on our budget… living in Perth WA means there are few places to travel with cheap flights so our go to are roadtrips through our state & Bali in Indonesia (cheapest tickets you can get from perth! ahha)
I think that would be a challenge living in Australia. But, it’s good that you are in close proximity to Bali and Indonesia!
This is such a perfect and timely post. I am planning a trip in March for Spring break and will be using these tips for sure.
Hope you are planning to visit somewhere fun!
Do you know how to find original hotels? I spend so much time on business trips and all hotels look the same to me. On vacation, I want somethng fresh.
I think it totally depends on what type of place you stay in for business trips as well as what type of vacation experience you’re looking for!
Great post, guys! Every tip is helpful but…why the bias against flowery bedspreads? JK – I wonder if people think about how easy that makes it to hide stains and dirt. Plus, it’s just so dated! 😉 We really enjoy clean, modern aesthetics, so that bedspread would be out for us, too!
I’m glad I’m not alone in what is and isn’t appealing. I just imagine those old bed spreads to be filled with decades of dust mites and dead skin… it grosses me out!
I so agree that the kind of trip is a huge factor when deciding what kind of hotel to book. What does being LEED certified mean? I don’t think I have heard of that.
Here is some information on LEED certified hotels
Thank you for such an information and in-depth post! Booking my accommodation is probably my least favourite part of travel, so I appreciate that you’ve clearly laid out all the necessary steps. I personally also rely heavily on photos, reviews, and locations. The first thing I do when I click on a hotel is scroll through the photos to see what the bathroom looks like. Haha. I also try to book small, independent, sustainable hotels. I prefer to give my money to a local business person rather than a large corporation.
Yes, bathrooms are a big selling point for me too, as well as staying local when possible!
This is a great list – I’m often overwhelmed when booking accommodations for vacations, so these are great tips!
Glad it was helpful!
These are all such great tips. I love that you mentioned additional amenities as these are often not considered during the booking process but can be so important to the enjoyment of your stay! Great post!
Glad you enjoyed the post – thanks for commenting!
You’ve piqued my curiosity: what does it mean when a hotel has a floral bedspread?
They are really old! So, to me this means a lot of things. On the surface it means they haven’t made an investment in updating the hotel and they don’t care about staying with the times. More concerning is that, because these are so dated, it means the hotel is likely dirty. These bed spreads become filled with dust mites and layers of flaked skin over time and must be replaced. Oftentimes this means the pillows and mattress are in the same condition!
Eww… That is good to know!
Wow! What a useful and well thought out blog post. It is hard work choosing a hotel but the effort you put in can pay off. Thank you.
Thanks for commenting – I’m happy to hear you found it helpful!
Great tips! For a lot of people having a step by step process laid out like this will help with overwhelm. I really like that you included a section on considering sustainability when travelling 🙂
Thanks!
This is great guide for novice travelers looking to book hotels. You’ve covered everything here and a great point are the distances from the main attractions as this is very important if you don’t have your own means of transportation. I also go through all images as they really help in the final decision making.
Thank for reading and commenting!
Great tips! I felt like iwas there with you choosing! I normally look price first, location which is super important and it looks then always read reviews😄
We definitely have similar approaches to selecting hotels!
When it comes to accommodations, my “must haves” is that it’s clean, safe, and lets me get a good night’s sleep. After that, everything is just sprinkles on the cupcake. So far, I’ve done alright. But I credit two of your tips here: really scouring the photos and reading every review!
“Sprinkles on the cupcake”…. I like that!!
Thanks for a detailed guide on selecting a hotel of our choice. I too see lot many things and love to take hotels at city centers. Also looking out for some good deals on trust worthy booking sites is good tip. I never knew about Leeds certificate but now look for it before booking.
Sounds like we have similar interests when selecting hotels.
Indeed, the choice of lodging is based on what the trip is about. Just a room for a night, or experience what the place is about, or simply for its amenities – it all makes the difference. We are not necessarily big on chains but rather look for smaller settings, even homestays. It always have some parts unknown but that’s part of the travel experience for sure. Everyone its own, and gladly so as we are all different travelers 🙂
So true! And, there is something out there for everyone.
Great tips for picking your next hotel! I typically start with Hilton since that’s where the bulk of my points are and then branch out if I don’t find something I like in the Hilton family. I’m with you though, if the pictures look dirty and dingy, that hotel quickly gets a no from me!
We have stayed at several nice Hilton properties too! Glad I’m not the only one who looks at pictures!
Wow! I never realized there could be so much to picking a hotel. I just let my husband to the reservation. He know we love authentic local experiences and unique accommodations, native to the area. If possible he picks memorable experiences.
Hotels that provide memorable experiences are the best!
This is a really good post for beginner travellers to think about what they need to consider – the trip, the destination and the budget are certainly the main consideration when deciding on a trip.
Thank you!
Good tips on how to choose the next hotel. My usual filters are breakfast, free cancellation and parking space! ‘Picture says a 1000 words’ is so true – a very good tip!
Using filters saves so much time!
Using filters saves so much time!
Great tips! It’s also a cultural thing I think choosing hotels. Coming from Europe, I prefer the independent boutique hotels but my American friends always seem to want the comfort of a chain hotel 🙂
I agree that it’s a cultural thing for sure.
I think a big novice mistake is looking at price over location; it’s cheap and looks amazing but then arriving you find out there’s no convenient transport and the money you saved on the hotel is spent on transport, or it’s a long walk plus value your time; spend a bit more on the better location and more time to travel.
Exactly!
We always use a booking site. I love being able to see so many choices at once.
I chuckled at this: A full, floral bedspread in a photo will automatically make me take the hotel off my list. And yes, the look of the carpet too. There are so many great hotels out there. There is no need to settle for something not so wonderful.
Great post! It seems like we have a similar process for booking hotels. I love using Booking.com just because they have really flexible cancellation policies and you can pay when you get to the hotel, which is nice. Like you, I’m turned off by dingy photos and floral bedspreads lol. I love staying in clean, modern hotels. Thanks for sharing!