Accommodation can be a bit of a pain can’t it, especially if you are trying to save on money, it is of course absolutely necessary and it is also likely to be your largest expense. When I choose my accommodation, I don’t necessarily always choose the cheapest, perhaps in the past, but these days I can afford to be a little bit more picky.
I generally have a system for how I choose my accommodation and I thought I would show you the 5 steps which I go through before finally deciding which is the accommodation for me.
Price
Before I even start to look for accommodation, I will have a price in my head for how much I want to pay, and I promise myself that I won’t budge on it. I get this price based on how much I have, how much I want to spend and how expensive the destination that I am going to is.
Security
As a female traveling alone, I do like to keep an eye on security in the destination that I am traveling to and if it is known for its dangers, I will always opt for a central and secure hotel which I can use as my solstice should anything get a little hot under the collar.
AirBnb
With the exception of the security issue I have mentioned above, I will always, always check to see if there is an AirBnb in the destination which I am going to, and there always is. I much prefer AirBnb to hotels, in all honesty they are usually cheaper and even when they are not, they provide you with great value for money. I have stayed in some amazing AirBnb spots over the years, both alone and shared and I would never change them for hotels.
Location
I like getting involved in the culture of the destination that I go to but I much prefer my location to be central to the main events. I am not avers to jumping on a local bus or mingling with the workers but I do so on my time and whenever I am selecting my accommodation for the city or location which I am going to, I will always endeavor to find somewhere central. Usually you will pay a little more for a central location but this s counteracted by the amount of time which you will save, and the money which you will spend on transport getting in and out of your accommodation.
Luxury
On rare occasions I do like to throw a little luxury into my stay and I will either try to book a fancy hotel, a plush AirBnb or at the very least I will get somewhere in an upmarket neighborhood with trendy wine bars and beauty salons. I do this once a year and in all honesty , I fully believe that it is good for the soul, we all need some luxury in our lives.