So I’m looking at a cheap hotel on my way from Frankfurt to Atlanta. In this case – whilst some would say “get a hostel bed” to minimise the costs to nothing, my polite response is “kindly take a hike“.
So I’m in the £40/€40 a night bracket. In this case, points are not the priority, rather just a crashpad to go in, snooze, fall out of bed and catch the flight on the next day.
The bigger priority is to be near the either the airport or the Hauptbahnhof (main railway station), so I position myself back to FRA in a hurry.
So lets look at the runners and riders through the major consolidators for an alleged Four Star Hotel near Frankfurt am Main Hauptbahnhof:
| Consolidator | Price/£ | Fees/£ | Total/£ |
| Lastminute.com | 39.76 | N/D | 39.76 |
| Ebookers | 37.12 | 1.95 + 0.59 | 39.66 |
| Expedia | 37.28 | 2.61 | 39.89 |
| Hotels.com | 37.28 | 2.61 | 39.89 |
| Hotel Reservation Service | 39.93 | N/D | 39.93 |
Notes: HotelClub and Laterooms did not have the hotel that was required. Prices correct at time of writing.
Now that would be the end of it, except I’m a Quidco tart. So does the cheapest mean best?
Well I now have to factor in an extras of cashback and final totals.
| Consolidator | Price/£ | Fees/£ | Total/£ | Cashback/% | Cashback/£ | Cost/£ |
| Lastminute.com | 39.76 | N/D | 39.76 | 7 | 2.78 | 36.98 |
| Ebookers | 37.12 | 1.95 + 0.59 | 39.66 | 12 | 4.78 | 34.90 |
| Expedia | 37.28 | 2.61 | 39.89 | 7.25 | 2.89 | 37.00 |
| Hotels.com | 37.28 | 2.61 | 39.89 | 12 | 4.79 | 35.10 |
So what can we learn apart from the fact I wasted a good hour trying to put the logic together on this?
- Don’t accept the first price you see.
- Do a bit of digging.
- Research and the results can be profitable.
(oh, and for those watchers I’ve opened up a new tag of ATL or Bust to document the trials and tribblelations of this trip.)
Kevin,make sure you also factor in costs to get to/from hotel. Some offer a free shuttle bus, some a paid shuttle bus, and some let you fend for yourself and take an expensive taxi…
Lewis:The idea of hiding near the Hbf is simple – an easy connection back to FRA airport. Most the airport shuttles were either pricing out expensive (€5 or so each way- remember the part about me saying I'm cheap? :p) or as you pointed out – expensive taxis. Hence why the local Holiday Inns/Holiday Inn Expresses were discounted. At €3.80, it's still a cheap option. Providing things don't go titups. Knowing my luck however…..