In our early years of marriage vacations away from home were few and far between. We joke with our girls about how we took pictures of all the fun things we could have done if we had money on our honeymoon. 🙂 This was a stark difference from the lifestyle I was accustomed to. My childhood summers often included visits to the East Coast, while staying in hotels or beach house rentals.
Making Vacation Memories
The first, and only, time our girls saw the ocean was after their great grandmother passed away. She loved going to the beach, walking on the sand where the water comes in, and picking up seashells. She kept jars of shells in her little house as precious reminders of our family excursions. At her passing, we received a very modest inheritance which enabled us to take our little girls to her favorite place. We’ll never forget the first time our babies put their little toes in the Atlantic Ocean. 🙂
Frugal Family Vacations
Once the girls were older, we chose to go on mini-vacations to celebrate certain birthdays. You can take day trips to area zoos, museums, theatres, and festivals for a great time. Sometimes you can score a room at a local hotel for less than $60. Find a hotel with a free hot breakfast, a pool, and a hot tub and you have quite a fun birthday staycation. Of course, visiting with out-of-town family is another fun way to get away on the dime…if they have the room to spare for overnight guests.
Hacks to Get the Most Out of a Budget Price Hotel Stay
So, how can you make your hotel stay even more special without spending an extra dime? I have broken down several of my favorite free hotel hacks into 6 categories: Check-in/Check-out, Hotel Room, Hotel Eating, Germaphobe, Spa, and a Few Final Hotel Hacks. Keep reading to make a resort of your humble home away from home. Enjoy!
Hacks to Have a Better Hotel Check-in/Check-out Experience
Late Check-in time: If the hotel has a late check-in time, but you want to arrive earlier, they may allow you to take a dip in the pool while you wait for your room to be ready. No better way to pass the time!
VIP Treatment: When making reservations, mention any special requests or special occasions you are celebrating in the notes section. When our oldest daughter turned 16 we planned to stay at a low-cost hotel near the largest shopping mall we have ever seen in our lives!!! I mentioned that we chose their hotel to celebrate our daughter’s sweet 16. When we arrived, the precious staff had prepared a pretty goody bag for her! It was filled with candy, savory snacks, puzzle books, and a birthday card signed by front desk staff. This was such a great surprise to all of us. It made her birthday all the more memorable. She still has the card they gave her! This kind of VIP treatment isn’t guaranteed, but it doesn’t hurt to mention things. 🙂
Early Check-Out: Does your hotel require check-out hours before your event begins or opens? Take a last-minute swim. Load the luggage in the car and let the rest of your party grab a towel and jump in the pool before check-out. Finish the check-out on time, then join the family in the pool. Worried about lugging around wet suits? Take a look at the hotel room hacks further down.
Room With a View: It usually costs extra to stay in a room with a special view. Lucky for us, almost any room on the top floors will have something interesting to look down at in the distance. Plus, it’s exciting for little ones to be high up and ride an elevator anywhere. Request a higher floor on your reservation form. Hotels aren’t required to honor your request… BUT most older folks and people with mobility issues request lower floors. So you have a pretty good chance of seeing the distance.
Hotel Room Hacks
Once you are assigned a room and given a key there are some ways to make your stay go smoother.
Which Room Is It Anyway?: Take a picture of the room number (on or near your door) with your phone. If you are coming back alone, just glance at the picture for a simple reminder. If the hotel/motel has an outside entrance, place a personal object in the window to help your room stand out from a sea of identical entrances. This is especially helpful when charging in quickly from an unexpected monsoon.
Squeaky Entry or Bathroom Door?: Take a dab of hair conditioner (supplied in the hotel bathroom) and apply it to the hinges. Enjoy a silent night.
Air Conditioning Blowing On You or In a Weird Direction?: Make an air flow deflector. Grab one of the numerous laminated hotel menus or information sheets laying around in your room. You may be able to wedge it in the space behind the vent to redirect or block the flow. If not, take a hanger with clips from the closet. Use the clips to attach the laminated sheet to the ac/heat vent to redirect. Problem solved!
Room Smelling a Bit Stale?: Open a packet of coffee (supplied In the hotel room). Place it near the air vent to freshen your resting space.
A Place to Rest Your Head: Relaxing on your hotel bed and enjoying a t.v. program is more enjoyable if you roll up a towel to create a neck pillow. Double or triple up the towels to increase head loft.
Toothbrush Holder: This is an oldy but goody. Turn a paper or styrofoam cup upside down. Poke holes in the bottom with a coat hanger hook. Put your toothbrushes in the holes to keep them standing tall.
Dry Swimsuits in a Hurry: Noone likes wearing or lugging around wet swimwear. Speed the drying process with these steps. Rinse swimwear in the sink to remove excess pool conditioners that may slow drying and leave a residue. Squeeze out as much water as you can without twisting the clothing. Lay the clothing flat on a towel. Roll the towel up. Do a little jig on the towel. Unroll the towel and hang the now barely damp item over a vent or in the car to dry.
Hotel Eating Hacks
Keep Leftovers Fresh: Have leftovers or keeping a snack for later? Use a disposable shower cap to cover or wrap food tightly before refrigerating.
Popcorn Anyone?: Bring microwaveable popcorn and pop it in your room or lobby microwave. Place the plastic liner in the ice bucket. (provided by the hotel) Fill the lined bucket with your popcorn and pass it around while enjoying that hotel movie lineup. Toss the liner when you finish. You can always request more from the front desk.
Hang Your Snacks: Tightly roll the top of bagged snacks like chips down. Clamp closed with hotel coat hanger clips and hang in the closet to keep your snacks fresh and critter-free.
Germaphobic Hotel Stay Hacks
Yes. I am a self-confessing germaphobe. It’s not as bad now as when our girls were little…but still. Here I proudly share my germ-avoiding tips with fellow germaphobes. At least it makes us feel a little cleaner. 🙂
Clean Soap: Fold a hotel washcloth in fourths and place your soap on top at the sink and shower. You can always ask for more at the front desk.
Clean Toothbrushes: Place a disposable shower cap (provided by the hotel) over your toothbrushes that are standing in the upside-down cup. If housekeeping comes to clean, wayward mist and splashes will be kept off the object you put in your mouth…..BLUCK!
Clean Table Tops: Use hotel towels as table cloths wherever you eat in the room.
Clean Pillowcase: Wrap a clean hotel towel around hotel pillows for extra protection. Yes, I know they clean the pillowcases. But that thin single layer of fabric between my face and everyone else’s drool gives me nightmares before Christmas.
Clean Remote: Throw that germ magnate in a disposable zip bag. Use freely with peace of mind and less handwashing throughout your stay.
Clean Clothes: Keep your clean, unworn clothing in your suitcase on a shelf away from the bed and other soft objects. As you use clothes, put them in the hotel drawers. When you leave, stuff all the dirty clothes in a laundry service bag (supplied in a hotel room) and put the sealed bag in your suitcase
Budget Hotel Spa Hacks
Complimentary Sugar Scrub: Empty a few sugar packets and mix with a large dollop of hair conditioner (both supplied by the hotel). Work in circles all over from neck down in a warm shower. Be careful, you’ll feel so smooth you may slip getting out.
Complimentary Coffee Scrub: Same as above but opt-in a coffee packet for sugar, and shampoo for conditioner.
Smooth Legs: Use hair conditioner as a moisturizing shaving lubricant for legs.
Gently Remove Make-up: Use supplied facial moisturizer to remove make-up. Place a dollop on tissues and gently wipe away the day. Avoid getting in your eyes.
Cold Eye Compresses: Freeze or refrigerate condiment packets and apply to tired puffy eyes.
Warm Eye Compresses: Soak tea bags in hot water and apply them to eyelids for relaxing warmth after a long day. You can also chill them in the fridge for a cooling eye pick me up.
Free Foot Treatment: ALWAYS bring cozy socks. I don’t care if it is cold or hot, cozy socks are just what you need on your feet after a long day of exploring a new place. At the end of the day, soak your feet in the tub and scrub them with shampoo and salt. If you have blisters, substitute sugar for salt. Dry with a towel and rub your tootsies with a generous amount of lotion or hair conditioner. Pull on your cozy socks and snuggle up in bed for a good night’s rest.
A Few Final Hotel Hacks
Cool Off Fast: Before you head out for the day, wet a few washcloths and place them in the coldest part of the fridge or the freezer. When you get back to your room, use them to cool off in a hurry. As a bonus, you can gauge how cold your mini-fridge is keeping your food items.
Sun Relief: Store sunscreen and aloe in the mini-fridge for cooling relief before and after hitting the heat.
Painlessly Remove The Day From Your Kids (or yourself): Use hair conditioner or lotion to remove stickers, temporary tattoos, face painting, and band-aids. Apply generously. Allow to soak for a few moments, then wipe away.
Nail Clippers are Necessary: Besides the inevitable chipped or broken nail, or hangnail, use CLEAN nail clippers to snip snacks and coffee packs for easy opening. You can also use them to snip off loose strings on clothing, wristbands from concerts or theme parks, and much more.
Untuck: Hotel beds are nice and neat with their crisply tucked hospital corners. It is tempting to crawl right into bed and sleep like a mummy. Don’t give in to the temptation. Avoid foot cramps and generally feeling stuck in place by untucking those corners. You will be surprised how difficult it is to pull the corners out! Imagine doing that from the sleeping position, inside the sheets, several times throughout the night. I never want to do that again. Swaddling is for babies.
Take a Treasure Hunt Through Inspirational Reading: Who doesn’t want one hundred extra bucks on vacation? If you haven’t peeked inside a Bible in a while, there is no better time than in your hotel room. John 3:16 is a great place to start, but the whole thing is there to help you out. It has been told that certain individuals leave $100 bills in certain hotel Bibles donated by the Gideons. You can find the Bibles in bedside table drawers. Start reading and you may just stumble upon one of those bonus gifts. You never know until you try. Either way, you win!
More Helpful Ideas
I hope my collection of hotel hacks makes your hotel stay a little more magic no matter your budget. There are countless others, but these are the ones I found most helpful. Be sure to bookmark this blog and return for more budget-friendly practical living tips. Be my guest at the Sawdust and Cornbread YouTube Channel for weekly DIY Videos. Thanks for joining me. Here’s wishing you many happy, healthy travels to infinity and beyond.
~ Lora Lea
