How to save money when you book and stay at a hotel in the UK
This is a version of the article I wrote for the Guardian Book on a Tuesday, try for freebies: how to get the best deal on a UK hotel room 1/10/25.
@thecomplainingcow Most people massively overpay for UK hotels 👀 Here are some of the BEST ways to save money before you book #hotels #ukhotels #traveltipsandhacks #moneysaving #ukholidays
Book at the right time
Leisure travellers often book over the weekend, when they have more time to plan. By early in the week, business travel schedules are usually confirmed or adjusted, which can free up rooms. As a result, by Tuesday availability is clearer and platforms may reduce prices to fill those spaces for near-term bookings.
If you can be flexible, booking at short notice can pay off. Many hotels and platforms operate cancellation window policies of 24-48 hours, and if people cancel close to the date the hotel would rather sell the room than leave it empty.
However, when booking with chains such as Premier Inn and Travelodge Linda Reynolds from Personal Travel Agents, recommends booking early as hotels release “saver” rates months in advance. For example, rooms at the Premier Inn start from £45 per night for stays between 1st October 2025 – 31st January 2026, subject to availability across selected hotels.” This is one of their lowest advance / standard rate deals.
Rate types at Premier Inn include Flex, Semi-Flex, Advance, Standard, Non-Flex. The more “advance / saver”-type ones (e.g. Advance, Standard, Non-Flex) tend to be cheaper but have stricter cancellation / amendment policies. So you could expect to find rooms from about £45/night if booking well ahead for October, especially if you choose non-refundable / less flexible rates, and in non-premium locations.
Travelodge has a “Rooms from £35 or less” offer, for stays before 25 June 2026, across many locations. That includes some deals for October stays such as in Reading Central, for a stay starting 11 October 2025, Travelodge shows best price rooms from about £27/night. In Central London, for 11-17 October 2025, rooms are available from about £45/night by Travelodge.
It’s a risky gamble, of course, but sometimes you can get a great deal on a room by booking after 6pm on the day. But ensure you have a back-up plan with no cancellation fee.
Apps like Google Hotels, Kayak, or Trivago, will send you emails letting you know when prices drop. Some sites such as Google Hotels allows users to track hotel prices over time and receive email alerts when prices drop. Additionally, it provides insights into whether current rates are higher or lower than average, aiding in decision-making. Kayak also offers a price trend feature that analyses user queries to forecast whether the price for a given destination and dates is likely to go up or down over the next seven days
Let the train take the strain
Sometimes booking a package, including train and the hotel together, on sites like Expedia, Lastminute.com, Great Little Breaks or a Trainline package can work out cheaper than booking each separately.
In October 2025, Great Little Breaks offers a UK train and hotel package for approximately £199 per person, which includes return train tickets to a selected city, a 2-night stay at a 3-star hotel, and full English breakfast each morning, along with optional extras such as cream tea or a three-course dinner on the first night. Booking the same components separately would cost around £320–£360 for two people, including train tickets (£40–£60 per person), hotel accommodation (£120 for two nights), and meals/extras (£100–£120).
If you are looking at packages though also look at buying separately as this can be cheaper too! It all depend on what offers are on when!
Be flexible
Staying from a Sunday until a Thursday will usually be cheaper than a break over a weekend. Also check for school holidays and local events because they will push up prices.
Where you are going makes a difference, too. For example, Reynolds advises “Sunday nights in cities are usually cheaper than Friday or Saturday nights, because leisure demand dips after the weekend. In rural locations (e.g. coastal, countryside), midweek (Mon–Thurs) is often cheaper than weekends, when leisure travellers arrive.”
Staying just outside a city centre can save you a lot. In London, zones 2–3 (e.g. Stratford, Greenwich) are far cheaper than inner London but are still well connected. This works in Edinburgh or Manchester, too. Manchester/Edinburgh can be £20–£50 per night cheaper than Zone 1 / city centre equivalents. Check the chains – sometimes Travelodge’s Best Price Finder undercuts Premier Inn by £10–£15 per night, but Premier Inn often offers slightly higher comfort at similar rates.
If you are flexible you could get a bargain buying up someone else’s cancelled break. Money Coach, Maddy Alexander-Grout, regularly uses Plans Change. The site allows people to resell a hotel room booking if they have changed their mind. Buyers benefit from at least 25% discount on the original price. She says “In my job I travel round the country a lot and regularly use the site frequently saving about 20% on a hotel booking direct.”
Check for discounts
Credit cards often have hidden benefits for card holders. You may find that yours includes offers to use points on hotel stays. Ross Jenkins frequently travels for his business DigitalME and says he has absolutely mastered the Radisson system with his Amex card:
“The saving is made by using Radisson VIP, buying points points in the sale and using the booster system to get additional discount. I’m saving a huge amount and seeing I’m getting a full room upgrade to a suite around 50% of the time. He recently stayed at the Radisson RED in Glasgow paying only £38 a night on a £110 room.
Be aware that you have to pay annually for Amex membership, so check if it will benefit you.
Use cashback sites. The best-known and biggest cashback sites are Topcashback* and Quidco* as well as Kidstart*where you can save for your child. Create an account, look up the company from which you wish to buy then register and track your purchase. The time in which you get the cashback amount varies from trader to trader.
Nectar and Clubcard schemes regularly have holiday offers too. You can link your Nectar account with Marriott Bonvoy. This lets you earn Nectar points when staying at participating Marriott hotels globally, and also convert between Marriott Bonvoy points and Nectar points. Tesco Clubcard lets you swap your vouchers for up to double their value on rewards like hotel stays with partners such as Hotels.com and Best Western,
Discount/voucher sites such as VoucherCodes and HotUKDeals often run 10–20% off deals, especially for hotel chains. The Honey app will automatically check for discount codes on retailer sites that you visit.
You may be entitled to a discount because of your job – for instance the Blue Light card provides discounts for emergency workers, teachers, armed forces and more. Best Western give 5% discount to card holders. Unidays, Totum and Student Beans provide discounts for students such as 12% off easyHotels.
Be loyal
Loyalty programmes can be good even if you only ever go once. They may have an introductory offer such as a discount or free drink. Look to see if the hotel you are booking has a loyalty scheme, usually a chain which may give you points, discounts or priority on offers for future stays.
Even casual travellers can get cheaper “members’ rates” or perks via Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy or IHG Rewards. Note how long the points last and what is included. For example “free” or discounted nights with points may not have breakfast included.
When you sign up for hotel newsletters you often receive notice of early discounts and exclusive deals.
If your booking is cancellable, you can check back a week or two later. Prices often fall, and then you can rebook at the lower rate.
Do your research
Using various hotel booking platforms will give you an idea of prices and you can then look at booking the hotel direct which is likely to be cheaper. The hotel will not be paying commission fees, so can provide a better price or deal.
If you do plan to use a third-party booking site, research where it is based. Booking.com, for example, is based in the Netherlands and it can be extremely difficult to apply UK law and get money back if there is an issue, regardless of where the hotel is based.
Try for freebies
It’s worth trying your luck at getting a free perk or upgrade. Put on a smile and when you check in at reception simply ask at reception if there is anything going. Mention if it is a special event, such as a birthday or anniversary. You have nothing to lose by simply asking.
Frequent traveller Sharan Sammi says she always calls the hotel directly to book and asks directly for anything going then! “I have received free breakfasts, gym passes, Starbucks drinks and bottles of wine for special occasions! It’s particularly good when booking last minute.”
When you book, ask if there is a late checkout or other chargeable extras, which may open doors to other options they could offer.
Rachel Bickford is the co-founder of OTTO Holiday Club, a community for school staff and families who can only travel during school holidays, when prices are highest. She advises looking for family-friendly offers, such as “kids eat free” deals, and using local retailers to keep costs down and warns “Watch out for hidden extras like parking charges, which can significantly increase the overall price.”
Advice regarding booking and complaining about holidays and flights
How best to book and complain about holidays/flights/travel links to various articles regarding saving money and your rights when booking and taking holidays.
What to do when your flight is delayed – the full guide provides you with all the information you need to know if your flight is delayed or cancelled. Details of what to quote, how to challenge fob offs and the amount of compensation to which you are entitled all here!
How to complain to get refunds and more
Top 20 Tips on how to complain effectively.
If you need more help, information and tips with how to quote Acts, template letters and advice on how to complain effectively don’t forget the GET THE BOOK! How To Complain: The ESSENTIAL Consumer Guide to Getting REFUNDS, Redress and RESULTS!
101 Habits of an Effective Complainer provides you with more tips.
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