How do you Pick a Hotel?

We always stay at Hilton Family hotel when not in Disney. It it is just for a night its usually a Hampton Inn with the continental breakfast. Comfortable beds, clean rooms, and usually right off the interstate. If we are going to the beach I want it right on the beach. We like the Double Tree with the warm baked cookies and Starbucks coffee. The view is the most important thing at the beach.

Disney has set standards way above anybody else, even at the moderate and value level in my opinion. I have stayed in a lot of top hotels and the closest i have stayed in is the biltmore in phoenix and that was just too snooty for me.

Staying on International Drive it's all about the location, it's proximity to iRide stops, attractions and dining locations etc. Once I've narrowed it down to a few choices that tick these boxes I start reading more reviews, checking out amenities etc, I like spacious rooms, a nice pool area, shuttle services, and above all else, the cost!

If it's going to be a predominately Disney holiday then I'll stay on Disney, if it's more about the other Orlando attractions then I'm setting up base camp on International Drive!

When I was travelling a lot for racing, I used to look for a hotel (or motel) with a bed and a lock on the door. Now that I travel less but for pleasure, and with my wife, I set my standards higher and try to stay at Hampton Inns whenever I can. I should add that as it worked out my next to trips will not be at a Hampton Inn. My Sept. trip to Lake George for VetteFest will be at Ramada Inn at Glenns Falls which is where most of the activities take place, and during my trip to DisneyLand we will be staying at the Courtyard by Mariott for the Rose Bowl portion of the trip.

We stay at Hampton Inns and thats about it. Have not stayed anywhere else in a long time. Just cant go wrong with them, and if there is a problem, the make it good quick!

It all about cleanliness for me. The hotel doesn't have to have a ton of ammenities, but it HAS to be clean!

I've always stayed at a hilton hotel (hampton etc.). My parents only stay at their hotels, so i've kinda had their hotels engrained in me as being the best. I would rather pay extra for a place i know will be clean, nice, and for a good continental breakfast.

After you've stayed at disney and felt the magic of the hotel/resort and the service, it's hard to not compare others to it.

It depends for me and it usually depends on the type of vacation. If im looking to relax, then yeah... I would want a nice hotel, with a nice room, spacious, tv, cable, little kitchen and such. But if im on vacation to go out and about... just a comfy bed, and tv is fine with me.

I usually try to stay somewhere that has a pool. I love swimming, and its nice to come back to your room from wherever you are and take a swim. My family loves staying at Marriott Hotels. My mom travels a lot with work so the whole family is part of the Marriott rewards, we often get upgraded and they also have a sign on the desk welcoming us. It definitely isn't Disney, but I love to feel wanted when going into a hotel.

My first test is location safety. We have traveled quite a bit and will not pick Solely on price anymore. Did that a couple times and found ourselves booked into either Party Central, Murder Central, or at a creepy place with dueling banjos playing somewhere out in the back.

Second test is Best I can find in my budget. I spend time with TripAdvisor, as well as Travelocity, Expedia, hotels.com, and Priceline reviews. It has to be CLEAN, friendly, somewhat quiet. I am not brand loyal, except for Disney!

Also, Time is money, so we will pay a bit more to be in the center of things to maximize time. Public transport, taxis, restaurants, markets, sights, landmarks, etc.

Usually it's a matter of budget coupled with wanting to try someplace new. All 4 times I've stayed at different hotels because I like variety and I will save up $$ so I can stay at a particular hotel.

We have never stayed onsite (until Oct this year!!!!!) so I cant compare any to disney, that being said we go for fairly budget hotels at are clean. Clean is always top on the list! it doesnt have to be a big room with lots of extras, it just has to be clean. To be fair though, we usually go on trips where most of our time is spent out of our hotel room. When we go away to spend a few nights together in a nice room then we go for more luxury and have been known to kinda blow the budget a bit LOL.

We love Hilton hotels - Hampton Inns, Hilton Airport hotels, etc., and also Marriott hotels. If you want a budget Marriott, the Courtyard ones have always been great for us. Plus they offer special perks for CAA/AAA members, like free breakfast buffets, or upgrades to concierge service for a minimal fee. We can always count on a really clean room with nice amenities at any of these hotels.

I love the Courtyard by Marriott or the Wingate Inns..they are little more expensive than I like to spend but my mother always seems to have "points" and can get a discount for us. I'm not sure how she does that but I appreciate it!

We always pick hotels that have something unique or a story to them. We often stay in smaller independant hotels rather than chains. We like the quirky features a lot of them have. We picked our Disney hotel based on cost and space we needed(3 sleeping areas)