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- iHaveNet.com: Travel
By Ed Perkins
Europe's hotel landscape is quite a bit different from ours: some of the players are the same, but with very different positions. And knowing the hotel landscape is increasingly important as big chains slowly but surely edge out the funky independent "mom and pop" hotels and bed & breakfasts to which budget travelers formerly gravitated as a matter of course.
For whatever reasons, most of the low-cost chain action is based in France and the UK and is led by four large chains: French-based
Super-Budget Hotels. There is really no U.S. equivalent to the very bottom end of the European budget hotel market:
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-- EasyHotels, part of Stelios Hadj-Ioannou's "easy" empire, operates handful of hotels in the UK plus a few outposts on the Continent. Accommodations are similar to the bottom-end French chains, with very small rooms, self-contained but minimal bath facilities, and pay extra if you want a daily change of linen. Rates start at around $45 in the suburbs, $60 in the city.
Low-Budget Hotels. If you're looking for something a bit more like a typical U.S. budget motel, try
Conventional Budget. The next step up the ladder has more players and extends over more of Europe. The largest concentrations are in France, the UK, and Spain. Accommodations are similar to what you find at typical midrange budget hotels in the United States. Typically, rates start at around $100 a night.
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-- Premier Inn and Travelodge dominate the UK scene, with a smattering of locations in other countries.
-- Dublin-based Jury's Inn (www.juryinns.com) operates seven hotels in Ireland and 23 in the UK.
-- An additional small British chain, City Inn (www.cityinn.com), has only six locations but has received good reviews.
-- Husa (www.husa.es/en/) operates more than 100 locations in Spain plus a handful in other countries, with rates starting at under $50 a night.
-- Multi-tier chain
-- The only similar German chain I could find is InterCity (www.intercityhotel.com/en/), with 34 hotels; rates start at about $100 a night.
Start with the brands' own sites when you're looking for good deals:
Otherwise, check the usual suspects: The big online travel agencies cover Europe as well as the United States. Also try Booking (www.booking.com), Priceline's UK affiliate. In a quick check, I found that these agencies can often find discounted prices at three-star hotels that are in the same price range as rack rates at more down-market budget properties.
© Ed Perkins
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Travel | Budget Hotels in Europe