Still trying to visit Austin, having trouble finding an affordable hotel
February 9, 2013 7:24 AM   Subscribe

So our planned January trip got bumped to March. I knew enough to not try to book anything around SXSW, but even 2 weeks after, there is very limited hotel availability and very high prices.

So then I started looking for rooms in mid-May...still limited availability and high prices. I have seriously never seen rooms this expensive outside of NYC, like $300 for a Marriott Courtyard that we would normally pay half that for. And no discounts to be had (we often book rooms with a govt. discount...no dice).

Is that just what it costs to stay downtown, or is there some "sweet spot" in-between major events that I'm missing? We're fine in either a corporate or boutique hotel , we just want decent quality in a a decent location. I'd like to keep the costs to no more than $200 a night, at the absolute max.

Our dates are fairly flexible, but I don't want to wait until it's ridiculously hot, either.

Any ideas? I'm usually pretty good at this (I got us a room at a W in New Orleans for $100!) but I'm starting to get kind of bummed out.
posted by JoanArkham to Travel & Transportation around Austin, TX (22 answers total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
Airbnb.com
posted by eenagy at 7:31 AM on February 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


have you tried kayak.com? It's an aggregator. It shows prices down to $54, but those aren't downtown.
posted by Mad_Carew at 7:33 AM on February 9, 2013


Do you have transportation? We usually stay in the Arboretum area, where it's quite a bit less expensive, but it's a drive from downtown.
posted by clarkstonian at 8:04 AM on February 9, 2013


It's mainly that expensive to stay downtown or anywhere near downtown, especially if there is any kind of convention, and there is almost always something going on at the convention center. Try Round Rock and surroundings or south Austin. Anything along I-35 is going to make it easy to get to downtown. I've paid $170-$400 a night for hotels downtown and that was booked months in advance.
posted by tamitang at 8:04 AM on February 9, 2013


I always just stay in South Austin. Austin has relatively cheap car rentals....
posted by kaszeta at 8:40 AM on February 9, 2013


My go-to for pleasure travel is vrbo.com. Looks like there are lots of options under $200/night that provide much more room to relax or cook a meal than even a 5-star hotel.
posted by peakcomm at 8:45 AM on February 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


Yeah, another voice saying that it really is just that expensive to stay downtown. We've had great luck using airbnb when visiting Austin, though (check out East Austin in particular).
posted by amelioration at 8:47 AM on February 9, 2013


We have had luck with the Omni downtown. If your dates are flexible, their rates seem to vary greatly on certain dates. Our go-to cheap hotel in downtown Austin is the La Quinta at the capital. It's not as upscale as the Omni, but it is clean and we've never had any issues there. It's a great location for the price.
posted by allnamesaretaken at 8:57 AM on February 9, 2013


Best answer: Check out the Austin Motel. It's run by old family friends who I trust to keep a decent establishment, and it's scant Blocks south of downtown. One-bed rooms start at a little over $100.00.
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:00 AM on February 9, 2013 [3 favorites]


I'm pretty sure that mid-May is when UT's spring commencement takes place, which obviously attracts a lot of visitors. All the suggestions above are great, though. It's pretty hard to find a weekend here where some big thing isn't happening.
posted by cannibalrobot at 9:56 AM on February 9, 2013


Response by poster: Thanks, all! Lots of good info here, and I appreciate the reality check on prices.

Transportation: we are still on the fence about renting a car...but since I don't drive my husband always has to be the designated driver, and I like to give him a break when we're on vacation. (Especially if we go out to bars at night.)

Kayak, etc: I had a bad experience with Travelocity, and witnessed many others having bad experiences at hotels with aggregator-booked rooms, so I never use them. Maybe I should give it another go if that's the best option though.

AirBNB: Hmm. I'd feel kind of weird about staying in a private apartment or condo. Again, maybe I should be more adventurous though.

Timing: If we came in early June instead (maybe around my birthday on the 12th?) is it going to be too hot? We really like to walk around, eat, drink, and explore but my heat tolerance isn't the best.
posted by JoanArkham at 10:47 AM on February 9, 2013


Afternoon highs in June average in the low to mid 90's, but heat waves can occur. April is ideal, weather-wise.
posted by Devils Rancher at 10:53 AM on February 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


I stayed at this Super8 a couple of years ago, which is not in town, but is probably the nicest, most interesting Super8 you can ask for. They have theme rooms.
posted by bongo_x at 11:26 AM on February 9, 2013


I don't have an allegiance to a particular hotel chain so I use Hotwire and have had good luck. When I visited Austin, we stayed at the Sheraton which was nice and convenient to a concert venue and great BBQ.
posted by kat518 at 12:36 PM on February 9, 2013


Response by poster: Austin Motel it is! I showed it to Mr. Arkham and he thought it looked great. We had to change our dates, but that's ok...we'll be there in early May.
posted by JoanArkham at 1:56 PM on February 9, 2013


Oh, nice - I've stayed there, and it's lovely, and walkable both to downtown proper and down South Congress, which is cute and trendy.
posted by restless_nomad at 4:13 PM on February 9, 2013


Yep, we've stayed at the Austin Motel and liked it a lot. Inexpensive, decent accommodation, good location. IIRC you'll have Jo's coffee right outside on the sidewalk, which is a treat. Have fun!
posted by altcountryman at 6:05 PM on February 9, 2013


I've known the owner since I was six - his mom used to babysit me when we all lived in San Francisco. They're good people. I think you'll enjoy it.
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:06 PM on February 9, 2013 [1 favorite]


Austin Motel is really funky, but I'd spring the little more to stay across the street at Hotel San Jose, if at all possible.
posted by roboton666 at 11:35 PM on February 9, 2013


By funky, I mean, awesome.
posted by roboton666 at 11:35 PM on February 9, 2013


The San Jose is lovely, but it's almost twice as much per night.

Fun fact- South Congress used to be the main highway into town before the interstate came through, and it was lined with motels for several miles. After the interstate was built, quite a few of them survived as by-the-week flophouses on into the 1990's. The St-Elmo-Tel and the Don Mar courts were amongst the last, & recently succumbed to the bulldozer. The Bel-Air down by St. Edwards is the last unrestored one of its kind. Last I drove by, the Don-Mar neon sign was still up (near Live Oak st.) and it's a beaut.
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:46 AM on February 10, 2013


Oops, that's not quite true-- the old Goodnight Motel still survives as the Classic Inn, though they really ruined the neon sign. /end digression
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:53 AM on February 10, 2013


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