Having a good hotel room can really make or break your vacation.   Get a big room in a quiet corner with a great view, and you’ll have a wonderful time.  End up in a cramped space above the disco with a broken air conditioner and you’ll wonder why you left home.

But finding the right hotel room isn’t always easy.  We do lots of research, both online and offline, and we still end up disappointed some times.  Sites like Tripadvisor that feature hotel reviews from real travelers are helpful, but they can also steer you in the wrong direction.  And hotel web sites really can’t be trusted.  If you’ve ever checked into a hotel that looked nothing like it looks on their web site, you know what we’re talking about.

So how can you make sure that you get a room that has everything you want and still get a good deal?  Here are our tips for finding the perfect hotel room:

1) First of all, do a little research to figure out what there is to do in your destination.   Visit sites like Fodors.com or Frommers.com for ideas.  Then make a short list of the things you want to see and do.  If you’re going to Rome, your list might be:  Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, Roman forum, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, and dinner in Trastevere.

2) Next, take a basic map of Rome and highlight those places.  You’ll see that the Vatican and the Colosseum are a bit out of the way, but the rest of the attractions are pretty close to each other.   Now, think about how you’ll get where you’re going.  Do you love to walk?  Do you hate public transportation?  Do you think taxis are an extravagance or a terrific convenience?  The closer in you stay, the more expensive your hotel will be.  But when you compare prices, remember that if you stay close to all the attractions, you won’t pay much in transportation costs.

3) Every city has a vibrant center where the locals come to enjoy the good life.  If you can, stay there.  In Sydney, it’s near the Rocks.  In Paris, it’s Saint-Germain-des-Pres.  In Buenos Aires, it’s Palermo.  And in Rome, it’s near Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps.  The only downside is that cheap hotel rooms in these neighborhoods can be noisy at night, so read hotel reviews from travelers before booking to determine if that’s a problem.

4) Now that you have a pretty good idea of where you’d like to stay, you can start looking for hotels in those neighborhoods.  Most hotel sites let you find hotels by area, so at this point, it’s really just a matter of how much you want to spend.

A note on hotel star ratings — they’re different in every country, and they may not mean what you think.  The number of stars usually corresponds to specific amenities, things like an on-site restaurant, or an elevator, etc.  So a two-star hotel without those things may actually be a lot nicer than a four-star hotel that has them.  Don’t pay too much attention to the stars.

But do figure out which amenities are important to you and make sure the hotel you’re thinking about staying in has them.  If you want a cocktail when you get back from sightseeing, can’t live without CNN, or want breakfast delivered to your room, don’t assume they’ll be available.  Confirm with the hotel first.

5) Never book the least expensive room at a hotel.  Standard hotel rooms aren’t standard at all.  They’re sub-standard rooms that hotels have to discount in order to sell.  Even the best hotels have undesirable rooms and you don’t want to be in one.  When you’re comparing prices, always look at superior rooms or better.

6) Come up with a short list of two or three hotels that are in the right neighborhood, have all the amenities you want, and are in your price range.  Then use a hotel site like Hotelscombined.com to find the best rate.  If all things are equal, book directly with the hotel.  That way, if you have a problem, you’re more likely to find them responsive.  And they’re more likely to upgrade you.  If you find a better rate online than the rate the hotel is quoting, email the hotel and ask them to honor the rate.

7) Take your confirmation to the hotel.   If you booked via email, take a copy along and present it when you check in.  Confirm any special requests with the front desk at check in.  Then check out your hotel room carefully.  If it’s not everything you thought it would be, ask to be moved to a better room.

8) These days, hotel occupancy rates are very low in many destinations.  If you’re traveling off season, or going some place where tourism is down, consider going without making reservations ahead of time.  A hotel with lots of vacant rooms can give incredible deals to walk-ins.

Best Travel Sites

Do a Google search for “travel,” and you’ll see that there are nearly 800 million sites on the topic.

So how do you know which travel sites can actually help you with your trip planning, and which ones you should check out first?

If you read Trip planning basics – three key questions to ask yourself before you plan a trip, you probably have some idea where you want to go.   So figuring out how much it will cost to get there is a good first step.

There are several sites that compare airfares, but a couple are head and shoulders above the rest.  For airfare within or originating in the United States, Kayak.com is hard to beat.  Not only do they list fares for virtually all domestic carriers, when you click on the fare you want, you’ll be routed directly to the airline’s website for booking.

A calendar showing fares by date makes it’s easy to see how much you could save by traveling midweek or going a earlier or later than planned.

Sidestep.com is another excellent airfare comparison site.  It pulls information from over 600 airlines.

You may have heard about the ridiculously cheap airfare in Europe — sometimes it costs as little as $2 to fly from London to Italy.  There are plenty of hidden charges, but if you’re flexible and traveling light, they can still be a bargain.

Dohop.com is the best place to find these deals.  It lists fares for EasyJet, Ryanair, and other discount airlines.   Just be sure to read all the fine print before booking.  Last time we looked, Ryanair led the industry in customer complaints.

Recently, the airlines have begun charging for advance seat assignments and exit-row seats.  Before you pay for the privilege, you should probably visit Seatexpert.com or Seatguru.com.   Either one will help you find the most desirable seats on your flight.

Once you have your flights figured out, or at least know how much to budget, you can start researching hotels.

Many people love tripadvisor.com.  In fact, it has over 25 million user-generated hotels reviews.   We use it to get ideas, but the couple of times we’ve reserved hotels based exclusively on tripadvisor, we’ve been disappointed.  Not everyone has the same taste, so even though tripadvisor users think a place is great, you could still hate it.

If you do find a hotel on tripadvisor that interests you, look for a professional recommendation before you book.  Fodors.com and Frommers.com both provide objective, professional reviews.

Venere.com is a great travel site for European hotels.  It represents lots of small inns that you won’t find on bigger sites.

When you’ve chosen a hotel and you’re ready to book, don’t waste a lot of time comparing prices.  Two or three parent companies own most of the hotel booking sites, so prices don’t vary much.  If you find a room for a lot less, make sure you’re comparing apples to apples.  Rates can vary a lot by room type.

Many sites now require payment upfront for the best available rate.  And often, these rates are nonrefundable.  So read the terms and conditions carefully, especially the cancellation policy.

And before you make your reservations, be sure to contact the hotel directly – especially if you’re making your plans at the last minute.  They’re often willing to negotiate.  They usually don’t require prepayment except in high-demand periods.  And their cancellation policy is usually more liberal.

With a place to stay and a way to get there, all the heavy lifting is done.  The next phase of trip planning is figuring out what to do when you get there.  For advice on that, read Travel planning tips to help you save time, reduce hassles, and make the most of your vacation.

Read more travel advice here.

Airplane window image Flickr: contraption