Travel

You know you need to bag that hotel room, but how should you go about booking it to make sure you get the most for your money?

When looking for your hotel room, follow our six-step plan to ensure you get the room you want at the very best price.

1. Identify where you need to stay in any given place or area.

2. Complete a search on our hotels gadget.

3. Use the filters on the left hand side of the page to refine your results to show everything from star rating to budget, local areas or specific places, and type of accommodation (including hostels, apartments and B Bs, guest ratings and hotel features such as gyms, parking and internet connections).

4. Check the guest reviews.

5. Compare prices from several providers all on one page.

6. Click through to your chosen hotel provider to make your hotel booking.

Many hotels offer early booking deals through hotel providers where you pay in full at the time of booking to give you a lower cost per room. These rooms cannot generally be cancelled without losing the full amount; however they do secure you a great deal. If you think you may need to change your plans then opt for the higher rates which allow cancellations or changes, as this could save you more money in the long run.

Generally speaking, however, it does pay to book ahead as a hotel room usually becomes more expensive the closer to the date of stay. That said, you may sometimes find hotels discounted at the last minute (usually three to four days ahead of your stay) if bookings are slow.

Hotel star ratings vary across the world, so it's no wonder some people get into a pickle when comparing places to stay.

Have you stayed in a hotel only to find that you booked a property which did not match your expectation of what a four-star hotel should be like? Or maybe you had a great night's stay at a property that gave you brilliant, attentive service and far exceeded your expectations of what a three-star hotel would be like?

The problem is that wherever we travel in the world, hotel star ratings are different. Stars are awarded in each country for differing levels of service, facilities, location, accessibility, staff to guest ratios, and many other factors, with very little consistency from one country to the next.

We always show the official star rating for the hotel as given by the country itself, so be aware that these do vary from one country to the next. Hotrec, the Hospitality Europe Association, compiles a list of what constitutes the various stars for each country should you wish to consult that for more details before booking.