Ways My Wife Saves Us Money

Ways My Wife Saves Us Money: 2 Questions To Ask A Hotel Front Desk

My wife and I were out of town this weekend, and staying at a hotel. We knew we would be ringing up a significant bill by dining out for several days, so we were looking for any possible way to save some money. My wife remembered a hotel in Florida that gave us coupons to nearby restaurants.

As we were checking in, my wife asked the front desk employee if they had any coupons.

The employee smiled and acknowledged that they did. She handed us a pair of coupons for two different restaurants:

• Local Bar and Grill : One free entree with the purchase of an entree
• Local Steak House: $5 of a $20 order

The bar and grill was within walking distance, so we checked that out first. The food was excellent, and the coupon saved us the cost of an entree, about $12.

The second restaurant was not within walking distance, and we were told that parking was a huge hassle. We were about to call a cab to take us, when my wife told me to call the front desk and see if they had a shuttle service. To my surprise, they did. I told the gentlemen it would be just my wife and I, and the time we wanted to go. The shuttle took us to the restaurant, and with a simple phone call it also picked us up when we were done.

The $10 tip ($5 each direction) I gave the shuttle driver was much cheaper than the estimated $40 cost of a round trip cab ride.

When staying at a hotel, the following two questions should always be asked:

1. Do you have any restaurant coupons? Restaurants give coupons to hotels to distribute to their guests because it’s a great way to get business from travelers that are unfamiliar with the area. Hotel employees may give them to guests automatically, they may be found inside the room, or guests may have to ask for them.
2. Do you have a shuttle service? Hotel guests may not have their own method of transportation. Or, as in our case, there may be a reason why they do not wish to drive to a destination. Hotels are increasingly providing shuttle services as a convenience to help guests get to nearby locations. Don’t forget to tip your driver!

Staying away from home can be expensive. But by taking advantage of coupons provided to the hotel, and the hotel shuttle service you may be able to keep some of your hard earned cash in your pocket.

Image courtesy of Salvatore Vuono at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Have you ever asked a hotel if they had coupons for nearby restaurants? Have you come across any other surprising discounts while traveling?

Brought to you courtesy of Brock

• Follow Clever Dude on Twitter
• Like Clever Dude on Facebook

Brock Kernin

Brock is a software engineer by day and personal finance blogger at night. He is a fitness junkie and enjoys grilling and smoking meat. Married with two children,  Brock strives to improve his skills as a husband and father, and is always on the lookout to stretch his family’s budget as far as he can.