Caveat Traveller

I was musing on the difficulty of making definitive statements about budget travel today. I began by looking at a Website (www.shermanstravel.com) that was brought to my attention as offering some good deals on travel. I checked out their offerings for Montreal and was disappointed to find that not only did they not list any hostels, they also did not mention places like the YM-YWCA residences, or, for summer visitors, the residences of McGill University. These non-commercial places offer considerably lower rates than most hotels.

Then I decided to check into New York City to see what was available in that notoriously expensive place in terms of monastery accommodation. It does exist, but it is not always a bargain. For example, I checked two random dates in October at the Desmond Tutu Centre Hote l(www.tutucenter.org) in Chelsea, which is operated by the Episcopal Church. I found an average single room rate of $329, hardly inexpensive. But at the House of the Redeemer, on the Upper East Side, single rooms are offered for as little as $100 per night, and this place too is an Episcopal property. Leo House, a Catholic guest house in Chelsea does not post rates, but refers to modest lodging, so prices should be relatively low. At the Union Theological Seminary in Morningside Heights near Columbia University, single rooms with breakfast go for $135 per night.

So it is hard to generalize about ways to save money on lodging. In most cases non-commercial is the way to go, but not always. And it is also difficult to predict what the cost will be an any particular hotel because most hotels practice yield management that can make their prices almost as unpredictable as airline rates.

The only solution seems to be to determine a maximum price you will pay, and book accordingly, even if it is not the absolute best deal. Otherwise, you can go crazy and spend far too much time trying to save a few bucks.

Dormitory Delights

There doesn't seem to be any central source of information about them, but rooms in college or university dormitories are still a good bet during school vacations. Many Canadian unviersities open their residences to non-students during the summer, as do some in the United States, in Spain, Scotland, Ireland, Malta and Argentina, among others I have written before about the many options available in student residences in high-priced London during school holidays. Near New York City, Long Island University offers rooms to visitors starting at about $50 a night when classes are not being held.
Usually rooms in residences are considerably cheaper than those in commercial lodging (other than hostels,) and they often come with other perks like low-cost dining options and use of sports facilities. Generally the rooms are singles, with shared bath.
B & J Publications used to put out a book called "Campus Lodging Guide" with details on residences open to visitors, but unfortunately the last publication date seems to have been 1999. If there are Websites offering similar information on a number of such residences in different universities, cities and countries I have not been able to find them. Such a listing, preferably with an online reservation form, would be very helpful to budget travellers.
So, for the moment you have to do some research yourself. If you plan to visit an expensive city during summer or over Christmas, check out its colleges and universities to see if you can book a room and save some bucks. And if all else fails, you can always sign up for a summer course that gives you access to on-campus housing.