Portugal - Make lodging reservations or not?
Aug 13th, 2018, 12:42 PM
#1
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Portugal - Make lodging reservations or not?
We are planning at road trip through Portugal next spring arriving there about April 21 and staying three to four weeks. We are contemplating flying into Lisbon and taking a side trip to the Alentejo region. Then back toward Lisbon, zigzagging north along the coast and inland, ending up in the Douro Valley, then flying out of Porto. We are wondering if we need to make detailed plans with lodging arranged for each night, or if we can just "wing it", wander where we please and find lodging wherever we happen to be in the late afternoon. So we'd appreciate advice from previous travelers as to whether we'll be able to find lodging as we go during that time of year.
Aug 14th, 2018, 08:07 AM
#3
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Well think of the logistics of how much time you'll waste - how are you going to find accommodations in places along the way - hunt and peck? If have a smart phone could contact hotels while driving but you can save tons of money and time by pre-booking. Week before and after Easter busy travel periods in Europe - especially southern Europe. I traveled Portugal in October and made hotels as I went without problem but that was before Internets made it so easy to do - you'll save tons of money by pre-booking or booking as you go along.
Aug 14th, 2018, 09:03 AM
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Just use an app from Booking.com
Reserve a hotel for the next day in the area you want to be based.
Sometimes, no matter what time of year you may get a location booked up.
Plus after dark it is harder to see location signs. Maybe you do not know the price or what facilities the accommodation has if you do a turn up that day trip.
Reserve a hotel for the next day in the area you want to be based.
Sometimes, no matter what time of year you may get a location booked up.
Plus after dark it is harder to see location signs. Maybe you do not know the price or what facilities the accommodation has if you do a turn up that day trip.
Aug 14th, 2018, 09:59 AM
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on the other hand... many hotels use dynamic pricing (like the airlines). As occupancy rises and available rooms decrease, room rates are adjusted upwards.
When making a flexible (cancellable) reservation that doesn't require a deposit, you're nearly always better off booking early. If the rate goes down, you can get it revised. If the rate goes up, you've put a ceiling on the rate you're being charged.
When making a flexible (cancellable) reservation that doesn't require a deposit, you're nearly always better off booking early. If the rate goes down, you can get it revised. If the rate goes up, you've put a ceiling on the rate you're being charged.
Aug 14th, 2018, 03:06 PM
#6
How much time are you willing to put into this each day? This is nothing specific to Portugal or April... I just think traveling anywhere without plans, requires you to use precious trip time looking for a place to stay. Some people don't mind or even find it fun. For me, wouldn't be what I wanted to be doing over and over again. But that's just me. Seems a big waste of time without any real benefit, other than a more flexibly schedule.
Aug 14th, 2018, 06:34 PM
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It's a big risk - the thing that always surprises me is how in places that you think are out of the way, the restaurants have no tables available and there's no vacancies. I had an experience like this specifically in Portugal - had to drive 2 hours out of the way to find a place to spend the night- it's not fun...
Aug 14th, 2018, 11:50 PM
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on the other hand... many hotels use dynamic pricing (like the airlines). As occupancy rises and available rooms decrease, room rates are adjusted upwards.
When making a flexible (cancellable) reservation that doesn't require a deposit, you're nearly always better off booking early. If the rate goes down, you can get it revised. If the rate goes up, you've put a ceiling on the rate you're being charged.
When making a flexible (cancellable) reservation that doesn't require a deposit, you're nearly always better off booking early. If the rate goes down, you can get it revised. If the rate goes up, you've put a ceiling on the rate you're being charged.
Find may hotels, bed and breakfasts, gîtes, casa rurals, etc.
Aug 15th, 2018, 01:01 PM
#10
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Thank you for your reply. We've traveled around northern Europe without reservations and it has been ok. It gives us a lot of flexibility. Very often when we figure out where we will be the next day we do a search on the computer and book something. We were looking for what kind of experiences people have had in Poutugal and your comment was helpful.
