Musings

Reminder: Don't Overlook Room Types in Place of Brand

Blackbeard

Dec 27, 2024 • 3 min read Comments

Presidential Suite at the Sheraton Lima Historic Center in Lima, Peru - Source: You Are Travel

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tl;dr - Nothing earth-shattering here - just a simple reminder that the type of room you book can greatly affect the quality of your stay, so when deciding between hotels at different tiers, compare the room types. A more luxurious room at a slightly less upscale hotel might make for a better overall experience.

Like any true points and miles enthusiast - I love me a deal. One of the value picks that gets me most giddy is scoring a stellar hotel room at a competitive price (even better if on points) at a hotel that, while solid, may not top the list when it comes to luxury options in a given area. Such is the case with my recent stay at African Pride Melrose Arch, Autograph Collection in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Before booking the African Pride, I considered other options, including the Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff, Saxon Hotel, Villas & Spa, and Ten Bompas Hotel, Johannesburg, a Member of Design Hotels. These would have been fantastic options, each with different service levels and amenities. The Four Seasons and Saxon, though, would have been a fair deal more expensive, and as this was a short stay - just one night before flying out to London - I was hesitant to drop that coin on a standard room. I planned to spend most of my last night in town relaxing and recuperating before the flight, so having a bit more space would be helpful.

Photo of African Pride presidential suite bedroom — Presidential suite bedroom at African Pride Melrose Arch in Johannesburg, South Africa - Source: You Are Travel

After looking more carefully into the room types available at all of the hotels in consideration, I noticed that Africa Pride was offering their Presidential Suite room for just 7918.4 ZAR or $443.40 (at the time of this writing). In comparison, base-level rooms at the Four Seasons and Saxon start at ~$500 and ~$700, respectively, which brings me to my point. While the African Pride in no way offers the same service experience that one would expect at the Four Seasons or Saxon, it may offer a more luxurious experience for my one-night stay and at a better cost to my wallet. On top of that, when I factored in how I planned to spend most of this last night in town (heavy on the in-room experience, possibly stepping out to grab a quick bite), it made the decision much more straightforward.

In the past, when I've encountered similar scenarios, I've gone with the higher market brand or possibly the 'cult' hotel, thinking I'd be missing out on the experience, without carefully considering all the circumstances that work towards defining the quality of the entire stay. If I spend more than a few days in a resort-type location where there's not much to do around and save for the amenities, perhaps I'm more willing to post up at a more lifestyle-oriented brand if I can get a spacious suite with slightly less comparable on-property amenities. Conversely, if I'm spending more than a few days in an urban environment, where I know that I'll be out and about most of the day, then maybe I'll focus less on the room and more on the overall hotel service and amenities, since those touchpoints might mean more when you're about to start or end a vigorous day of exploring. To each their own, of course, but it's worth watching for value while having a concrete idea of what you're optimizing for!