How do you keep your accommodation budgets down while touring - any tips on where to stay?

Sway Wild - 1,739 Followers

We're outdoor dogs so we like to camp in the warmer months when we can. Packing small tents and sleeping bags in the car top carrier not only saves us money on overpriced hotels (yes, there are parts of the country where Motel 6 costs over $100 a night), but also keeps us grounded and getting some fresh air. We often tour so much in the summertime that when we get home we don't want to leave again to recreate, so occasionally camping on tour helps satisfy some of these desires to get out. We played a two night gig in Jackson, Wyoming this summer and the hotels in town were all over $300 a night. We camped outside of town for a total of $30 for the weekend and got to wake up by a lake in the mountains to the sounds of birds. Win win. 

Camping aside...one of the greatest parts about touring is getting to meet new people and to visit with friends and family along the way. It can be wonderful to stay with them when possible and an important way to maintain friendships, especially if you're not home very often. Don't overdo it, though. Know yourself and your band mates and what is best for band morale. If you've slept on too many couches for too many nights in a row, reconsider a stay at your high school buddy's apartment who likes to party. If you tend to be more introverted, be sure to splurge for a room or two when you need it to make sure you get your space. When choosing motels, try to park in well lit areas and always always bring in your most valuable gear, even when you're too exhausted to do so.

Truett - 1,374 Followers

Crashing with friends is ideal when you’re on the road. It never hurts to put up a social media post a few weeks before you are heading to a particular town. That has helped me out more times than I can count. If you have to stay in a hotel, try and negotiate hospitality into your deal with the venue. A lot of venues have deals with a local hotel for free room or a discounted price. If you are having to find hotels on your own. Choice Hotels has an awesome rewards program I use exclusively when touring. They are great hotels for a great price. You build points every time you stay, after 2-3 stays you earn a free night. It is totally free to sign up and pays out huge in the long run.

Harmonious Wail - 965 Followers

Friends homes and home stays in general are both a blessing and can be a curse. After a long gig having a nice chat with friends of the concert series can be awesome or a complete drag - luck of the draw - I mean how do you  say before hand - usually ice works out but often we will either call a hotel when one the road or priceline it. I really like non chain hotels but again luck of the draw. We only found bed bugs once - never stay in the Super 8 in Lincoln Nebraska.

Twin Guns - 948 Followers

If you are an American band traveling in Europe, you will most likely be fed, and provided with a place to spend the night (which ranges from Hotels, Motels, promoter apartments, "band" room on top of clubs, or jail-like confinements on some basement environment). If you must outsource an alternative accommodation for the night, there is always AirBnB, often the best, most comfortable, and cheap solution... though it would be good to plan that in advance and not last minute.  All in all, we save a lot of money touring Europe.. Our last tour of Spain hardly cost us any out of pocket money... and oh, yes pretty much all the drinks were for free.

Allie Colleen - 764 Followers

I use the Hilton rewards program.  There are so many hotels under the Hilton name we often fail to think of such as Hampton Inn, Doubletree, Homewood Suites, and the list goes on.  I am fortunate to have rooms provided for all my shows by the venue so even though my name is not on the bill of the reservation I can give the front desk my honors number and I get points for all my stays even though I am not spending any money and as I rank up stays and points I get really amazing deals on rooms should I have to pay for a room myself.   

Greg Hoy - 521 Followers

It's all about adding up those sweet, sweet credit card bonus points: I am the loyalty card ninja and make sure to charge everything I can to get great perks and discounts on stuff (and pay it off every month to avoid fees). I also love Hotels Tonight: it's a nice splurge to get a deal on something a little more fancy than the Motel 6. Of course, the band makes fun of me for also always having a nice amount of cash, too but that's mostly for bartenders and sound people.

The Imaginaries (Maggie) - 166 Followers

Depending on routing and schedule, we will go in various different directions for accommodations. Sometimes we will stay in a hotel and if we do, we always use Priceline Name Your Own Price to get really great hotel discounts (and typically wait until the day of to book it). Sometimes we will use AirBNB, especially if we are staying somewhere more than 1 night. We can usually get a great deal and have more space if we go this route. And sometimes when there's not enough time between shows/drives, we will sleep in the van and then workout/shower at Planet Fitness the next morning. And of course, stay with friends/family whenever possible!

Cynthia Brando - 165 Followers

On my first tour-I made friends with some folks on the same bill and they offered me a place to stay if I was going through their area next tour, so I made sure to put their town on my tour schedule! I also made new lifelong friends!

I reached out online and asked everyone if they knew someone in each town that might have lodging. I also reached out to friends of friends, distant relatives and the music community. Air bnb was great as I had a budget of $50 for lodging which got me a decent place to stay in most towns where I wasn’t able to secure free lodging. Campgrounds are another option but can be really tiring setting up a tent or needing a shower…You can also reach out to the venue and sometimes they will have an idea or host out of town guests, but as a woman-I REALLY do my research first! Safety and peace of mind before saving money.

The Normal Living - 95 Followers

We’re a big band (seven members) so finding accommodations is always a challenge. We recently played a festival in Sugarloaf, NY and ended up renting a 200 year old farmhouse on a working farm that had goats and chickens on the property. We also made friends with the family that actually lived in the house. They stayed in their barn that night and ended up coming to our show. The farmhouse was big enough for the whole band and the living room was massive with great acoustics. We were really inspired by the farm and the space and ended up hanging out and working on music all night. While not always possible, we try to look for accommodations where we can find inspiration and work.

Johnny & The Mongrels - 95 Followers

We honestly just try to join as many “rewards” programs as we can for all the major hotel chains as well as using AirBNB, VRBO or simply hitting up fans in whatever market we may be at to see if they have leads on accommodations.