Cruises & Hotel Points

Unpopular opinion: We do not "hack" for hotel points. We don't have a hotel credit card and won't. Are free accomodations nice? Yes. Are they without cost? No.

The Power of Tourism Spend

Tourism is an enormous global GDP contribution - prior to Covid, tourism made up 10% of the global economy and is quickly surging to pre-pandemic levels. We are talking about trillions of annual spend. Travel has a benefit for communities, and some rely almost solely on it, but how we spend our money is significant.

Quick back story - I worked for a couple of years in economic forecasting for a major US carrier. Part of that analysis provided economic impact reports for local cities, especially around airport or frequency increases. Modeling how a dollar from a plane ticket impacts a local community is eye-opening. But those dollars are not equal.

Studies and modeling show us that there is a vast difference in spend at local businesses vs chains. Local businesses retain roughly 70% of every dollar for the community. Global corporations only leave 40% behind. Think about it this way - your three night stay cost $500. If you stay at a local hotel, $350 of that is reinvested into the community. Stay at Hyatt and a mere $200 remains behind. That is a significant difference. Some cities have reacted by implementing a tourist tax. It is not unusual in Europe, espescially Italy, to see a local tourist tax of a few euros per person a night.

Not All Hotels Are Equal

I am not saying that chain hotels are inheritantly bad. They do provide employment and training to locals. Some have made a concerted effort to be more involved in the communities like working with local providers for excursions, food tastings, and tours. Boutique style hotels that focus on local culture have also become more common. There are also partnerships between chains and locally owned hotels that provide a mutually beneficial relationships - the brand drives traffic to small hotels in return for a fee paid to be a part of the brand. Others offer a sterile version of travel. It is our culture, our comfort points imported to our vacation area. And for our family, that isn't why we travel.

Same occasionally goes for the hotel breakfast. First, it is expensive when not included. Hotels that cater to business travelers know that this will be expensed and most people aren't going to bat an eye at a $30 eggs benedict. Some loyalty programs offer included breakfast or a voucher towards breakfast of $10 to $25 to offset the markup. However, if my dish and coffee total $35, then the savings isn't that great. Not to mentioned, I have missed out on an opportunity to visit a local bakery or cafe and the local business owners missed out on my spend.

Cruise Ships

This is the same reason that cruises can be very difficult on communities. The lack of local spend. Daytrippers put a significant strain on a city's resources without spending a significant amount on dinners, tours, or overnight accomodations. There is a reason that a growing number of cities are charging, restricting, or banning liners from visiting.

Wrecked Costa Concordia at Isola del Giglio

Cruise ships aren't green. A recent study found that cruise ships have a larger carbon footprint than 12,000 cars and a night of accomodation on ship is equal to the same as twelve nights in a typical hotel. It is estimated that a quarter of all shipping waste is generated from cruise ships despite making up just one percent of the global fleet. That is a staggering number.

Now consider the dumping of waste in open water, pollution in ports that don't have electrical hook-ups, and incidents that further negatively impact the environment and local communities. One example was the Costa Concordia - it ran aground in the Tuscan Archipelago. Aside from the tragedy of three dozen deaths, the port of Giglio was closed and then restricted for an extended period of time. Rough winter seas threatened to destroy the oil barriers in place and marine life had to be removed from the salvage area.

How to Support Local

Book Local Accomodations

We use Booking.com pretty regularly because there are so many family run hotels, bed and breakfasts, and rentals. The customer service and support in case something goes wrong is more on par with the ammenities of a global brand if there are issues. Capital One Shopping routinely has cashback for Booking.com reservations, too. Even if you choose not to book through an aggregator, you can use it as a resource to look a reviews Book directly with the hotel. Because they save on fees from aggregators, hotels often offer a direct booking discount.

Vacation Rentals

Vacation rentals are a good option with some caveats. They have caused angst in some areas, driving up prices and forcing out residents, but in other areas it has revived . It is important to make sure your rental is licensed - the number should be included in the description. If not, ask.

Local Guides and Experiences

When possible, look for local experiences and guides. AirBnb experiences connects travelers with local experts for wonderful adventures like private tours, cooking classes, and tasting experiences. Get Your Guide also connects tourists with local tour guides and experts. They are a third party platform that helps vets and review programs while in turn providing these smaller operators the booking platform to compete with big box companies.

Bottom Line

Is there a time and place for those chain points? Of course! I have a legacy IHG account from my finance days when I racked up some points. I have kept it active for when there aren't great local options and opt for IHG instead. Or when we need to stay close to the airport for an early flight out where chains have a cluster of offerings. And if you are a roadwarrior, then use those points mindfully for some really unique experiences!