Choosing Accommodation: Reading Listings, Reviews and the Real Total

Accommodation is chosen from photographs taken by the seller, described in the seller's words, and scored by an average that hides the useful information. A few habits make it far more predictable.

Hotel or short-term rental

• Hotels — predictable standards, daily cleaning, staff present, easy to complain to, and better for short stays where fees dominate.
• Rentals — space, a kitchen, better value for longer stays and for groups, and no one to call when something is wrong. Cleaning and service fees make short stays poor value.

Compare the total for your exact dates and party size, not the nightly rate. A rental's fixed fees are spread over more nights on a longer stay, which is why the ranking changes with trip length.

Reading reviews properly

The average score is the least useful number on the page.

• Sort by most recent. Properties change hands, refurbish and decline. A review from three years ago describes a different place.
• Read the middle scores, not the extremes. The most balanced information is there.
• Look for repetition. One mention of noise is a person; five is a fact about the building.
• Watch for what is not mentioned. No review mentioning breakfast, on a property advertising breakfast, is a signal.
• Read the host's replies. How a host responds to a complaint tells you what will happen if you have one.

Location, checked yourself

"Central", "moments from" and "close to" are the seller's words. Put the address into a map and check the walking time to where you will actually be going, and the transport links. Check what is next door — nightlife, a main road, a construction site visible on street imagery.

For rentals, the exact address is often only given after booking. Where a general area is shown, check the boundaries of that area rather than its centre.

Practical checks before booking

• Check-in times and process, particularly self check-in and whether anyone is available if it fails.
• What is included — towels, linen, kitchen basics, parking, air conditioning.
• Stairs and lifts, which are frequently omitted and matter with luggage.
• Air conditioning or heating, for the season you are travelling.
• Cancellation terms, which vary far more than price.
• Local taxes payable on arrival, sometimes in cash.

Photographs

Wide-angle lenses make rooms look considerably larger. Look for the stated floor area rather than judging by image. Look at what is at the edges of photographs and what is never photographed — a bathroom shown only in close-up, a bedroom with no wide shot.

Before you book

Compare the total for your dates including all fees and taxes. Check recent reviews rather than the average. Check the map yourself rather than the description. And check the cancellation terms, since flexibility is worth a small premium on anything booked well ahead.