First, am not talking here about using some of the online engines such as the Priceline site. I’ve had excellent luck with them, but I myself use them mainly when I’ve been caught short on time. Maybe I am a control freak, but I like to know where I am going before I commit. And I tend to develop a degree of loyalty to my favorites and like to give them my business. If I don’t know an area well, I get nervous about asking for a room in the section of town or next to the wrong convention center (and yes, that has happened). This in no way lessens my respect for William Shatner. And no, the BPI editor is not dissing those excellent find-it-for-you offerings.

Which reminds me: Strangers to a city don't often know the local and alternative names its citizens have given to the various districts and convention centers — even the airport. I have stared at many a map and wondered where such-and-so a district was, what the actual streets were, and how far it was from a convention center. And I’ve twice found a good hotel next to the wrong convention center ($#%&#*). Some San Francisco maps will identify the Tenderloin district, for example, but others will not. You would do us a great service by including street ranges next to the clever local names.

How to Find the Gems

Begin with a good map of the city to which you will be traveling. I can usually find what I need online. If your destination also has a good metro or other public transportation system, find a good map of that also and make sure it is up to date. I keep a folder of city maps for future reference (but make sure you look at current versions when you are planning a trip). Ask your coworkers if they’ve found any nice places off the spendy track. Don’t forget the excellent resources offered by your AAA offices! (Note also that AAA and AARP sometimes offer noticeably discounted rates, the latter applying long before most of us retire.)

Check rates on more than one hotel search site; although I have a personal preference for Expedia. I have used each of the major sites at one point or other. If you don’t want to prepay, though, going directly to the hotel itself can bring up some available discounted rates.

Location: If you are going to be attending a major event that books rooms in hotels all around the city, and if the lowest priced choice the organizers offer isn’t to your liking, then you want to find a nice place within a block or two of the nearest event hotel (and shuttle stop). In any case, you want to be near to the conference or meeting venue so as not to go broke on cab fees. I try to find a spot that looks okay and close to where I want to be, then I may call that hotel to check on proximity.

Remember that if you are unfamiliar with a city and have found what looks like a nice hotel, you may want to call the hotel, a visitor information center, and/or a local person you happen to know about the safety of that area of town. I once canceled a reservation because the comments online from previous guests indicated that hotel egress was subject to constant hassling and panhandling and whatnots — and that it was noisy at night with street brawls and so on. I chickened out and booked another hotel I’d stayed in before, but then visited the other place only to find that it would have been perfectly fine!

A bit of a digression into personal philosophy: I am not (totally) foolhardy, and I do believe in watching my surroundings, staying alert — and reporting anything that strikes me as dangerous or threatening. I don’t actively invite people to hit me up for money. (But I tend to walk around in the “big cities” with a naïve grin on my face just normally, so I do get that quite a lot.) I think a person has a right not to be hassled entering and leaving a hotel. Try to make a sort of indirect eye contact, but focus on heading where you're going.

On the other hand, I myself have no particular problem walking past groups of “street people.” I’ve had some very cool conversations with some of them — what life stories I’ve heard! People (especially those treated as invisible most of the time) usually appreciate having a chance to tell you about themselves, and if you have the time and inclination, you might be surprised at what you learn. I believe that a large incentive to hassle someone is to be treated like you don’t exist, and it is harder to hassle someone who looks you in the eye and might even wish you a “good morning.” One way to avoid being hassled for money if it makes you uncomfortable is to pretend to be talking on your cell phone and gesturing wildly.

And as for online hotel reviews: I’ve realized by talking to a number of fellow guests that many who comment negatively about hotels online don’t travel very much and/or are simply unused to urban environments. One street brawl during their stay becomes the “norm” in their estimation — could be, couldn’t be. In short, be attentive to your own comfort and security levels and trust your own “radar.”

It's All in the Details: A useful tactic is to play with the street views accessed through sites such as Google Maps. You can zoom in and see what your hotel looks like, and you can explore the streets around it; I often trace the walking route from a hotel to a conference or meeting venue. If you will be driving, you can see what your exits look like and from what direction to approach a parking garage. It is also a way to scope out nearby restaurants.

Finally, one additional advantage of spending an hour to research hotels in this way is that you get to know a city pretty well before you get there. You get a chance to scope out subway or metro routes, nearby restaurants, and safe walking streets. You might have a chance to introduce yourself to the concierge or other front-desk person by asking questions and find yourself greeted warmly upon check-in by someone whose name you already recognize.

Many of the places I like are designed for extended-stay business travel and families, so they may have refrigerators and microwaves. Awesome. A few take-out entrees from a nearby market, and you can eat in style, put your feet up and relax, without paying outrageous room-service fees. If you don’t want to bother and like the luxury of room service, you still have a place to keep leftovers! If room service isn’t offered at that hotel, most often you can call for delivery from outside; they often require you to go down to the lobby to pick it up, but I’ve tipped hotel staff who have been willing to bring it to me. You can at least buy or bring your own coffee and creamer if you think those premeasured coffee bags are pretty . . . inadequate.

If you work with a corporate travel-booking person, you might do what I’ve done anyway, then send that person the results of your findings to make the actual arrangements. A person booking travel for a few hundred people will not have the time or self-interest in scoping out nifty spots for you.

Driving: One more point. If you don’t mind driving rental cars in perhaps unfamiliar (to you) cities, you can almost always find some good deals on those. If you do the math, sometimes a good rental car rate and free parking at your hotel will come to what you may have otherwise paid at a conference hotel for only one night. If the hotel you’ve found is half the price of that spendier hotel, you are still coming out ahead — and you have transportation flexibility. I’ve gotten some nifty bundled rates for auto rentals by booking my flight over the phone with United Airlines, for example. Others of my colleagues have found that some of the vacation packages can be great deals.

I would love to share some of my favorites with you. But . . . as soon as I find a place I like, it tends to go through an expensive remodel and double its rates to pay for becoming spiffier. Alas. So I’ve become superstitious about mentioning names. Also, the seasons make a big difference in more touristy locales . . . and everyone has different tastes and tolerances when it comes to these things. So it is always good to have a number of your own favorites!

Instead, here are a few useful links I haven't already mentioned specifically:

Hotels.com

Orbitz

Travelocity

Washington Metro

Bay Area Rapid Transit

and Breezenet, one of the discounted rental car sites — I’ve used it and found it to be very good.