Graduating college excites us and our families, but if you have parents coming in from out of town, it drains their wallets as well.
Hotel prices soar the weekend of graduation every quarter, as hotels take advantage of supply and demand. Some hotels raise their prices $100 over the average price, or the price of the night before.
Based upon ratings and reviews on its website, TripAdvisor.com provides a list of the top 10 hotels to stay at in San Luis Obispo.
These prices come from Dec. 10-13, and only apply to rooms with one queen-sized bed for two adults.
The most popular hotel for experience and quality is the San Luis Creek Lodge, located near the Grand Avenue and Monterey Street intersection. Though this might be a nice place to stay, the pricing goes from $139 on Thursday night to $249 both Friday and Saturday, with a surprising drop down to $99 for Sunday night.
If money fails to concern your parents, the lodge creates a lovely welcoming atmosphere, as well as free daily breakfast and free high-speed Wi-Fi.
The top five of these hotels hold a rating of four and a half stars. So the question arises: Why would someone pay $249 when the Avenue Inn Downtown San Luis Obispo doesn’t raise its price from Thursday night to Friday night, and only costs $105 for Saturday night?
Also located only a few blocks away from downtown, the Avenue seems like a perfect place to enjoy one’s time on a budget in San Luis Obispo.
“It’s almost a guarantee every room will be sold out,” Gary Hauser, a receptionist from the Avenue Inn said. “It’s like this any time students or parents are coming or leaving the area.”
The Avenue Inn proves the cheapest of hotels, but there always remains the less expensive motels, such as the Super 8 Motel and the Sunbeam Motel, both less than $70 a night and located conveniently on Monterey Street.
Whatever your needs are, there is a place to stay in San Luis Obispo that fits them.
In order of cost, least to greatest, along with comparisons of the night of graduation cost and the Sunday night after, the list is as follows.
Time can be saved just by doing a little research around these busy times.
Graphic by Olivia Proffit