Consider Joining AAA for Hotel Discounts at Many Hotels (2021)
Save Money on All Your Travel Reservations, Hotels 101: Get the Best Deal on Your Hotel Room
Most hotels in the US and Canada, and many hotels outside of North America that are part of North American hotel chains, provide a 5%-20% discount for AAA members.
AAA is the most reliable way to get discounted rates at hotels, whether you are staying in a big chain hotel in the city, a cozy inn by the beach, or an independent motel up in the mountains.
While many other hotel booking strategies only work for hotels that are part of larger chains, AAA may be the only way to get a lower rate at smaller, independent lodgings. For savvy travelers, the most valuable benefits of AAA are the hotel and attraction discounts, not the emergency automotive services.
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Tips for taking advantage of AAA hotel rates
It isn’t hard to take advantage of AAA discounts. There is usually a checkbox on the hotel’s website that you can select to see the rates. For Canadian sites, this may be labelled “CAA” (Canadian Auto Association), but you are usually still entitled to the discount using your AAA membership. In some cases, you may need to enter your AAA membership number into the hotel reservation system.
- AAA rates are usually (but not always) flexible rates. An added benefit of AAA rates is that they usually allow changes or cancellations. In some cases, they may be the only way you can book the hotel without being locked into a non-refundable rate.
- If an independent hotel doesn’t show a AAA option on the website, call to see if one is available. Not every hotel’s booking site supports the ability to show the discount. And even if the hotel doesn’t have an official AAA rate, your request may result in a lower offer than was listed online.
- It is a little risky to book a AAA rate without a membership. Hotels reserve the right to ask to see your membership card, and if you don’t have one, they will raise the cost of your hotel room when you arrive.
When a hotel offers both a refundable and non-refundable rate, the AAA rate is often around the same price as the regular non-refundable rate and sometimes even cheaper—essentially giving you a flexible rate with no additional charge. For example, a room at the Sheraton Maui, over Christmas break, was running $439/night. Using a non-refundable rate lowered the price to $408. But the fully refundable AAA rate was only $395. A room at the Comfort Suites San Antonio Riverwalk on an October weekend was $149/night. The regular non-refundable rate was $134, but the AAA fully refundable rate was the same $134.
Additional AAA benefits
Hotel discounts are only one of the many benefits of AAA membership.
- Attraction discounts. AAA also offers valuable discounts on a very wide range of attractions. While your discount may only be a few dollars, you’ll rarely pay full price for a tourist attraction, and the savings will add up over the course of a year.
- Roadside service. Roadside benefits are the raison d’etre of AAA. While many of our readers will get more value out of the hotel benefits, if you don’t have other roadside assistance coverage and you run into trouble, AAA’s roadside assistance can save you a lot of money. If your car breaks down, you run out of gas, you need a jump, or you lock yourself out of your car, AAA has you covered.
- Special Hertz benefits. AAA has a special arrangement with Hertz that offers discount rates and other benefits. While you are likely to be able to get a similar discount without needing to pay for a AAA membership, some of the extra benefits are relatively unique and can be valuable for certain people—primarily waived fees for young renters (ages 20-24) and for the use of a child, infant, or booster seat. You’ll also receive 675 Gold Plus Rewards points, enough for a free rental day (but not during high rate periods), and bonus points on any additional rentals.
- Free maps and TripTiks. In the day of Smart Phones and in-dash mapping software, these classic AAA benefits are less valuable than they once were. However, it’s still fun to get a customized TripTik before a road trip.
- Shopping discounts. AAA members don’t just get discounts on hotels, attractions, and car rentals, they also get discounts at many other merchants.
- Passport photos. If you are paying for something more expensive than their “Classic” membership (to take advantage of more comprehensive roadside assistance benefits), AAA will provide free passport photos.
Are the discounts worth the cost of joining?
The cheapest AAA membership costs around $60, even if you don’t count the first-time initiation fee (which often get waived). Each region’s AAA affiliate sets the exact membership rate, so rates are different in different parts of the country.
The question is whether it is worth paying for a membership primarily to take advantage of the hotel discounts? The answer is that it depends. If you travel in the US somewhat often, we find that your savings are likely to be worth considerably more than your membership fee.
- Many people already have roadside assistance coverage. Your car may have free roadside assistance from the manufacturer (at least for the first few years). If not, your auto insurance policy typically offers roadside protection for only an extra $5-20 per year. Several credit cards provide free roadside assistance. Or you may feel it simply isn’t worth paying very much to cover yourself for an unlikely breakdown. Get Free or Discounted Roadside Assistance with these Credit Cards.
- You may often find an even better option than the AAA rate and not get full value from the AAA discounts. The AAA discount will often save you money compared to the regular room rate. However, if you follow our other tips, you might be able to get an even better deal elsewhere or you might book most of your rooms with award nights. For example, at many chain hotels, the “members” rate provides the same discount as the AAA rate. The more you take advantage of other hotel booking strategies, the less often you’ll wind up taking advantage of AAA rates.
If you don’t need the roadside assistance, you are paying the entire AAA membership fee just for the hotel, attraction, and merchant discounts.
What about AARP? (You don’t have to be over 50 to join)
The other membership discount available at many hotels is for AARP (American Association of Retired People) members. AARP is primarily focused on people 50 years or older. However, you don’t need to be over 50 to join. People of any age can get access to AARP benefits for only $16/year. If you are willing to pay for multiple years at a time, membership is even less expensive.
- The $16 membership fee is much lower than AAA and will probably be covered with a single discounted hotel stay.
- However, AAA discounts are available at many more hotels than AARP. Not every hotel offers a senior rate. And when they do, they sometimes just require you to be a certain age, rather than being an official member of AARP. For example, at Marriott hotels, being an AARP member doesn't get you the senior discount. You'll need to older than their minimum age requirement (62).
- Even if you are a AAA member, it may still pay to join AARP as well. While most hotels offer similar discounts to AAA and AARP members, some hotels will offer a much better AARP rate. When that happens, it is nice to be able to get the bigger discount.