Author: Ethan Caldwell
Ethan Caldwell writes about where to stay and when to go. His work covers hotels and resorts, booking and check-in questions, and seasonal timing for destinations around the world — the shoulder-season math, the weather windows, and the trip-planning details most travelers only learn the hard way. He also maps road-trip routes and RV and travel-trailer logistics.
The Stratosphere Hotel—now officially known as The STRAT Hotel, Casino & Tower—is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Las Vegas. Its defining feature is not the hotel block itself but the slender observation tower rising above it. That tower reaches 1,149 feet, or about 350 meters, and remains the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States. Quick Answer The Stratosphere Hotel, now The STRAT Hotel, Casino & Tower, has a 1,149-foot (about 350-meter) observation tower. The 1,149-foot figure refers to the tower rather than the hotel-room buildings at its base. The STRAT identifies it as the tallest freestanding…
Hotel checkout is usually simple, but a little planning can prevent billing problems, forgotten belongings, and a rushed trip to the airport or station. Start by confirming your hotel’s checkout time and any property-specific instructions. Then pack, review your charges, choose the hotel’s approved checkout method, and leave enough time for transportation. Checkout times and late-checkout rules vary by property, so use your booking confirmation, the hotel website, app, or front desk as the final authority. Quick Answer To check out of a hotel, confirm the checkout deadline, pack and sweep the room, review your itemized bill, settle any remaining…
Getting a hotel discount is less about finding one secret coupon and more about comparing the right rates. Check the total stay price, loyalty and membership rates, cancellation rules, direct hotel offers, and reputable booking sites before you pay. A cheaper nightly rate is not always the cheapest or most flexible reservation. Quick Answer To get hotel discounts, compare the total price on several booking channels, join free hotel loyalty programs, check any membership rates you qualify for, stay flexible with dates, and review direct hotel offers. Before booking, compare cancellation terms and mandatory fees so a low advertised rate…
Rio Hotel & Casino can sometimes look surprisingly inexpensive compared with resorts directly on the Las Vegas Strip. The lower-looking rates are not explained by one hidden problem. Rio combines an off-Strip location, more than 2,500 guestrooms, frequent promotions, several room categories, and a value-focused positioning that gives it flexibility to discount rooms when demand allows. The important part is comparing the full price of the stay rather than judging the hotel by the lowest room rate alone. Quick Answer Rio Hotel & Casino can look cheaper than many Strip resorts because it sits one block off the Strip, has…
The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, has been attracting travelers since it opened in 1909. Built by inventor and entrepreneur Freelan Oscar Stanley as an upscale mountain resort, the historic property is now almost as famous for its ghost stories as for its Rocky Mountain setting. Its best-known legend centers on Room 217, where Stephen King stayed in 1974 before developing the idea for The Shining. The hotel has since embraced that eerie reputation with spirited rooms, ghost tours, and stories about unexplained sounds, apparitions, and objects that seem to move on their own. Quick Answer The Stanley Hotel…
The name “Biltmore” appears on several famous hotels, but they do not all belong to one present-day hotel chain. Today, The Biltmore luxury brand associated with Millennium Hotels & Resorts has an international portfolio, while well-known properties such as The Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables and the Arizona Biltmore operate separately. The history is equally layered: the Biltmore name was already established before the Los Angeles hotel opened in 1923. Quick Answer As of July 2026, the official modern Biltmore brand lists seven destinations. Five are presented as hotel or villa stays—Mayfair, Los Angeles, Tbilisi, Dubai Hotel Villas, and Al…
Las Vegas is famous for casino resorts, headline shows, restaurants, nightlife, and themed attractions, but its hotel capacity is just as remarkable. According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), the Las Vegas area had 150,300 hotel rooms in its latest 2025 inventory data. That total helps explain how the destination can host major conventions, sporting events, concerts, and leisure travelers at the same time. Quick Answer Las Vegas has 150,300 hotel rooms according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s latest 2025 dataset, updated in June 2026. That figure refers to the Las Vegas area, not…
Las Vegas has one of the largest concentrations of hotel rooms anywhere in the world. As of the latest Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority data available in 2026, the destination has about 150,300 hotel rooms. That total stretches across huge Strip resorts, Downtown hotels, smaller properties, boutique hotels, and accommodations elsewhere in the Las Vegas tourism market. Quick Answer Las Vegas has about 150,300 hotel rooms, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s latest published FAQ, updated in June 2026. The exact total can change as hotels open, close, add rooms, renovate towers, or temporarily remove rooms…
A hotel for one night can cost well under the market average at a basic property or several times more at a luxury hotel, resort, or high-demand city property. The biggest price drivers are your destination, exact dates, hotel category, room type, local events, taxes, parking, and optional extras. Because rates change constantly, a dated market benchmark is more useful than a fixed universal price range. Quick Answer As a current U.S. benchmark, CoStar reported an average daily hotel rate of $174.49 for the week of July 12–18, 2026. Your actual one-night cost can be much lower or higher depending…
How much does a night at the Opryland Hotel cost? The answer depends heavily on your dates, room type, view, and whether you choose a package. Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville is much more than a standard hotel, with 2,888 rooms, nine acres of indoor garden atriums, restaurants, pools, a spa, entertainment, and the SoundWaves water attraction. Those extras also mean you need to look beyond the advertised room rate when setting your budget. Quick Answer Gaylord Opryland has no single fixed nightly price. On July 25, 2026, Marriott showed a $490 public rate for July 28–29…
Hotel valet parking removes the hassle of finding a space, but it can create another question: how much should you tip the valet? In the United States, a small flat-dollar tip is customary for good service. The amount can vary with the hotel, the help you receive, and local expectations, but you do not need to calculate a restaurant-style percentage. Quick Answer For hotel valet parking in the United States, $2 to $5 when your car is returned is a common tip for standard service. Consider $5 to $10 for exceptional help, a luxury property, difficult weather, or a special…
Tipping hotel housekeeping is a common way to thank the person who cleans your room, replaces towels, empties trash, and prepares the space for a comfortable stay. In the United States, there is no legally required housekeeping tip, but leaving a small daily gratuity is widely considered good hotel etiquette. The right amount depends more on the work involved than on the room rate alone. Quick Answer For U.S. hotels, $5 per room per day is a practical current baseline for housekeeping. Leave it daily, not only at checkout, because different attendants may service your room. Tip more for suites,…