BUDGET TRAVELER
Hotels offer more gas credits to say 'tanks a lot'As fuel prices continue to soar, hotels continue to offer gas credit incentives. Expect the deals to get even sweeter as peak vacation season nears. Watch for incentives such as "stay one night, get one night free" and packages with added-values such as discounted attraction tickets, dinners or beverage and dining credits. Some even toss in rental cars to use during your stay.
Here are a few summer specials:
|
• Book a three-night minimum stay at Hotels.com on stays through Sept. 1 to receive a $50 gas card. Reservations must be made by July 6. Hotels.com offers a selection of more than 80,000 hotels worldwide (with a lowest price guarantee on more than 40,000 properties). Refer to promotional code GAS50. www.hotels.com.
• The "Tanks a Lot" promotion at BedandBreakfast.com gets you a gas credits from $25 to $50 on stays at one of the more than 150 participating properties. Offers vary by property with most extending the incentives through summer. www.bedandbreakfast.com.
• You can fill up a rental car when staying at the five-star Alden-Houston of Houston. The "So Tank Full" package, priced from $179 on Friday-Sunday stays through Labor Day, includes a $50 gas card (and valet parking). Stay in a suite to receive a $75 gas credit. Complement your stay with the purchase of a CityPass for Houston, a discounted ticket booklet for eight of Houston's most popular attractions, including the Space Center, the zoo and the Museum of Natural Science, among others. www.aldenhotels.com, www.citypass.com.
• A "Summer Sizzle" rate of $279 a night for two at the Marriott Gaslamp includes a $25 gas card, daily breakfast (a $30 value), valet parking (a $30 value) and 10- to 15-percent discounts off select local attractions such as Sea World and the San Diego Zoo. This resort doesn't have a pool, but the beach is close by. As a trade-off, guests enjoy complimentary use of the fitness center. www.marriott.com/sangl.
• In Portland, Ore., luxurious Hotel Monaco's "Carless Vacation" package includes light-rail transportation from the airport to the hotel, a picnic-basket lunch and one-day bike rentals at $249 a night on stays. City-view guestrooms feature pillowtop bedding and posh linens, flat-panel TV, DVD, Starbucks in-room coffee, an overstuffed work chair and writing desk with Wi-Fi, terry bathrobes and Aveda bath products. www.monaco-portland.com.
Vote for this story!

Watch a video of fans re-enacting their favorite parts of Beyonce's Atlanta concert.

Vote for your favorite Mike Luckovich editorial cartoons on local new, politics, celebrities and more!

Boredom and lack of money are the mothers of invention when it comes to lawn games such as lawn Scrabble.

Our new travel story contest centers on your most romantic vacation tales. Tell us, lovers.

Husband and wife architects created a modern house that's still warm and inviting.