Just a couple of further thoughts re accommodations...
A couple of Yorks ago, a forum member posted about having his LaQuinta reservation cancelled by the hotel at the last minute due to a "water leak". At the time, LQ's rates were far lower than other nearby hotels - my inner cynic wonders if LQ did this in order to sell the rooms at a higher price. As I recall from his posts, they weren't particularly helpful regarding finding other accommodations. I'm hoping this won't happen again in October.
If you use a loyalty program but haven't traveled recently, be sure to stay on top of it. This morning, I checked my loyalty program. Turns out that my points balance, which was almost enough to pay for a room, had been zeroed out due to "inactivity" without notice. Well duh, nobody has been able to travel for over a year! After calling customer service, they graciously made a "one time exception" and reinstated the points.
Good luck, and looking forward to October.
