Budget Travel - Budget extended stay in Southern US?

Hi!

I am looking for a place to stay for about 2-3 months on a tight budget in the Southern US. I am quite flexible with the region, but prefer the greater LA area, Southern Cal, Nevada or Arizona. One important thing would be easy highspeed internet access.

Any ideas or pointers? :)

You might try looking at www.craigslist.com for the area you want. Check the real estate or apartment rental section for any possible short term rental places. That would probably be cheaper than a hotel/motel.

From the places you list, it seems you are interested in what we call the Southwest or the West coast. "Southern US" will be taken to mean the eastern south-- Maryland to Florida to the eastern border of Texas to the border of Kentucky-- by most Americans.

From the places you list, it seems you are interested in what we call the Southwest or the West coast. "Southern US" will be taken to mean the eastern south-- Maryland to Florida to the eastern border of Texas to the border of Kentucky-- by most Americans.

I would give OP benefit of doubt on locations -- from airline affiliations it seems OP may be from Europe. And as far as southern US goes, that too is subjective. I would NOT include Maryland, and Florida like Texas seems to be in a world of its own. Perhaps northern Fla may be part of the South ....

Now to OP's question. I will tell you that SoCal, especially south of LA is VERY expensive -- I should know, I'm there Monday to Friday. But hey, there are worse places I could be for work ;)

OTOH, spent Friday night at Doubletree hotel in Orange County just outside the airport, and it was only $109 a night, cheaper than I'm used to in that part of the world. Of course when I say only, it's because I'm not paying the bill :cool:

You will find Arizona much cheaper, but it will also be getting much hotter in another month or so.

Having said all that, there are cheaper options in SoCal, but generally these will be the kind of places that are not part of a chain, and may or more likely may not, have high speed internet. In my previous life as a leisure traveler I spent a lot of time in public libraries with free high speed internet access, something I don't have to worry about now ^

EmailKid

If your stay will be over the summer, you might want to search for apartment sublets in University/college towns. A lot of students leave for the summer, and they often look for people willing to take over the lease for a few months. Additionally, prices for sublets are often negotiable, especially as it gets closer to summer.

You can find University sublets on Craigslist, or sometimes through the housing section on a school's website (once you narrow down the area in which you want to live, I'm sure people here can help you with specific info for that area).

One caveat - student housing can vary significantly in quality and cleanliness!

You can always try extended stay but not sure if that is too expensive for you.