Originally Posted by
zachary
Now, I'm sure there are circumstances where the free room doesn't seem like enough, those are going to be few and far between. In this case, I have no idea why the OP wouldn't have made the trip if he had known in advance that he was going to get a free room by the airport. Maybe there's a good reason.
Can't speak for the OP, but I can understand why a free hotel room might not be "worth it." More often than not, I'll limit myself to more-expensive downtown locations so that I can walk everywhere, even when a cheaper aiport location is available. (I would never stay at SFO as an alternative to downtown SF to save money!)
Also, depending on the market, a free hotel room might not compensate for costs in getting to/from a downtown location where you want to be. Having to take cabs and/or drive & park kind of ruins the whole experience!