Hosteling
Hostels often offer private ensuites for a fraction of the cost, especially in off season, that one could find at a budget hotel. Staying in dorm-style rooms is inexpensive, at the cost of your privacy. You will make friends.
Hostel proprietors often provide: trip itineraries, night-life recommendations, walking tours, pub crawls, and bike hiring, to name just a few possibilities. This is an excellent opportunity to leave your comfort zone, in a friendly atmosphere.
Surfing and B&B
CouchSurfing, and AirBnb offer a inexpensive, or free in the case of Couchsurfing, opportunity to meet and hang out with the locals. Gaining this sort of perspective on a new city is worth more than money can buy. Additionally, while some scoff at the idea of couch surfing, I have to report that a couch in a private home can be a welcome respite from the otherwise terribly low hotel standards of some countries.
Camp!
Perhaps we’d like to rough it even further, to the edges of civilized comfort. Why not explore Camping ? One of my favorite European adventures revolved around camping out at night, providing an unforgettable, mostly positive, experience. More on this trip in later features.
Hotels
If you MUST have a hotel room, there are tons of sites devoted to finding them.
Booking being just one.
The Nominal Wanderer 