The County of Montgomery is rich in history and tradition. Founded in December 1816, it is the fourth largest county in the state of Alabama. Life in some parts of Alabama is relatively laid back making it ideal for vacations.

Historical museums and memorabilia of the past, plus modern amenities such as parks, zoos, airports and malls blend in beautifully in the region’s landscape. Hence, one will surely appreciate both the old and the modern qualities of the place.

Montgomery County has a line up of hotels catering to all kinds of clients visiting either for personal or business reasons. They have rooms big enough for the family, conference halls with amenities for business meetings and conferences, different sports facilities, amenities for the physically-challenged persons, pet-friendly hotels and most of all, affordable-to-the-pocket hotels.

Here is a list of some cheap hotels in Montgomery County:

Americas Best Value Inn This hotel is located in the West South Boulevard, very near the Gunther and Maxwell Air Bases as well as the Montgomery Airport. It is a pet-friendly hotel with room varying rates, depending on the added amenities.

Days Inn Montgomery Midtown Being located in Zelda Road, this hotel has amenities for the physically-challenged persons. The prices of its rooms depend on the number of occupants and featured amenities.

La Quinta Inn Montgomery With its location along Eastern Boulevard, this inn offers standard, affordable accommodations. Its local attractions include the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts and the Civil Rights Memorial.

Pets are allowed but with restrictions. If bringing pets along, please contact the hotel before your arrival.

Quality Inn Montgomery Quality Inn Montgomery can be found in Carmichael Road. It is accessible to the Hank Williams Senior Museum and the Dannelly Field Airport. They offer a flat rate for all rooms.

Quality Inn and Suites Situated by the East South Boulevard, Quality Inn & Suites Governors House Convention Center is conveniently located near the Montgomery Regional Airport, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Montgomery Mall, Alabama Old Towne, as well as the Alabama State Capital, Joe Reed Acadome, Montgomery Speedway and Victoryland Greyhound Racing. Pets are welcome in this hotel.

Econo Lodge & Suites The Econo Lodge & Suites can be found along Monticello Drive. It is just a 15-minute ride from the Montgomery Zoo and the Alabama State University. It is also near Auburn University Montgomery and Hotel. They also welcome pets.

Comfort Inn Montgomery

Located at Northchase Boulevard, this hotel is near the Dannelly Field Airport. Visitors can easily go to local attractions such as Betsy Ann Riverboat, Jasmine Hill Gardens, as well as the EastDale Mall, Montgomery Zoo and Capitol Complex. It has special facilities, particularly for the hearing-impaired persons.

All of the above-mentioned have standard hotel amenities such as fully air-conditioned rooms, coffeemakers, television with cable services, dataport, telephones and laundry services.

Likewise, it offers services of free internet access, free parking, 24-hour front desk, safe deposit boxes, non-smoking rooms, and rooms equipped for the physically challenged.

Some of the hotels have gym/sports equipment, a spa and restaurant among others. Although some of the rates seem pricey, most of them can still be classified as affordable even to the budget-conscious tourists and travelers.

Thus, being cheap does not necessarily mean scrimping on the amenities and conveniences of hotel living.

Simply put, hotel classifications are not a unified system. Many big chains, from budget options to luxury hotels, are allowed to apply their own classification systems based on the size and facilities of each of their establishments. They are not monitored by anyone except their own internal managers. And to make things more confusing, even chains change their “star criteria” from country to country!

As there are variations worldwide in the quality, size and design of different hotels the classification systems vary from nation to nation. This often means that what one would expect from, say, a three-star hotel in one country may be very much under-achieved by a similarly-rated hotel in another. Five-star hotels, for example, are expected to have the very finest of every facility made available, from restaurants to spas and other amenities, a high ratio of staff to guest and a superior location. However, France – arguably the greatest supplier of fine hotels in the world – doesn’t even have a five-star rating as even the Ritz and similar “palaces” stick to the four-star rating to avoid heavy taxes! Not to worry, as President Sarkozy is coming to the rescue of holidaymakers in Europe at least…One of his goals is to standardise the hotel rating system to ensure fair judgement and balance decision making.

Broadly speaking, star ratings should break down something like this… five star hotels (or most four and all four star luxe in France) are, as mentioned above, expected to provide everything you need at any hour of the day or night, four stars should mean formality and quality but without the very height of opulence, three stars should mean good, clean service, two stars are generally privately-owned and forgiven their faults and one star should not be considered unless you’re desperate to get inside! There is only one record of a zero star hotel, which is a converted nuclear bunker in Switzerland. We would only recommend staying there in a “dire emergency/when you hear the three-minute warning!”

But can you ever trust these ratings if they are, at best, locally judged and, at worst, self-awarded? How can you guarantee that a luxury hotel really is aluxury hotel ? A number of bodies rate accommodation providers, including the AA, the RAC, the tourist boards of various nations and, of course, independent travel guides such as Michelin, Gault Millau and Mobil. But, we’ve all had experience of disagreeing with what we’ve read or even basing our choices on reviews which are dangerously out of date.

The two paths left to the discerning traveller on the hunt for the truth are as follows. The first is to cross-reference every piece of literature you can find on the subject of each hotel, comparing the reputation of the brand (if applicable) with the designations for their rating and coming up with a fair picture of what kind of quality you are to expect. The second is so obvious that we need not even say it…Recommendations. Whether this comes from a friend or an agency doesn’t matter, as long as you trust the source. Agencies that specialise in luxury hotels and the upper end of splendour, base their reputations on customer satisfaction and separating exceptional establishments from the pretenders. As it’s in their financial interests that you are content with their choices, you’re almost certain to be directed to the experience you want, whether it’s a no- expense-spared five-star+ to the relaxed charm of a family-run chateau. To summarise, until the system changes, forget the stars and go with what you know you can trust. Or else be ready to “gets what you pay for”.