While we're on the subject of hotels, if you know how to use (or, more precisely, exploit) Priceline, its an INCREDIBLE steal. I've only stayed in four star hotels ever since I started to regularly use the site (about six years ago), and I've never had to pay more than $100+tax (average price, around $70 a night for 4 star)- and often MUCH less. The lowest ever was actually for a Fleetwood Mac show I traveled to, in Madison, WI. Stayed at the same hotel as the band in a huge room overlooking the lake for $42+tax.
www.biddingfortravel.com is an excellent resource. If you travel a lot, you MUST educate yourself on this. I wouldn't do 10% of the traveling that I do if I couldn't use Priceline.