Although the Hyatt in general might be considered to be more at the luxury end of things, the rates we got at the TF Green hotel were in line with other affordable hotels.
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I think that would just make things confusing. And the line between luxury and affordable is highly subjective.
It's done already. I think it's called luxury, business, budget. Each big chain has about ten brands. Choice Hotels range from budget to business. Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt range from business to luxury. If there's a bathtub it's either luxury or randomly super budget?? I still go by the one-to-five star system, but some sites don't use that correctly. I think it means amenities, not quality of execution or location.
With roadside budget chain motels sometimes commanding $300 a night and downtown convention hotels usually less on weekends, that has never been a more accurate statement.
A different thread attempted to make comparisons between the cost of booking a bedroom on a long-distance train and the cost of making that same trip in a private auto. What with the current cost of gas, lodging, and meals, the auto trip, IMHO, could end up costing about the same as the bedroom or maybe even more.
Pretty much any of the Texas towns along the TE's route from San Antonio on north would do for a stopping point. And city buses (with stops near Amtrak and near hotels) would be adequate for transportation between station and hotel. "Reasonably priced" to me would be anything $200/night or less (although the best I could find near the Emeryville station when we were considering a CZ trip last year was just over $300).
Don't know if either are far enough south for your trip but both Dallas and Fort Worth have decent hotels within walking distance. It has been awhile but for attending conventions near Dallas Union I've stayed at the adjacent Hyatt Regency and a nearby Marriott/Bonvoy property which I can't remember at the moment. There is (or was) a LaQuinta within a couple of blocks. Fort Worth has the excellent Worthington (Marriott) nearby and an Aloft (Marriott) about two blocks away. Your arrival and departure would be in daylight, minimizing safety concerns.
I tried looking up hotel prices in Dallas & Ft. Worth near Amtrak this morning, and spotted several places with rooms in the $200-$230 range, which is a lot closer to what the hubby & I would consider "reasonable" prices. The hubby approved the idea of getting off at Dallas/Ft. Worth when I mentioned the hotel prices, and leaving/boarding the train during daylight hours would make us both feel more comfortable. Will try booking the October trip after work today!
Another idea in lieu of Austin:
Although there are 2 Hotels across the Street from Union Station( La Quinta and a Marriott Property/ I have stayed in both), there is a High Rise a few blocks from Union Station that used to be the Tallest Building in Dallas when it was the HDQS of Magnolia Oil( now Exxon/Mobil).
If the hubby and I were a few decades younger, we might consider a hostel (I stayed in them a few times on European trips in college), but not in our 60s. I looked up the La Quinta which @Bob Dylan had suggested in Dallas, but unfortunately it's now a Holiday Inn Express, and charging in excess of $600 for a single night (assuming I was reading the rates on their website correctly). That makes the Hampton Inn in Fort Worth (a chain I've stayed at before elsewhere, and at which I can earn Hilton Honors points) a more attractive option, despite being a block further away from the Ft. Worth train station than the Holiday Inn Express is from the Dallas station.
Simple solution: If someone wants to be extra helpful put a rough dollar amount and let the reader decide if that means it's affordable or luxurious.
These days Marwood prices their budget brands (like Fairfield) as if they were mid-range or luxury locations leaving a giant hole where their "value" options used to be. There are still reasonable deals to be found, but you need to be willing to book local and regional hotels to find most of those deals.
Google up the Hostel International on Congress ( close to Michigan Avenue).
It's not just Chicago. This is the new normal almost everywhere I travel. We've seen consolidation of owning and managing companies, a lot of cities converted cheaper hotels into housing for homeless people, and the post-pandemic travel market is super hot. Sometimes you can save money with points but that only lasts until the points run out. The best advice I can give is traveling during low and shoulder seasons for the only remaining discounts.
