Hotels offer special rates for hurricane evacuees

Tourist cancellations open door for evacuees

SAN ANTONIO – As thousands of coastal residents seek refuge at shelters in San Antonio, local hotels are offering special rates for evacuees wanting a more comfortable stay in the Alamo City.

Jamie Abney, who arrived Thursday evening from South Padre Island, is waiting out Hurricane Harvey in comfort.

"We don't want to sit there and wait for that thing to turn into a category anything," Abney said while sipping on some complimentary coffee in the lobby of The St. Anthony Hotel.

With their coastal home boarded up, Abney's wife, daughter and two dogs are sleeping comfortably in their room.

Facing an evacuation order, Abney said they never considered a shelter.

"We just thought, 'We're going to come to St. Anthony's,' you know. If they have a room available, we're going to go there," Abney said.

The St. Anthony is one of several places in San Antonio offering deals exclusively for evacuees.

La Quinta, the Crocket, the Menger, and La Cantera are just some of the major hotels also catering to evacuees.

"We want to make sure everybody is safe, and they have a reason to get out, don't stay, get out," said Kelly Haynie of The St. Anthony Hotel.

Rates for the St. Anthony start at $125 a night, which attracted more than a dozen evacuees. Officials said rooms at other hotels are priced at around $100.

Richard Oliver of the tourism advocacy group Visit San Antonio said the hotel specials are actually a perfect storm for evacuees.

Because of the hurricane, many tourists canceled their trips to San Antonio, making for plenty of vacancies and low prices.

"They're in need, and they need a place to stay, and now because of the weather, we've got places for them to stay," Oliver said.

Some of the hotels are pet-friendly and many are sharing their offers through Facebook and other social media outlets.

Hotel_Brands_Toll_Free_Numbers.pdf by David Ibanez on Scribd

 

DOWNLOAD THE KSAT HURRICANE APP FOR APPLE iPHONE USERS HERE AND ANDROID USERS HERE.

Check out the latest satellite image and find out where Harvey is headed:

Download the KSAT Weather app for iPhone and Android 

Continued Weather Coverage

Stick with KSAT 12 News, your Weather Authority for the latest weather updates.

Remember, 'Turn Around, Don't Drown': Tips for staying safe while driving in the rain

Read more: CPS Energy offers power outage tips

-------------------------------------------------------

Download the KSAT 12 Weather app on your smartphone for the latest weather updates.

Click to download on iPhone OR click to download on an Android phone.

Keep up with the latest alerts from the KSAT Meteorologists with their Twitter stream below: