[nibbleshifter]

Often (a similar class of hotel) can be a fairly efficient use of resources.

In many cities (London, Dublin, etc) the price difference between shit tier and excellent hotels is marginal, and the excellent ones tend to be better located, leading to less travel/lost time.

The same can be applied to flights: taking the faster, business class ticket, direct flight with a flag carrier airline is often more economical in terms of "lost time" than using the budget airlines.