THE SKINNY ON FLATS

Many companies spend so much time focused on skyrocketing airfares that they overlook how quickly lodging costs have spiraled. Consider a two-night stay in a major city, add breakfast, taxes and incidentals (phone charges, dry cleaning, Internet access), and suddenly, the price of those two nights easily eclipses the airfare. And that's presuming you can get a room. The squeeze is still on in cities like Chicago, New York and London, which despite a rash of new hotel openings still have occupancies in the 90-100% range nine months out of the year. Plan a business trip at the last minute and you could be in for an unpalatable surprise in terms of price, aesthetics and location.

Big companies caught in the price/availability pinch have the clout to negotiate preferred rates and guaranteed availability with major chains, but smaller companies and individual travelers do not. But they do have an interesting option: the apartment hotel. Apartment hotels typically offer most, if not all, of the amenities youd expect from a hotel: concierges, daily maid service, minibars, room service, and fitness facilities, plus several features hotels usually do not have: full kitchens and a living/dining room that can double as an office.

For many travelers, the appeal of an apartment grows as the length of a stay does, when eating out has long lost its allure, and youd prefer a simple meal or pot of coffee you can make yourself without the rigmarole of calling down for room service, waiting for 45 minutes, then signing an outrageous bill made more injurious by tax plus room service fee plus tip. An apartment is also a cost-efficient and humane way to keep costs down when travelers are required to double up with a colleague and would prefer to maintain privacy in quarters closer than a shared office cubicle. It's a space-efficient option as well, allowing you to spread out your work on the dining room table rather than on your bed or hotel-room desk. And if you want to entertain or hold a small meeting and the rates for a suite at an attractive hotel are simply too outrageous, an apartment can be a workable option.

Finding apartment hotels is fairly easy on the Web. One of the best resources is <www.citysearch.com >, which lists apartment hotel representation firms as well as individual properties in the accommodations section of each destination Citysearch covers. You can also find apartments through the GDSs (the huge travel supplier databases, like Galileo, that travel agents use). Just ask about extended-stay possibilities, and the list, depending on your destination, could be fairly lengthy.

The extended stay list is likely to begin with Residence Inns by Marriott, which first entered this market segment to appeal to business travelers on lengthy assignments, in training programs, or in the midst of relocation. But there's a healthy demand from transient business travelers as well, especially those who bring families, pets or co-workers. The Residence Inn website <www.residenceinn.com> lists how many suites and meeting rooms there are in each property, driving directions, which company's corporate offices are located nearby, and where local businesses (Kinko's, Office Depot, FedEx) and attractions are. While all Residence Inns look different, depending on the location and franchisee, they all offer free breakfast, two-line phones with dataport and voicemail, full kitchens, exercise room, weekly barbecues and other social events designed to create a feeling of community among guests. Prices vary too, but it's not unusual to get an apartment for less than $100 a night. Prices go down the longer the stay. For details call 800-331-3131or visit the web site.

Execustay <www.execustay.com>, also part of Marriott, has a different alternative for stays at least one month: apartments furnished and customized to client's specificationsCand that includes details like frequency of housekeeping, how many phone lines and answering machines you want, whether you want a washer and dryer in your unit, or whether you need a business center on the premises. Another interesting perk: guests receive Marriott Rewards for their stays. ExecuStay can locate and set up a fully furnished, customized corporate housing residence with 24 hours' notice in over 200 cities in the United States, Toronto and London. For more info: (888) 840-7829.

Other sources of apartment hotels include:

Foxtons Worldwide <www.foxtonsworldwide.com> offers access to more than 400,000 apartments in more than 2,000 U.S. cities and in a few major cities abroad. The flats range from studios to 4-bedrooms, and all come with premium linens, free local telephone, TV, VCR and cable television service, and parking. The optional home office package includes a multi-line phone, fax machine, IBM compatible printer, solar-powered calculator, stapler, stationery and office supplies!

Worldwide Apartments <www.mtaint.co.uk>, which has a portfolio of 300,000 private serviced apartments, has rates starting at about US$120 per person per night. The flats are in major cities as well as what the company calls Aless obvious@ destinations: Hamilton, Colombo, Gadong, Guangzhou, and Whistler. The website has a clever ALast Minute Deals@ section where apartments can be booked at up to 50% off the usual price. Another nifty feature: the free call-back system. Leave your phone number on an e-mail message, note the relative urgency of your apartment need, specify a convenient time, and a reservations agent will do the legwork for you and call you at the appointed hour.

Soon to debut is a website called <www.nothotels.com>, which claims to link travelers to 300,000 serviced apartments in 1,500 destinations. The site is expected to go live sometime soon; in the meantime visitors are directed to Foxtons Worldwide.