web of dreams - finding the right hotel
June 30th 2008 00:33
I love to travel. I guess you do too, if you are reading a travel blog. The other thing I like to do is plan my travel. It's an obsession, to be honest.
Last year I took a two week trip by myself to England, France and Italy. The chance to travel alone, after looking after small children for six years, was possibly the most exciting adventure I could think of.
I wish I could go back now and calculate the hours I spent on the internet, in the two months before I left. There was so much riding on that trip - having a bad time was not an option. I wanted every hotel to be a perfect combination of charm, quality, individuality and value for money. And with most of my time spent in Paris and Venice, that was never going to be easy.
It would be fair to say I did exhaustive research, to find perfect Parisian and Venetian hotels. I found Frommers a good starting point, using it's rating system to locate the highest rated hotel for my budget (about $150 AUD per night). Then I would look for at least three other independent verifications of the same hotel. This could be Tripadvisor or Timeout or local sites. This was all before I contacted the hotels to check for vacancies or specific requests. I estimate I spent close to 30 hours per city, researching hotels, restaurants and other travel information.
The Hotel I chose in Paris, the Grand Hotel de L'Univers, is in Saint Germain des Pres. It has 34 rooms, is located on a small street in a beautiful area and is near two metro stations. My room was small, as are most rooms in Paris, but it was everything I expected and more. The marble bathroom was stunning and the view onto the narrow cobbled street was exactly what I dreamed of.
In Venice, the Pensione Accademia was even better. My search this time was for a room with a guaranteed canal view. Many hotels wouldn't promise the view. The Pensione Accademia is in the old Villa Maravege, right near the famous art museum, the Gallerie dell'Accademia in the Dosoduro area. The Pensione has it's own wharf, which is great for an early morning water taxi to the airport. My room looked straight out onto a small calle (canal) that joined up with the Grand Canal. Downstairs there was a bar, where drinks and snacks would appear each night, as well as breakfast in the mornings.
I spent hours looking out my window, imagining one day living in this city surrounded by water, and I admit, congratulating myself on my excellent choice of hotels!
Last year I took a two week trip by myself to England, France and Italy. The chance to travel alone, after looking after small children for six years, was possibly the most exciting adventure I could think of.
I wish I could go back now and calculate the hours I spent on the internet, in the two months before I left. There was so much riding on that trip - having a bad time was not an option. I wanted every hotel to be a perfect combination of charm, quality, individuality and value for money. And with most of my time spent in Paris and Venice, that was never going to be easy.
It would be fair to say I did exhaustive research, to find perfect Parisian and Venetian hotels. I found Frommers a good starting point, using it's rating system to locate the highest rated hotel for my budget (about $150 AUD per night). Then I would look for at least three other independent verifications of the same hotel. This could be Tripadvisor or Timeout or local sites. This was all before I contacted the hotels to check for vacancies or specific requests. I estimate I spent close to 30 hours per city, researching hotels, restaurants and other travel information.
The Hotel I chose in Paris, the Grand Hotel de L'Univers, is in Saint Germain des Pres. It has 34 rooms, is located on a small street in a beautiful area and is near two metro stations. My room was small, as are most rooms in Paris, but it was everything I expected and more. The marble bathroom was stunning and the view onto the narrow cobbled street was exactly what I dreamed of.
In Venice, the Pensione Accademia was even better. My search this time was for a room with a guaranteed canal view. Many hotels wouldn't promise the view. The Pensione Accademia is in the old Villa Maravege, right near the famous art museum, the Gallerie dell'Accademia in the Dosoduro area. The Pensione has it's own wharf, which is great for an early morning water taxi to the airport. My room looked straight out onto a small calle (canal) that joined up with the Grand Canal. Downstairs there was a bar, where drinks and snacks would appear each night, as well as breakfast in the mornings.
I spent hours looking out my window, imagining one day living in this city surrounded by water, and I admit, congratulating myself on my excellent choice of hotels!
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