Accommodations Worldwide
The following is a listing of some of the hotels, B&Bs, etc., in which ITN readers have stayed over the past year or so (outside of North America and the Caribbean) plus restaurants or sights nearby. Prices are those paid at the time of the visit and conversion rates are approximate.
When writing to ITN about accommodations, always include the PRICES and addresses/locations, along with the date (month/year) of your visit. Also, please state whether the price is per person or per room and, if it is per room, whether it’s for a double or single room. Thank you.
Europe
On our return from a trip to Brittany in 2004, we stopped in PARIS, Aug. 31-Sept. 3. We found the Best Western Premier Hotel l’ Horset Opera (18 rue d’Antin, Paris, France, FR-75002; phone 33 1 44 71 87 00, fax 33 1 42 66 55 54 or visit www.bestwestern.com) ideal for our purposes. The Musée d’Orsay, the Louvre and the Tuileries Gardens are within walking distance. Les Halles and the Pompidou Center are about a 15-minute walk away.
We had a very comfortable room with a full bath en suite for €234 ($303). A large breakfast buffet was included.
Within sight of the entrance of the hotel is Restaurant St. Lawrence, where we had an excellent 3-course dinner of steak and lamb chops, dessert and wine for €54 ($70).
A 10-minute walk away, on a narrow side street off the Opera, was Bennett Restaurant (40 place du Marché St. Honoré), a small sidewalk café and dining room. The first night there, my wife had the best scallops she has ever eaten and I had filet mignon. With dessert and wine, our meal came to €54. The next night we tried their €17 ($22) special: a choice of four first courses, six main courses and four desserts, wine included. Outstanding!
— WALTER H. HUSE, Ft. Meyers, FL
The Carlton Hotel (7/9 rue de Strasbourg, Luxembourg City L-2561, LUXEMBOURG; phone [352] 29 96 60, fax [352] 29 96 64, e-mail carlton@pt.lu or visit www.carlton.lu) offers a fine combination of friendly service, good value and rooms that are clean, quiet and comfortable.
This recently renovated hotel is located on a side street less than a 5-minute walk from Gare Centrale. A supermarket and several restaurants are located nearby. From the hotel, it’s about a 10-minute walk to the city’s Old Town.
On a visit May 10-12, ’05, we were welcomed by the friendly and multilingual proprietor, who offered us refreshing glasses of orange juice as we checked in after a long flight and train ride. We were offered a choice of a regular-size room with a double bed or a larger room with adjacent twin beds for the same price. We chose the larger room. It was nicely furnished and had several large windows that opened. There appeared to be no air-conditioning, but that wasn’t a problem during our stay.
The hearty breakfast was a highlight of our stay. As guests arrived for breakfast, the sociable proprietor chatted with them in their language and presented them with a newspaper in the same language. The other guests spoke French, German and Italian.
As the only Americans (and the only native English speakers) in the hotel, we rated a pitcher of orange juice each morning (other guests started with single glasses) along with a copy of the International Herald Tribune. Eggs boiled to order, various sliced meats and cheeses, and breads were served along with coffee and tea. Rather than the typical buffet, we were served at our table in the sunny breakfast room.
Our cost was €90 ($115) per night, including breakfast and all taxes and services.
— STEPHEN O. ADDISON, Jr., Charlotte, NC
From the July ’05 issue, page 55, Peter Rugh continues with his account of a November ’04 trip he and his wife, Debbie, took to ITALY.
Ravenna, on the Adriatic coast, is known for its mosaics dating back to the sixth century. The town is often just a day stop for tour groups, which flood the city during the season. Because it includes our “just about the most favorite restaurant in the world” (e-mail us at edithstreet@comcast.net and we’ll tell you about it), we stretched the stay to three days and two nights.
Our hotel, Hotel Bisanzio (Via Salara 30, Ravenna 48100, Italy; phone 0544 217111, fax 0544 32539, e-mail info@bisanziohotel.com or visit www.bisanziohotel.com), was pretty much business-visitor oriented but in a prime location. $200 per night.
• Spello, a hill town about six miles from Assisi, was our next stop for two nights. It is often referred to as Assisi’s little sister, being similar in structure and appearances but much smaller.
It took us two trips on the narrow one-way street that runs through the town to find our hotel, but it was well worth the adventure. Hotel Palazzo Bocci (Via Cavour 17, Spello, Perugia 6038, Italy; phone 0742 651277; fax 0742 301464, e-mail bocci@bcsnet.it or visit www.italyby.com/bocci) cost $170 per night.
In Spello, the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore has the Cappella Baglioni, frescoed by Pinturicchio, making it worth the visit. The Church of Saint Andre, directly across the street from our hotel, had more frescoes and a Giotto crucifix, but it was closed for repairs.
Although we ran into our first rain in Spello, we did a short visit to Assisi, where we were pleased to visit St. Francis’ Basilica, both lower and upper, and see that the devastating damage from the 1997 earthquake was not apparent.
• We were excited to return to our next stop, Poppi (86 miles north of Spello and 35 miles southeast of Florence), where we had attended the language school Centro di Cultura Italiana Casentino (phone 0575 527333 or visit www.parlital.net) several weeks a year for three years.
This international school is highly recommended for serious Italian language students at all levels. Small classes, according to students’ skills, are held in the morning, and there are field trips, including lunches at various typical restaurants, in the afternoon. It is a very comfortable, relaxing way to spend time in a small town and learn Italian. (Barely anyone speaks English.)
• The school was not in session during our trip, but we visited friends and businesses and had a wonderful dinner with staff and instructors at our hotel, Albergo Ristorante La Torricella (Torricella 14 -16, Ponte a Poppi; phone 0575 527045, fax 0575 527046, e-mail info@latorricella.com or visit www.latorricella.com). $84 per night.
— PETER RUGH, Berkeley, CA
Next time: Lucca, Camogli and Malpensa.
Hotel Cinque Terre (via IV Novembre 21, 19016 Monterosso al Mare, La Spezia, ITALY; phone 0187-817-543, fax 0187-818-380, e-mail info@hotelcinqueterre.com or visit www.hotelcinqueterre.com) — just steps away from the sandy beach.
At this 3-star, family-owned hotel, each room is furnished with a private bath, international phone service and cable TV. We had a comfortable, large room at €120-€140 ($159-$185) for double occupancy (June ’04). Full breakfast buffet.
There is a large living room and bar in the reception area plus a 2-level garden patio. The management speaks English very well and offers superb service with a genuine concern for your comfort.
The town is situated right on the rail lines, with convenient connections to the entire Ligurian coastline and direct service to Rome and Genoa.
We have never had a more pleasant hotel experience. It was well worth the splurge.
— RON HEIMLICH, San Diego, CA
With more cruise ships docking at and departing from Genoa (plus with this city’s renewed interest in spiffing up its Old City and attracting visitors to its new Genoa Aquarium), you might be looking for a good-quality hotel near the port and train station at a moderate price. Consider Hotel Agnello d’Oro (Via Monachette 6, Genoa, ITALY; phone +39-010246 2084, fax +39-010246 2327 or visit www.hotelagnellodoro.it). I booked through their website.
This is a 3-star hotel located near the intersection of Via Monachette and the main street of Balbi. The main train station (Principe) is a 3-minute walk from the hotel along Balbi, and taxi fare to the cruise ship terminal was €7 ($10).
For my stay on May 19, ’05, the price for a single was €60 ($75). I chose a room on the top floor and was rewarded with views over the city to the port, though slowly ascending and descending the five floors in a creaky, single-person elevator took patience.
Don’t miss the breakfast buffet (included in the room rate). From the fresh-squeezed blood-orange juice to the chocolate torte, this was the most interesting cold buffet I’ve ever sampled.
• Two doors away from the hotel was Antica Trattoria Lupo (Via Monachette 20/R; phone 01026 7036). Lupo’s lunch (my main meal of the day) included a well-served and leisurely 4-course meal, with an entrée of calamari and, for dessert, tarte tatin with vanilla ice cream, plus wine, for €40 ($50).
— NANCY S. TARDY, Henderson, NV
Pacific
On our independent trip to NEW ZEALAND in May ’05, we were amazed at the many reasonably priced accommodations that were also conveniently located. One that stands out is the Victoria Motel (10 Victoria St., Rotorua, North Island, New Zealand; phone 0064 07 348 4039, fax 0064 07 348 8298, e-mail victoria-motel@xtra.co.nz or visit www.victoriamotel.co.nz).
A microwave, dishes and a hot pot were included with the immaculate room, and each unit had its own thermally heated hot tub. The price for the queen room was NZ$105 (US$73). Our gracious hosts, Prue and Alan, even met us at the bus station and helped us plan our sightseeing in the area.
I would be happy to pass along some helpful tips and other accommodations for anyone planning an independent trip to New Zealand. We had a fabulous trip, and it was very easy to travel there on our own. You can e-mail me at kalindo@aol.com.
— KATY DOTEN, Miami, FL
We have traveled to NEW ZEALAND each February for six straight years. We stay mostly in B&Bs and have probably sampled close to 100 of them. The absolute gem of the lot is the following, where we have stayed three times, most recently Feb. 16-18, ’05.
Karamea Beachfront Farmstay B&B (Karamea RD 1, Westport, New Zealand SH67; phone/fax 64 3 782 6762, e-mail farmstay@xtra.co.nz or visit www.westcoastbeach accommodation.co.nz).
This farmstay is almost at the end of the road in the northwest corner of New Zealand’s South Island. The scenery is awe-inspiring.
There is a 6-mile deserted beach across the road for walking, riding, jogging or fishing. Tracks and trails abound, including the famed Heaphy Track great walk. You can tour the dairy farm on 4-wheelers or help milk a cow. You can view the famed caves where prehistoric bones of moa and other bird species have been found.
NZ$120-$150 (US$86-$107) for bed and breakfast, with bath en suite. Two rooms are available. Dinner is NZ$40 (US$29). The food is homegrown and magnificent.
— WAYNE & MONICA THOMAS, Woden, ACT, Australia
Kingscote is the largest town on Kangaroo Island, AUSTRALIA. Just a 5-minute walk from town are the Acacia Apartments (3-5 Rawson St., Kingscote, S.A. 5223, Australia; phone/fax [618] 8553 0088 or visit www.acacia-apartments.com.au).
The apartment where I stayed sleeps five in its spacious 2-bedroom/one-bathroom layout. There is a well-appointed kitchen, a sitting room with TV/VCR and a patio complete with that very Australian accessory, a barbecue grill.
Upon our arrival, we were given fresh milk and bread to complement the coffee/tea, jams/butter and cereal items ready for our first breakfast in the Elizabeth Beare Apartment. (All apartments are named for famous islanders. Elizabeth, age two, was given the honor of “first to set foot on the island” when the colonists landed in 1836.)
Other amenities on the property include lovely landscaped gardens, a washer/dryer facility (Aus$2) and a playground area. Videos and paperback books can be borrowed for free at the front desk. The real treat, however, is the indoor pool and Jacuzzi. After a long day of hiking the windy shores of Seal Bay, we could think of nothing finer than a good hot soak.
Cozy and charming like your favorite auntie’s house, the Acacia Apartments is a great choice for families, a group of friends or two couples traveling together.
The rates vary according to the number of people, nights and bedrooms. However, here are some samples at the time of our stay in June ’05 (the price is for the entire apartment): 2-bedroom apartment for four people for two nights, Aus$494 (US$382); three nights, Aus$741 (US$573), and four nights, Aus$988 (US$764). . . and a one-bedroom apartment for two people for two nights, Aus$430 (US$332); three nights, Aus$645 (US$499), and four nights, Aus$860 (US$665).
In addition, Deidre, the Acacia Apartments’ owner and operator, offers island tours. Kangaroo Island 4WD Designer Tours (see contact information shown above) provides full-day nature expeditions for groups of one to four people. Included are morning tea, lunch with wine, all national park entrance fees, tour guide, gratuities and door-to-door pickup/dropoff. An all-day tour starts at Aus$275 (US$212) per person, and room/tour packages are available.
— JENNIFER M. EISENLAU, Boulder, CO