When we’re just traveling from point A to point B and need a place to flop for the night, our requirements are simple: Clean, comfortable, quiet, and convenient. Cheap doesn’t hurt, either. Free Wi-Fi is essential, especially for blog and email purposes. Complementary companion animals, i.e., insects, are NOT welcome. We once stayed at a motel in Waterton, Alberta (just north of Glacier National Park) where the room was infested with mosquitoes. My nephew and his wife were besieged by bedbugs when they stayed at a hotel in Tampa.
When we’re staying somewhere for a longer period of time, amenities are useful. Most of the time we’re out and about, so we don’t need anything fancy. We never use room service. Having a complementary breakfast is good, but not essential. An indoor pool is helpful, especially when I was training for triathlons. One year we went to Harrison Hot Springs for Memorial Day weekend and I was able to swim indoors and outdoors in naturally-heated pools.
We occasionally stay at bed and breakfasts in unfamiliar areas to have local guidance about things to do and see. I mentioned in an earlier post the wonderful B&B we stayed in during our trip to France in June. We’ve also stayed at B&B’s in remote places such as Jasper National Park in Canada and Bozeman, Montana. Sometimes B&B’s come with the right kind of complementary companion animals: cats and dogs.
I’ve never been a fan of all-inclusive resort hotels. I stayed at one outside Orlando for a conference once and developed claustrophobia. The hotel and the grounds were literally under a bubble. I didn’t rent a car on that trip, so I couldn’t escape. It made the travel reimbursement easier because everything was on one bill, but I’d rather have some opportunity to explore between talks and poster sessions–or at least have a meal at a local restaurant.
Finding accommodations on the road can be a crapshoot, even if you limit yourself to chain hotels. We try to make reservations well in advance for popular locations like San Francisco or Washington or for holiday weekends. We take advantage of reviews on TripAdvisor and other sites to winnow down our options. For the Nyack part of this trip, many hotels in the area were booked solid. The hotel we wound up staying at was a wedding factory. They hosted guests for at least three receptions and one high school reunion on Saturday. Fortunately, our room was far away from the reception halls so I could sleep.
The most important consideration in choosing a hotel is how you spend your time on the road. If you enjoy the full-service treatment, a resort hotel may suit you better than it does us. People with kids need different amenities than singles. If you get around in a wheelchair, you should make sure that the hotel can accommodate your needs prior to making a reservation. If you express your lodging needs during the reservation process, you’ll be able to select a hotel that will work for you. Enjoy the trip!
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