Big brand name hotels are usually the first thought, when booking vacation accomodation. They’re great to enjoy a relaxed break. But what if you want something different? You can try a stay in a boutique hotel. They offer the same amenities as a chain hotel and more.
If you are looking for a place that offers a bed with friendly hospitality with a feeling of home, then what you are looking for is a boutique hotel. What is a boutique hotel? It is a hotel that is designed in a certain way, designed to a certain theme to give its hotel guests a welcoming feeling.
Most early boutiques started out life in historic buildings. These antique estates where then modernized. All the technological modern conveniences where added. Widescreen tv’s, wireless internet, satellite tv. Room service is added in as well.
Owners of larger boutique hotels, rooms in the double digits and more, may install a fitness center, swimming pool and spa for their guests. Some hotels have an upper deck where guests/visitors can enjoy a meal while looking out at the countryside. They usually have a restaurant and bar on the lower floor/lobby area for guests to take pleasure in as well.
Besides providing all of these amenities, how can a boutique hotel stand out among the high competition of the Holiday Inn, Ramada Limited and even Super 8 Motel? These hotels usually have the same kind of motif but the boutique hotels strive to do something more. Owners have boutique hotels use catchy themes to grab the attention of its guests. Some hotel owners will use the theme of where their hotel is located at, others will use an era or time period to create a unique experience.
While many hotels use their surroundings to come up with a theme, some boutique hotels stick with a time period. One such place is New Orleans. However, there are other places including a hotel in San Francisco. Hotel Union Square has a Prohibition era theme in its rooms and halls. Each room and hallway has a black granite and cream travertine tile.
Remember there are boutique hotels all across the world. While they are plenty in the United States, cities across the world that have them include: Paris, Cannes, Istanbul and Seville. Each hotel in each of these cities has something different to present its guests.
If you find a boutique hotel you are interested in staying in, you should realize that a short notice reservation is likely not going to work. Most boutique hotels have a limited amount of rooms. They average out around 25 to 50 rooms. There are some boutique hotels which have over 100 rooms and others that have only three or four rooms to stay in. These small number of rooms allow employees to get to know their guests. Be sure to put your reservation in as soon as you know when you will be leaving on your vacation/business trip.
While mainstream hotels offer plenty of extras, boutique hotels provide more. Even though most buildings are old, they are retrofitted for modern conveniences such as high speed Internet access, spas, swimming pools and even a fitness center. Boutique hotels, larger ones especially, will offer guests a bar and restaurant inside to enjoy.
Just this once, forget about the money, go ahead and spoil yourself. Your once in a lifetime trip may not be so memorable, unless of course you book an amazing boutique hotel.
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