welltraveledbrit

As an impoverished student I stayed at the Esmeralda about ten years ago. It was very cheap, very central and very eccentric. The bathroom was minute and nothing in the room matched...it was beyond "shabby chic"!

However, I enjoyed it at the time. We spent very little time in the room and loved both the location and the view.There was no service to speak of!

At the time there was nothing in the same price range...I don't remember the exact price anymore but for us to have stayed there it must have been cheap.

Would I stay there again...no not when I can afford something else. But at the time it fit the bill.

Joe_in_Silver_Spring

Hi Crhistina, Maybe I'm being a little hasty in saying all HIs in Europe are twins to their US counterparts, although that doesn't make me a hotel snob. I'm only familiar with two, in Liege and Bloomsbury in London. Those two would fit comfortably into any American suburb, but I'll take your word that there are others that are dissimilar. The other American hotels that I've tried abroad--a Hilton, a Sheraton, and most recently a Marriot in Cairo, did all fit the cookie cutter mold. That said, Euopean chains can be sterile as well.

The Grande Ecole was a 2 star when I stayed there, but I've noticed that it has moved up.