I don't either.

But I willingly pay more than $500 pppn to stay in a TENT in East Africa.

Go figure.

Leely, if the option is a tent or the grass then I'm with you.

While I don't go for expensive hotels, I *do* spend a lot of time in my room. I can't identify when people say "we just sleep there".

Especially touring in a major city, especially if traveling solo, I use my room as my home-away-from-home... to relax, have some wine, read a book, plan my day, watch local TV, etc.

if all one needs is a place to lay their heads...dormitory like hostels should be just FIIIIIIINE...

But not for me. I enjoy dithering in the morning...wake up, do my girly things, have a coffee or two...get dressed slowly and organized ... and after all, its vacation...vacating my normal life.

robjame,
I think you just want to hear an answer 'because I am rich and I can afford it'...am I right?

But then...how valuable is this answer going to be to you?

And gentlemen...about BMW vs Honda...please, let me correct you. BMW made of steel unlike any other vehicle and insurance actually DROPS when buying BMW because BMW has lowest rating of people DYING in a car due to accidents. Just FYI...

In 1972 I traveled around Europe one summer while I was in college. My total budget for the summer was $500. My two friends and I shared hotel rooms all over France, one big bed for my friend Ellen and me, and one small bed for our male friend. In some hotels, the bed was concave, and we met in the middle; in others it was convex, and we clung to the sides.

When we arrived in Paris, we went to the tourist office to look for a room. The lady asked what we were looking for and I said the least expensive room available. She sent us to the Hotel National, which apparently no longer exists, somewhere near Invalides. Our room was out back, fronting on an outdoor corridor with laundry strung across it.

I still have the pictures. I loved it.

Now I am interested in more luxurious accommodations. Maybe a little privacy. Space. A bathroom that you don't have to go outside to get to. Even, if it is available at a reasonable cost, some charm. Lately that has brought me to apartments, especially when traveling with my husband or kids.

I haven't spent more than €200 per night in Paris yet, but I could get there. I could start finding more and more things necessary for comfort.

These days, when Ellen and I share a hotel room, and thank goodness we still do that, we go to New York and stay in places with marble bathrooms and nice bars and health clubs and porters and flat screen TVs and CD players in the room. Also a great experience.

There are lots of ways to have fun.

Sporty cars like Bimmers are also DRIVING cars, while Hondae are for RIDING. Big difference (I own an Odyssey and an SLK230).

"To each his own.....but I love Target more than I like Macy's." Sometimes, so do I.

How do you think I got all that extra money to spend on that absolutely FABULOUS and EXPENSIVE air conditioned hotel room?

At least I can be assured that MY bedbugs have a little class.

I look for a very good rate on a better property, rather than simply a budget hotel. Having a nice place to stay is part of having a good travel experience. I can be a little less picky by myself, but a little extra is very much appreciated by my wife. :)

robjame, I'm of the opinion, simply stated...


To Each His Own


No two people travel exactly alike....ain't that great??

Stu T.

robjame- you wouldn't make a very good rich person!!!

Oh my. We spend more because the hotel (or bed and breakfast or chateau or villa)is a big part of the travel experience for us. Our days are leisurely: breakfast, often with our foreign hosts; museum going, followed by a wonderful lunch with wine, which means a little rest in the middle of the day, then out again for a concert, dinner, or walking, then back to read for an hour or two. So we DO spend a lot of time in our rooms, and it's worth every cent.

We don't go overboard most of the time, in my opinion. (We spend 180E in Rome and Venice 2 years ago, and will spend 165 E for a superior room at the Hotel du Pantheon in June.) But if I'm travelling all that way, and I have a beautiful bedroom space here at home, I want a beautiful room there. Just as important to me is that the room reflect the architectural heritage of the country, so we stayed in Florence in a gorgeous suite with frescoed, beamed ceilings, and I lay in the bed admiring them. Wow.

So I guess I wouldn't spend a lot for the Paris Hilton (not familiar with it - is it really nice?). Then again, I wouldn't spend it for the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Beach, either. But a little perfect hotel room in Venice like the Novecento? Oh yeah.

Status isn't necessarily about money. A scaling down of one's hotel room doesn't necessarily reflect a scaling down of one's self image. One can feel morally superior to all those shallow Paris Hilton patrons.

In short: If a hotel room is really only a place to stay in for so many people, then what's the reason for this thread?

Not terribly on topic, but I just find the idea of "Paris Hilton" being classy hilarious, in a very ironic sort of way.

I'm with Iwan2go - in many cases, the hotel is part of the experience. Sometimes it's a 5* luxury hotel sometimes it's charming B&B.

There are 4 of us, so we usually end up with 2 rooms - 1 for kids and 1 for us. We decided a couple of years ago (as the kids hit the pre-teen age) that the extra money was worth it...in terms of space, comfort, and privacy.

We also pay extra for location. We also try to be in the center of town - not a bus or subway-ride ride away. We want to be able to go back to the room to drop off packages or to take a rest in the mid-afternoon.

I want a clean, well-equipped room with A/C, a decent-sized bath, a mini-bar (or fridge), a TV with CNN or BBC, with a staff that can help me with restaurant reservations or in arranging a tour, and a nice view (if possible). And a small lounge or bar area is also nice (for a little night-cap once the kids are settled in).

When it was 4 to the room, I kept the price under $250 a night. Now, getting 2 rooms, I try to keep the price around $150 per room a night - but that doesn't always work. Sometimes we have to spend more to get what we want. Still - it's worth it.

its all about your personal style..some will pay for location,luxury,space,high profile,atmosphere..some like to vacation in a more luxurious accomadations than they live in.Some are the Donald.....I have stayed in $700 a night rooms (not a lot of downsides to it but also not worth the money))but that's not what makes me most comfortable..I like clean,small, quiet, unique, charming places with green space and a view that's convenient and has good service..you have to pay at least 200€ for that..and of course if you're rolling in it who cares...remember rich people dont like to talk about prices!!

What's wrong with Paris Hilton?

Ooops, meant to say What's wrong with THE Paris Hilton (HOTEL not the person)I stayed there once and loved it. Perhaps it was because of those German style goose down comforters and $30 room w/buffet breakfast a night.

The room in which I'd like to stay... much like the art I'd like to purchase... has always been priced at least 2-3 times what I'm really comfortable spending. Maybe, someday, I'll catch up to the lodging I'd really like to choose - - Villa Feltrinelli on Lake Garda, for example - - but the art I lust for will always be beyond my reach.

Simple esthetic beauty - - good design, use of color and form is a connection between the two. I don't own furniture that costs a year's salary (I'd love to take a year off and work with a designer, and amass a collection of really, really beautiful things) - - and that allows me to travel more- - but we don't havethe $400 bedroom set you can get at Value City Furniture either.

I stay in classier hotels (on occasion) because they more closely ressemble the surroundings I enjoy for my own world - - more than the Formule1 does.

If my world more closely ressembled the Ritz, I suspect I'd want to choose that as a baseline standard of lodging more frequently.

Best wishes,

Rex

When I go on vacation, the hotel is part of the experience. At least I want it to be.

Also, I want to be as comfortable, but preferably more comfortable than I am home. It is a vacation after all!
If you can afford it, why risk lumpy pillows, scratchy sheets, thin walls, tiny bathrooms, tripping over luggage, stained carpet, etc.
I prefer comfortable beds, pillows, and linens, room to relax, air conditioning, nice views, aesthetically pleasing decor, and even..... fluffy robes.

And I LOVE to shop at Target, too!