Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and it can be worth considering this option as part of a gap programme. Respect traditions
and be aware of your dress and manners as you could easily cause offence.
Hotels
If you've been on the move for several weeks and careful with the budget, you can find
your spirits are flagging from coping with the often spartan conditions in budget hotels,
hostels and the like.
A couple of days of comfort in a good hotel can be a worthwhile investment as a tonic, to
give you time out to sort your stuff, get some laundry done, have a decent shower and sleep
in a clean, comfortable bed before you set off again.
Most hotels around the world use the familiar one to five-star rating system, where five is
luxury and one is likely to be a fleapit! But the symbols used can be anything from stars,
diamonds and crowns to keys, suns, dots, rosettes and letters.
As with most things in life you get what you pay for, but prices will vary wildly depending
on whether you're in peak tourism season or off-peak, currency rates and the costs of living
in the country you're visiting, so you may be pleasantly surprised by the rates in some of
the better hotels and find you can stretch your budget without reaching breaking point. (If
you arrive late in the day don't forget to try to negotiate on fees. If rooms are empty you
may get a discounted rate.)
But equally, hotel ratings are done by human beings, and they can vary wildly depending
on who did them and which search engine you might have used. The best advice is to look
for reviews or ratings from ordinary hotel guests who have actually stayed in the hotel -
and slept in the beds!
There are several sources of independent information. Most of the travellers' guidebooks
have lists of hotels within the different price ranges, but you have to bear in mind that, par-
ticularly in the tourism and hospitality industries, things can change between the time of
printing and when you arrive.
If you want to check out a hotel while you're travelling, try
www.tripadvisor.com
What makes this site special is that it's all written by travellers from their own experiences
and it pulls no punches. There are millions of posts on just about every place or topic you
can think of, covering destinations all over the world - including some that might surprise
you, like the Middle East, (Saudi Arabia, Jordan, United Arab Emirates to name a few).
Useful websites for last-minute and affordable accommodation are:
'Bargain Rooms' -
www.roomauction.com
- you pay below the standard room rate by
making the hotel a discreet offer, 'bidding' for the room.
