Named after singer/songwriter Gram Parsons, this quaint bed and breakfast in Tampa is as kitsch as they come.
A favourite with troubadours and travelling musicians looking for a kooky stop-off on the road, the hippy-trippy owner insists you call an hour before arrival so he can give you a proper welcome.
Housed in two cutesy cottages, each room has its own musical theme and a comment book so guests can add decorating tips. My favourite touches are the real musical instruments that line the walls, and cassette player and book to teach you about your room’s style of music.
You can take your pick from a full score of ‘genres’ from Country Music to the Blues Room, or upgrade to the ‘Adventure Room’, a stand alone cabin-cum-tree-house with a skylight for star-gazing.
Let the novelty continue with a night in the Train Room – a sleeper car that has been converted into a co-ed dorm, or rustle up some grub in the ‘I Love Lucy’ Kitchen.
More dive bar than the Hard Rock Hotel, there’s a BYOB ‘Parson’s Pub’ where cats laze around on the veranda and strains of folk and reggae fill the air.
Wannabe rock-stars can spend an evening in the playboy-grotto-esque Jacuzzi, surrounded by an overgrown garden of waterfalls, palm trees and vines.
www.grams-inn-tampa.com/index.htm
www.hostelbookers.com/hostels/usa/tampa/5096/
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