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So close to the airport you can practically walk there.
155 Buell Road; tel: 585 436 2170
This small boutique hotel near the Forum is ideally situated for exploring central Rome. The owner and staff are very friendly and go out of their way to make your stay special. They recommended excellent restaurants for us that we would never have found on our own. We felt as if we were dining like real Romans in places of real style and character.
Via Cavour, around the corner from the Forum and around 1km from the railway station
A cheap, clean youth hostel with friendly staff. You can get free entrance from reception to get into some of the nightclubs. The hostel is also close to everything you need including the beach and Ocean Drive. I stayed there for two weeks and met some great people from around the world.
1438 Washington Avenue, on the corner of Española Way, South Beach, Miami; tel: (305) 534-2988; www.clayhotel.com/
The Long Hall has always been one of the most beautiful Victorian bars in Dublin, alongside the nearby Stags Head, but it’s characterless. The Brazen Head is just for tourists.
The only place left for a drink in Dublin, itself, is The Horseshoe Bar at The Shelbourne from 5pm on a Friday.
27 St Stephen's Green;
tel: International: +353 1 6727752; UK: 0800 912 0021; USA: 1800 869 4330
Excellent location and good value for money.
With the exception of the concierge who gave ridiculous prices for taxi and tickets to Thai boxing
2 Soi 5 Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok 10110; tel: 66 (0) 2255-2930; www.amari.com/boulevard
I am Irish but live in Australia. The last two times I have come back I have stayed in the North Star Hotel. I have to say that I have not yet been disappointed. The hotel is beside all the transport links so it is handy for getting around and the hotel bar has a heated beer garden, which is nice for a smoker like myself. The rooms are nice and comfortable and I would recommend it to any travellers.
Amiens Street, Dublin 1; tel: 836 3136
Free live Irish music seven nights a week, then continue the dancing in the downstairs club.
O'Connell Bridge, right on the Liffey; www.arlington.ie/
Self-catering flats right in the heart of Temple Bar with great views over Dublin. Prices start at 105 euros a night per flat. We stayed here in the height of summer and it was lovely to be able to sit on the balcony and look down at the bustle of Temple Bar. Noise wasn’t a problem either. Our two-bed flat was huge and included a sitting room, dining room, kitchen, a good sized bathroom and was well decorated. A good refuge in a great location.
A small independent hotel. I have been working in Dublin off and on for many years. When I go there I always get a great welcome like a returning son, the sort of welcome that Dublin people are famous for but you just don't get in the big hotels. There’s an interesting mix of people including backpackers and suits. Keep away from the quays if you want the real Dublin.
47/48 Lower Gardiner Street; tel: 878 8808; www.townhouseofdublin.com/index.html
The hotel is a former masonic school situated between the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) and the British Embassy. Great location for Lansdowne Road. All rooms (single/twin/double/family) are 99 euros per night. Breakfast is extra. The basement is given over to a restaurant, bar and lounge.
Merrion Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4; www.bewleyshotels.com
Great modern hotel. Amazing rooms, very clean and spacious, Very good breakfasts. Right by the Millennium Bridge and Temple Bar.
If you really want a treat try one of their corner penthouse rooms.
Though not much to look at from the outside (just a steel gated door leading up some stairs) the Backpackers Travellers Inn is THE place to be for the budget traveller. Located in the heart of Chinatown, near the markets of Petaling St, the BTI claims to be the first backpacker hostel in KL and provides all the usual hostel amenities, including tourist information and organised tours to the local Batu Caves, etc. These are supplemented by the wide range of local facilities, including banks, shops and the bizarrely named Despotic Salon. There's no curfew, and the rooftop bar (four or five storeys up) provides an excellent spot to meet fellow travellers and have a cool beer (this is all they sell) while looking out over Kuala Lumpur. A very welcoming and lively venue.
60b, 2nd floor, Jalan Sultan, Kuala Lumpur
If you've ever been stuck on the roof of a Cambodian boat with no sunscreen or hat, inhaling toxic exhaust fumes, and enduring this for over six hours, it's advisable to check into a hotel with air conditioning. A word of warning though: don't do what I did and check into the Walkabout Hotel.
Though it's close to a host of popular nightspots and has good amenities, the predatory working girls in the downstairs bar will not leave you alone. Unless you enjoy this sort of harassment, it's best to avoid the bar at all costs.
Corner of Streets 51 and 174
Cheap, clean, hotel located close to backpacker amenities. I paid 175 baht for a single fan room - pretty reasonable for the Khao San Road area of Bangkok. To say the room was Spartan would be an overstatement, but it and the shared bathrooms were clean and perfectly adequate for a short stay on a budget.
It's slightly away from Khao San Road so a bit quieter than some of the other hotels but still convieniently close to the action.
Behind the wat (temple) opposite the tourist police station at the non-Burger King end of the Khao San Road.
Modern hotel in old traditional area of Smithfield but only a ten-minute walk from all of city centre attractions. Spacious and colourful rooms, many with great views over Smithfield market area. Attractive local pubs, and area is undergoing regeneration. Excellent midweek rates.
Smithfield - on Luas Red Line. Adjacent to Jameson Distillery.
Fast, friendly and affordable service from Spain to Tangiers (or 'Tanger'). The day-trips are inevitably formulaic, with set routes round the old city of Tangiers, but led by well-informed and interesting guides. Even if this is a digression from your travel in Spain, try to fit in the FRS package of one night's stay in Tangiers, which is amazingly cheap and lets you make your own way around the old city and find true bargains in the markets and shops.
FRS Iberia S.L. Estación Maritima P.O. / Aptdo. de correos, 13 11380 Tarifa - Cádiz Booking Tel.: +(34) 956 68 18 30 Fax: +(34) 956 62 71 80 e: info@frs.es w: www.frs.es
Very centrally located hotel, and great value compared to other four-star places. It has a fab retro Turkish bath (the first ever opened in Argentina), a beautiful lobby, a distinguished history (García Lorca stayed here when he visited Buenos Aires) and delicious breakfasts.
www.castelarhotel.com.ar
Avenida de Mayo 1152
Google map: tinyurl.com/ktg5nq
A new boutique hotel in Palermo Viejo, with cool owners, great facilities and an amazing swimming pool and garden.
www.homebuenosaires.com, Honduras 5860
If you want to stay on a ranch within easy travelling distance of BA I really recommend La Bamba. Fantastic food (huge barbecue every lunchtime), pool, horse riding. Incredibly friendly hosts (and guests when we were there). They can arrange transfers from BA and vegetarian food! Near San Antonio de Areco.
www.la-bamba.com.ar
Google map: tinyurl.com/ljtnfc
It's an agency that provides apartment rental in BA - well worth it if you are staying in the city for more than seven days. As with most capitals, hotels are expensive here and you get greater freedom having your own place, as well as it being more cost affective.
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