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Elegant boutique guesthouse and restaurant in the most unspoiled part of Turkey. The interior design is exquisite, rooms are comfortable and the food rivals that in any of the best restaurants I have eaten at in Paris, London, Istanbul, Melbourne or New York. The price is very reasonable considering the excellent quality.
La Seguiriya is a delightful little guesthouse owned (and run with considerable warmth) by flamenco singer Paco Moyano and his wife.
Six comfortable, well-appointed rooms are dotted around an 18th-century townhouse. Downstairs, there's a lounge area/bar and an excellent restaurant. Best of all, though, is the extensive terrace area out the back, which boasts stunning views of the town's famous gorge.
www.laseguiriya.com
+34 958 36 08 01
A good travel accommodation motto is "never settle for less than what you have at home." Staying at Acorn House doesn't compromise that maxim; indeed, it's better than staying at home due to the enthusiasm and professionalism of its staff to help you get the most from your holiday. Acorn House was originally built for the the Editor of the Cape Times, early in the 20th century and was converted to its present form about 10 years ago. It's full of original features and sits high above Montrose Avenue, looking down across Cape Town and Table Bay. The Manager, Stewart (ably assisted by Jade), was incredibly helpful with advice on what to do, where to go and eat, where to park, etc. We had an excellent room on the ground-floor, with our own terrace next to the herb garden. There's a plunge pool if the heat gets too much, and a beautiful terrace for taking afternoon tea and breakfast. The latter was the best we had in South Africa with an extensive buffet and a daily-changing hot dish. The area is very quiet and it's close enough to the city centre to walk to restaurants on Kloof Street etc. The good thing about staying in a guest house is that you have more interaction with your fellow guests than you would staying in a hotel - we picked up lots of tips about Cape Town and other places on our itinerary. We had a great time and can't recommend Acorn House enough.
1 Montrose Avenue, Oranjezicht, Cape Town 8001
Tel: +27 21 461 1782
www.acornhouse.co.za
Google map: tinyurl.com/yc8wwze
Mykonos oozes chic, but this cute and quirky guesthouse is an oasis of affordable, but comfortable, rooms amongst the boutique hotels and super-luxe villas.
Perched on a hillside, the guesthouse is located above the School of Fine Arts, and is solar-powered. So far, so Mykonos.
But inside it's a far less trendy affair, a jumble of cosy rooms with traditional whitewashed walls and splashes of bright decor.
With a pretty terraced garden, sweet sleepy cafe and rooms opening out to the sea, the location is peaceful but only a few steps into the town center.
The lovely owners will offer to pick you up from the airport, and you can hire bikes to explore the surrounding countryside.
Perfect for a laid back and romantic island escape.
School of Fine Arts, Mykonos Island, Cyclades, Greece 84600
Book on www.hostelbookers.com/hostels/greece/mykonos-island/10117/
If you're backpacking in Bangkok why pay for a dorm when you can get a private room for the same price?
The Roof View is a lovely guesthouse with dirt cheap private rooms, and free breakfast, linen and towels.
The rooms are all pretty stylish,there are comfy beds with fresh white decor and a private balcony.
It's a ten minute walk to the Khaosan Road and a short bus drive to the Grand Palace.
90/1 Samsean Rd Soi 6,, Banpanthom, Pranakorn, Bangkok, Thailand 10200
www.hostelbookers.com/hostels/thailand/bangkok/39813/
Family run guesthouse, which delivers a lot for very little outlay. We had a double room with en-suite and balcony overlooking the river for about $5/night. We opted for no air con but had overhead fan which was more than enough. White painted walls and dark wood fixtures and fittings, and tiled floors help to keep everything cool. Good comfortable beds and everything was very clean. It's probably a good fifteen minute walk into the centre of Luang Prabang, but it's enjoyable and you get to see things you wouldn't normally!
The bathroom was clean too, although they didn't clean the room or bathroom everyday you only had to ask. However, the shower/water supply was a little tempremental, but with patience and a little tweaking all was fine!
The hosts supplied a free meal once a week, which we managed to have two of! Very friendly atmosphere and the meal gave us the opportunity to meet other travellers who were of all ages and backgrounds. Free fruit and water (safe to drink) for all. Breakfast and evening meals available and there are soft drinks and beer too!
Laundry service available although like any good traveller you can still do a little of your own!
There is a curfew in Luang Prabang which if I remember correctly starts at 11.00pm, so the owners will lock the gates somewhere around then. We were late back one night but they waited up for us.
You get about 4-6 small light planes over everyday, but they don't cause too much disturbance.
Great place to stay, highly recommend it, don't forget to remove your shoes on the way in!
East part of town five minutes walk from Wat Visoun and south from Phousi Hill. Walk down small road/alleyway and Cold River Guesthouse is situated at the bottom on the righthand side. Location is right on the Nam Khan River. Accessible by foot or tuk tuk!
Guesthouse run by a sweet and friendly lady called Catherine. Rooms are colourful, clean and spacious.
A delightful breakfast is provided. Catherine will go out of her way to make her home your home.
Pitchounette et Olives
11, bld Tellen - 13007 Marseille
00 33 (0) 04 91 54 38 35
www.pitchounetteetolives.com
Best guest house in Ushguli, open as long as the road is. I'm the English teacher in the village - Europe's highest - and I live there too. Great people and food, comfortable and spacious, very helpful and hospitable.
www.lileo-ushguli.blogspot.com
+995 99 912256 if you speak Georgian or Russian (working on the English!)
www.geosynchronicity.blogspot.com (My photographic blog)
Apple and Noi, two local women, run this extremely friendly guesthouse. The accommodation itself is quite basic, but even if you choose not to stay, make sure you go along for a meal - the food is the best we had in Thailand. Not only that, but Noi runs entertaining cookery courses (lasting the best part of the day, costing about £15) which will teach you how to make such dishes yourself.
My friends and I decided to stay at Frangipani Villa for five nights in early December and we had an enjoyable stay.
The small garden was a beautiful, peaceful and relaxing place to sit, chat, eat, or read.
My room had air conditioning, cable tv, internet connection, coffee and tea.
The restaurant served us bread and scrambled eggs, and we could also ask for fried noodles in the morning with no cost at all.
All staff were so polite to guests.
Frangipani Villa is located in the centre and is very convenient to go to the supermarket or other places such as Russian Market, Royal Place etc.
Overall I found this a great stay and would certainly recommend it to other tourists who would like to stay in Phnom Penh.
www.frangipanihotel.com
#20R, Street 252, Sangkat Chaktomuk, Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh 12306, Cambodia
Tel: (855)12 687717 / (855) 23 212 100,
E-mail: frangipani60s@gmail.com
A highly-affordable four-bedroom 'tavern' in the Lucca countryside run by a delightful couple always ready to help out. They even left the preparation of a big New Year's Eve meal halfway through to drive us 20km away to collect our broken-down car. The rooms are welcoming and individually furnished with local antiques. Pets and children are very welcome. A gem!
This is a great place to stay - small and very friendly, but with lovely rooms (stay in the luxury one with the Victorian bath) and great breakfast. Good base for walking in the Cairngorm area and makes a change from Aviemore.
Newtonmore has a station or just off the A9.
Drumkeerin guesthouse in Cushendun is particularly good value - the breakfasts are made with organic and homemade produce, there's a hostel that was once a barn and self-contained apartments as well as the guesthouse.
The couple who run it are both artists who run their own painting school. The view out over Cushendun towards Scotland is stunning.
201a Torr Road, Cushendun, Co Antrim BT44 0PU
Tel: 028 217 61554
www.drumkeeringuesthouse.com
Charming apartment in a historic house a few hundred yards from the Colosseum, in a quiet backstreet. Giulia, who manages this small family business, speaks English and is happy to help you with all sorts of insider tips on the city.
Mamas is quite possibly the best guest house in the world, and it is really one of those things that you have to experience to understand.
It's like everyone there is collectively visiting their grandma, and that grandma is mama, that's the best way I can think to describe it.
The food is plentiful and cheap, the rooms are nice, and cheap too. And mama.... well you'll just have to go.
For more, check out this post on our blog:
flashpackers.blogspot.com/2006/03/lijiang-and-mamas.html
Ring her, you will find her cards around the town, or ask someone.
This is the friendliest place I stayed when out in Asia. The staff are lovely & the place has got a great atmosphere. Some of the rooms are a touch gloomy (without windows) & it's not the cheapest (about 900bht for a double room), but it's right by the national stadium sky train stop. I go there everytime I'm in Bangkok, but if you don't call to book you probably won't get a room, which tells you everything you need to know I think.
www.wendyguesthouse.com
Soi Kasemsan1, Rama1 Road,
Tel: (+662) 214 1149
It's not the cheapest in what is a very cheap town, but it's more of a 3* hotel. The staff are absurdly friendly (the desk clerk drove me to hospital on the back of his moped despite being warned not to by his boss), the rooms large, clean & comfortable with free breakfast.
114 Pangkham Rd
Tel: 021 215 093
Very friendly, safe, clean & cheap.
It is by far the best place we stayed whilst trekking across Vietnam - Cambodia.
The owners are simply wonderful.
Lezard Bleu is an amazing guesthouse in the Oranjezicht area of Cape Town. The hosts, Chris and Nikki, are extremely welcoming - on arrival after a long flight from London we were sat on the outside terrace and given complimentary tea, biscuits and fresh fruit. It set the tone for a wonderful week. Chris is a real foodie (a former chef) who made amazing breakfasts and gave us great advice on restaurants in the region. The house and rooms are beautiful and set around a tranquil garden with views of Table Mountain. There's a pool, a wonderfully relaxing communal area with honesty bar, and one of the rooms is in a treehouse. We stayed there and had amazing views over the city.
30 Upper Orange Street, Oranjezicht, Cape Town; www.lezardbleu.co.za; +27 21 461 4601
Just returned from a South African mini tour - of which African Breeze was a big highlight.
Was a bit apprehensive, as UK guesthouses can be quite foreboding, but the African guesthouse experience was an absolute pleasure.
Simon, Cathy, Brooke and Daniel were all superstars, with nothing too much trouble, from airport transfers, through getting us in and around Knysna at night, to providing a comprehensive tour service - and that's before we mention the warm hospitality, stunning breakfasts and the little extra's that you would never get at a "chain" or bigger hotel.
Here it's all about the personal touch - even getting this poor husband out of trouble when he "accidently" led his wife into quicksand (an honest mistake) and her lovely shoes consigned to the bin.
Go for it and give yourself 3-4 days for the entire Knysna experience to settle you in.
Relaxation guaranteed.
Paul,Deb and Grace
UK
(Try Rhino Base camp for a small safari, and the elephant park just out of Knysna is a delight too- oh and don't miss Natures Reserve)
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