For anyone who might travel in the future to the places I’ve been on this trip, here are my recommendations for and against the hotels I’ve stayed at.
Thumbs up:
Thailand
- Bangkok: Reflections Hotel – Funky hotel with lots of character. Each room is decorated differently. Great poolside restaurant. Located in a non-touristy neighborhood with lots of food stands on the streets in the evening. Easy skytrain access.
- Bangkok: Novotel Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel – Lacking in character, but conveniently located within sight of the Bangkok airport, with a free van shuttle to get you there. Perfect for brief stopovers in Bangkok.
- Ko Pha Ngan island: Cocohut – Beachfront resort with cabins of varying prices, with the most expensive ones located right on the beach. Excellent hammocks, gorgeous beach. Youngish crowd, somewhat party-oriented.
Vietnam
- Hanoi: Hanoi Backpackers Hostel – Very clean, friendly owners, excellent vibe, good common areas. Beds are large and comfortable, with locked storage space underneath, and individual reading lights.
- Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): Sofitel Plaza Saigon – Meets the expectations of a hotel in this expensive price range. Nice rooms with all the amenities, rooftop pool, good lobby bar and restaurants. Walking distance from a great sushi restaurant, The Sushi Bar. Located away from the tourist area.
- Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): Empress Hotel HoChiMinh – An excellent hotel located reasonably close to the prime tourist area. Rooms are comfortable suites, with good amenities and wi-fi for a fee.
- Hoi An: Ha An hotel – Excellent hotel with beautifully decorated rooms, comfy beds, in-room DVD players, and a good restaurant. Free bikes for hotel guests’ use.
- Mui Ne: Little Mui Ne Cottages – The rooms are nothing special, but the grounds are very nice, with a pool and loungers lining the beach. Good happy hour in the bar, and free wi-fi.
India
- Agra: Hotel Amar – A good mid-priced hotel. Clean and comfortable rooms, a nice pool, and a good restaurant. Five-minute rickshaw ride to the Taj Mahal.
- Jaipur: Hotel Pearl Palace – Excellent budget hotel that feels like it should be much more expensive. Clean and comfortable rooms, funky décor throughout the hotel, computer room with wi-fi (for a fee), and a great rooftop bar/restaurant.
- McLeodganj: Yellow Guest House (Location: Bhagsu Rd; Phone: 21754) – Good budget hotel, with clean rooms, hot showers and an excellent location.
- Panaji (Panjim), Goa: Panjim Inn – A nice heritage hotel with lots of character. Rooms are clean and nicely decorated, and the balcony restaurant is good. 10-minute walk to the heart of town.
- Vagator, Goa: Leoney Resort – Clean and spacious cottages, beautiful grounds and a pristine pool. Down side is that the beach is a 10-minute walk, but there aren’t many hotels in Vagator located on the beach.
- New Delhi: The Residence Delhi – Very good business class hotel. Not a good location for seeing the tourist sights, but a great option if you have a reason to stay in south Delhi.
Italy
- Rome: Hotel Santa Maria – Excellent hotel in a great location. Rooms are a little on the small side, but the great courtyard, fabulous breakfast buffet, free Internet access and excellent location more than compensate.
- Florence: Hotel Cestelli – An amazing deal just blocks from the Ponte Vecchio bridge and the Uffizzi museum. Spacious and clean rooms, with very friendly staff.
- Venice: Locanda Orseolo – Very clean and nicely decorated (but small) rooms. Excellent location near San Marco’s square, with incredibly friendly and helpful staff.
- Rome: Hotel Teatropace33 – Good sized, clean and comfortable rooms very close to Piazza Navona. Breakfast is a little lacking, but staff is generally friendly and helpful and location is good.
Thumbs down:
Vietnam
- Hue: Truong Gian Hotel – No character, basic rooms are in a mild state of disrepair, and location is nothing special.
- Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): Bed and Breakfast Ho Van Hue – Very bad experience. Rooms are located two blocks away from the reception & computer room, in a poorly lit building. Rooms have no character, and are painted prison green. Didn’t feel safe there. Neighborhood was far from the tourist area.
India
- Colva, Goa: Hotel Longuinhos – Horrible service undermined what was otherwise an okay hotel. I recommend avoiding Colva altogether if possible.
- McLeodganj: Asian Plaza Hotel – Very poor service, décor is outdated, and hot water didn’t function two mornings in a row.
- Sawai Madhopur (Ranthambhore National Park): Hotel Ranthambhore Regency – Nothing special, and overpriced for what you get. Room rate includes three meals a day (as with most hotels in this area), which was unfortunate, since the food was horrible.
Great information. Thanks for all the insider tips on hotels, great to get a traveled expert's views on these things, rather than travel guides and things. Keep up the good work.
Posted by: Annette from Tropicaltravel.net | October 31, 2007 at 08:08 PM
I just came back from trip to India, I had an amazing time there and hats off to the travel Company who planned my itinerary, that allowed me to see most of India my allocated period of 3 weeks.
In North India I covered Delhi - Shimla - Manali - Chandigarh - Delhi ,then we headed to South India where we visited Kerala & Trivandrum-Kovalam-Kumarakom-Thekkady-Munnar-Cochin . In East India we visted Calcutta - Darjeeling - Gangtok - Bhubhaneshwar - Puri and finally my trip ended in West India after taking a Grand Tour of Rajasthan .
For more information on India Tour You can visit us at www.travelmasti.com
Posted by: Abhishek | November 08, 2007 at 11:22 AM