OT: Decent hotel review website

[Andy Hall]

The product content of what is on offer from the different brands in a hotel group are very carefully prescribed.

The French group, Accor, are the industry masters at this.

[Andy Hall]

I completely agree. Some of the best are the unbranded boutique hotels.

The trick is to check on what features and quality are there that suit you as the customer.

[Andy Hall]

Of all places, Italy is one where there can be hugely pleasant and unpleasant surprises and which either way justify careful research.

[Andy Hall]

.. and especially attitude to service.

For the UK, I explicitly avoid the chain hotels if at all possible.

[tinnews]

Well, for starters, I tend to avoid anything in a 'group' or 'branded'.

[Huge]

Coming back from Scotland

last year, we stayed at the Rampsbeck Country House Hotel;

was very nice, and I shall definitely be staying there again. The only downside was that it wasn't exactly economical; GBP300 for dinner, B&B for two for one night, and we didn't even have a suite.

[Stuart Noble]

Does your wife know?

[Andy Hall]

Generally so do I unless I'm tight on time and am going to a location I haven't been before, although I'm running out of those.

Sometimes a level of certainty can be useful.

For leisure purposes, one can research a bit more and select something unusual, and I prefer to do that for business as well. However, there are certain basic essentials such as high speed internet access that I have for that and smaller places may not have that.