We believe restful sleep is important on tour to be able to wake up and make the most of your day of adventure. That being said, a hotel can be a lot more than where you lay your head at the end of the day. It can be an authentic place to taste the best flavours of the country, it can be a relaxing oasis in a busy European city, or even a destination in its own right.
Almost every country has its own star rating system, so a 4-star standard ironically may not actually be very standard! Here’s what we mean when we say the hotels we visit are 4-star standard:
- Your room features the homey comforts you need to get a good night’s sleep, including nice bedding, hypoallergenic pillows, a hair dryer, air conditioning, a private bathroom, a safe for your valuables, and a closet or wardrobe for storing your Sunday best.
- The hotel has a mix of upper-end amenities. While not all hotels are built the same, you’ll commonly find a bar and restaurant, a pristine pool and a well-stocked gym facility.
- The reception desk is open 24/7. This may not seem like a big deal until it’s 3 am and you can’t get back to sleep without just one more pillow.
In addition to staying in 4-star hotels, there are a couple of other things we look for when picking accommodations for our Approach travellers:
- Location, location, location! Since making the most of your free time is so important, we prioritize a hotel’s location in choosing where we stay — especially in bustling European centres like Rome. When outside the cities, we like to pick hotels that are a short drive from our included excursions, and have a nice view.
- Experience makes the difference. Not only do we look for hotels that have been in business for a while, we also lean on our travellers, and choose hotels based on your feedback and reviews.
Are there any exceptions, or do you always stay at 4-star hotels?
One small exception: we may stay at 3-star accommodations in smaller, rural areas where 4-star hotels simply are not available. For example we are willing to skip the 4-star experience to make sure we can still offer you star gazing in the Sahara, or staying a short distance from Machu Picchu. Either way, we promise all our accommodations are comfortable and are staffed by friendly people, ready to help!
