london1952 | Entries tagged with hotels

After three nights in Split, we left, via car ferry, for the island of Korcula and the town of the same name...alledgedly (according to some) the birth-place of Marco Polo. We had rather a mix up finding our next hotel as the company we'd booked through had attached the wrong address to the hotel name....but we eventually found the right place...though to start with they didn't have our booking (made 4 months previously) but said we could stay anyway. On stepping into the foyer I was immediately transported back to my teens, and holidays with my parents ! ..and when we got to the room it was definitely a case of 1970's Yugoslavian Retro !!! O.M.G !! ....I'll let the photos do the talking.........

I'm not sure I've ever seen a yellow and brown bathroom.......... or maybe I have LOL and obliterated it from my memory !!

I could imagine a very old secret-service agent hiding, poised with a tape recorder, above this false ceiling made of piping !! And Franco is looking like he's ready to escape at a minute's notice !

There was something quite lovely about the wooden coffered ceilings, and they could really be brought up-to-date, particularly the ones in the hotel reception, bar and restaurant.......... We were the only ones for breakfast (I think) and the staff couldn't have been nicer, bringing a selection of things and mking us a couple of delicious omelets !

Apart from being gob-smacked with the interior decorations, we were also incredulous that the room rate was virtually the same as the other places we stayed that were 4* and 5* !!! But it certainly was an experience !!!

Our last hotel for two nights was back in Dubrovnik, just outside the walled town, and was the 5* Excelsior Hotel, where apparently the Queen has stayed (not sure when, or in which incarnation the hotel was in - before the '90's war or after) and countless other well-known personages....photo's of all are displayed in a special glass viewing room !! A good portion of the hotel is modern, and mostly "padded" beiges and browns... and the busiest establishment visited on the trip, many of them middle-aged and middle-England !!!

Rather disconcertingly the large bathroom window faced the road, but was apparently tinted glass from outside, but I couldn't quite bring myself to sit on the loo without pulling the blind down !!

And on spotting this terrace from the hotel reception I knew where I wanted to partake of a late afternoon restorative aperitivo !!

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Location: home

So, a return of some sun this afternoon has reminded me of our wonderful holiday in Croatia. There is something rather lovely about visiting mainland Europe "out-of-season", everywhere is much quieter, places easier to see, and everyone is more relaxed. Off-the-beaten-track areas may present fewer possibilities of finding somewhere to eat, but if we survived Calabria pre-Easter last year, I'm sure we can manage most places !

Another "plus" can be with accomodation, finding some rather nice hotels at low-season/reduced tariffs, and without throngs of other guests.

On our recent trip, we flew to Dubrovnik where we picked up our hire car and drove a few miles north, visiting a wonderful Arboretum before checking into our hotel for the night. A very modern, and quite new, large "resort" hotel on the coast, it was almost deserted, as was the purpose-built village of apartments and water-front promenade where there were (in season) a number of restaraunts... luckily for us there was one open.

Everything about the interior of the Radisson Blu resort hotel was light, airy and calming...the modern decor was in natural shades of beige with turquoise highlights, though the exterior was a little "modern" for my taste it was quite stunning in parts.

A view from one (!) of the pools.......

Our room was lovely and very comfortable......

...........and of quite an unusual design, as the internal bathroom had a glass wall on the bedroom side letting in lots of light as well as views of anyone in the shower...there were blinds to protect one's modesty if required !

A "room with a view" and terrace on which to admire the morning before breakfasting (which was top-notch !) ....

Part of the hotel's reception area......... COOL !

After driving up the coast, including a fairly short distance through Bosnia, we arrived late afternoon in Split. Our accommodation here was at a 4* "Bed & Breakfast" establishment right in the centre of the old town built in the confines of the old Roman Emperor's palace, it took a bit of finding but was well worth it and it was perfectly placed for enjoying the atmosphere of the ancient city.

A palace within a palace - that'll do nicely for me !!

The main entrance to the rooms is through a small courtyard, complete with well, and up a flight of stone stairs edge with pots of sweet-smelling hyacinths.......

The bedroom was smaller than the previous night, but very cosy, and beautifully furnished very recently, there is a large very well appointed bathroom too.

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Location: home

As the song goes, "Wherever I Lay My Head...." ! I'm sure I drive Franco (

london1967 ) insane sometimes, but I've never been good with "basic" accomodation on holiday, so when planning our trips he is always very mindful of what I may, or, more importantly, may not like ! And when we have a touring trip, like Calabria, the search becomes even more intensive......... But, he always does well ! Luckily we both like small intimate places rather than big anonymous hotels. Me, high maintenance ?? LOL

Our second stop on the tour was Tropea for two nights, and we stayed at the Villa Antica , which had a bit of the feel of one of the Florida gay resorts we stayed in a few years ago. We called our room "Pompeii meets Essex" ! .....though a number of design faults needed looking into..... however we enjoyed our stay. Breakfast was served in the large first floor conservatory, with table service.... that almost became comedy as the waitress would keep bring trays and trays of all sorts of food in no particular order ! and on our first morning the chap from reception came all the way up to present us with what turned out to be a shot of schnapps (or something similar) with a slice of apple in it, a case of WTF as we saw no-one else get this treat ! ......and me with a full day of driving ahead..... oh well, all in the holiday spirit !

Is it a sports car or a bath ? ... we never tried it out as there was also a large wet-room style shower, though being a step up (rather than down) it was very prone to flooding..... a very smart, but rotting, wooden vanity unit indicated this had been going on for some considerable time...... Besides, amongst the many switches we couldn't locate what worked what !! LOL

Our next two night stay was in Scilla, with "Hello" magazine furniture, though with a great view from the bedroom terrace of sunsets and the christmas pudding shaped, slightly smoking, island of Stromboli, and firework display one night to signal the end of Carnevale