When it comes to staying abroad, choosing the right accommodation is crucial to making sure your stay in that country is a safe and pleasant one. Here are some things to consider when picking accommodation abroad.
Know The Areas
If you’re new to a country or a particular part of a country, it’s good to get to know the areas before booking. Of course, all countries have bad areas, so it’s good to know which ones these are so that you can avoid them where possible. You also want to look at it from an exploration point of view. It might not be so bad if you’re in a smaller country where everything is close by, but for a bigger one, you may want to pick an area to stay in that’s closest to other cities that you’d like to explore. Whether it’s kontrakan murah in Indonesia or Depok, research is important!
Book Accommodation That’s Close To The Centre
When booking the accommodation and staying in a location for the first time, it might be better to choose a hotel that’s closer to the city. When it’s a new location it can be quite daunting as a tourist to know where you are going, and if most of what you want to see are in the centre, you might as well get yourself closer in. It’ll also make travel cheaper, and you will probably get more of your day than getting lost in the outskirts of the city.
Check The Reviews
Like anything you pay for, it’s good to check the reviews, and these are particularly important for hotels and other accommodation. Reviews can paint a somewhat accurate picture of what you can expect for your stay and for the money you spend. TripAdvisor is one of those sites that’s got reviews from all over the world, and you’ll probably struggle to find no reviews of your chosen accommodation on there. It’s good however to take the bad reviews with a pinch of salt. You can certainly tell the difference between someone who’s had a very bad experience and someone who just fancied a moan.
Pick A Hotel With A 24/7 Reception
When looking for specifics, your hotel should ideally have a 24/7 reception that’s operated at all time. That way you’ll feel safe that you are being looked after and that the reception is manned by someone no matter what time you get in. It’s also good for when you have an arrival time that’s in the early hours of the morning. No one likes to arrive tired and hungry with no warm welcome. Typically a lot of resorts will also put on a spread for their guests to enjoy if they arrive at a time where they’ve maybe not eaten for a while. Security and peace of mind are certainly important for you and your party when you’re somewhere that’s not familiar.
Enquire About Upgrades On Arrival
There are often upgrades available to your room once you’ve arrived at your hotel and depending on what you’re there for, they may give you a free upgrade. Take advantage if it’s your birthday or if you may be celebrating an anniversary or on your honeymoon. These are usually occasions where the hotel will offer the room upgrade for free or give you a nice discount. It’s always good to be well mannered either way, as some hotel receptionists will often give a free room upgrade because a guest is so friendly and nice towards them.
Think About The Type Of Board You’d Like
Hotels will offer a variety of boards that usually consist of either room only, bed and breakfast, half-board, full-board or all-inclusive. If you’re staying out in a resort in the middle of nowhere, it’s probably best to have an all-inclusive board option so that you’re fully covered. However, if you’re nearby local restaurants and bars, it might be worth doing half-board or bed and breakfast, so that you can explore different cuisines and food experiences outside of the accommodation you’re staying in. This is particularly handy if you’re staying for more than a week as all-inclusive can become a bit boring after a few days. The type of board will also affect the cost of your holiday, and that’s also something to consider when picking which one you’d like as it also affects the amount of travel currency that you take with you.
Remember The Transfer Time
Whether you’re travelling by boat, plane or train, it’s worth remembering the amount of transfer time it’ll take to get from wherever you arrive into, to the accommodation. Some transfer times can take as little as 30 minutes but depending on where an airport is in relation to the accommodation, it could be up to a few hours. This is worth noting not only for when you book flights/accommodation but also the time you book to arrive. Ideally, it’s good to arrive during the day as transport is more likely to go without hiccups than it does in the middle of the night. You may also be tired from jet lag depending on your destination, so the last thing you want is to be waiting around an airport for a coach or car to arrive.
Making sure you have the best accommodation is going to make a huge difference to your holiday overall. Do some research on the areas beforehand and find the places that are suitable for your needs and requirements. Book accommodation that’s close to the city centre if you’re wanting to do some exploring. Always check reviews before going over to help you spot any red flags. If it’s possible, try to find a hotel with a 24/7 reception service, so you don’t need to worry about getting locked out if you’re out on a late one. Check for upgrades when checking in for your room and think about the type of board that will suit you while you’re there. And finally factor in transfer time so you’re not waiting around for too long!
Really handy tips. We definitely did some of these when choosing accommodation for our trip abroad recently.
I go abroad often and definitely look up reviews and research the areas before booking. Great tips.
When making reservations for accommodations research is very important. This is particularly the case if you have never stayed in the area.
Good tips, yes I alwasy like to check out the local area and the reviews to see if the area is family friendly. Mich x
This is so helpful, especially with holiday season coming up.
So many things to consider when booking accommodation, so many base it all on price which can a very risky move
Such brilliant tips and very helpful for those new to travelling abroad. I always make sure to check out reviews of the accommodation and read about the local area when I am picking accommodation abroad.
Great tips, as a frequent traveller, I would so, the city center may not always be ideal, look for in the city outskirts especially if you’re driving to save some money on accommodation.
I never book anywhere without checking the reviews first! It’s also so much easier having somewhere central to everything you want to see.
I always make sure I know the area and read the reviews to where I’m staying when I’m travelling. These are awesome tips. The 24 hour reception is something I would definitely look into the next time.
I always check trip advisor before I book anywhere.
Awesome!, this is an interesting post, when do you write like this again?