To ask where the best hotel you've ever stayed in was

[Fragmentedbrain]

And why you loved it so much

The Taj in Columbo. With hindsight its not that swanky but I was young, had the shits and a well-dressed man handed you chilled flannels by the pool. The contrast to where I had been staying previously was huge.

Las Casas de la Juderia in Seville.

So full of character and an oasis in the centre of a busy city.

Hotel de Russie in Rome. Just fabulous service and a beautiful oasis of a garden in a crazy, busy city. Lovely food, drink and spa too!

The Lodge on the Loch in Luss.

Giraffe Manor (giraffes visit you for breakfast and afternoon tea)
The Peninsula in Hong Kong (super luxurious)
The Sofitel in Hanoi (history, luxury, location)
The Nare in Cornwall for old fashioned luxury, Rick Stein’s Bistro hotel for location, food
Great Bear Lodge in Canada for the best bear watching experience ever

Hotel Widder in Zurich. Very quirky and yet utterly luxurious. The oldest building I've ever stayed in- built in the 1300's.

Royal Crescent Hotel in Bath. Just old school luxury, beautifully furnished.

Lausanne Palace in Lausanne, Switzerland. Like stepping back in time. Stunning old Palace, my favourite bit was the conservatory and terrace. Better than the Montreaux Palace that to me felt too Palace-y but I loved the balcony in my bedroom and the spa.

Lake Country House Hotel Builth Wells. Feels like being at a country house party in the 1920's

All of these for work. I couldn't afford 5 minutes in any of them myself!

I've stayed in a lot of 5* hotels for work travel but for me nothing compares to small, boutique and quirky. I'd swap all the luxury hotels for something more personalised. Rooms individually designed and a nice bar and restaurant. I spend my life searching for these places for destination holidays if anyone has recommendations.

Claridge's in London is the best ever. Amazing service.

Plus The Imperial, New Delhi - an immaculate glimpse of the old Raj.
Jade Mountain - bonkers luxury, with the 4th wall missing in your room, and a swimming pool instead!
The Riva, Konstanz in Germany - smart, comfortable, relaxing. Everything you could want on a holiday.

Best western in Leiden, Netherlands. We had a small kitchen which was useful.

Lough Eske Castle in Donegal. Beautiful location, secluded & quiet. The rooms are stunning, service very friendly and kind. We ate at the Bar Restaurant but there’s a swankier one in the hotel if you’d prefer. The breakfast was outstanding. It also has a Spa.

Portmeirion in North wales is really special but i recommend staying in a village room or suite. Eat at the hotel for breakfast but the Castell bistro for dinner. It's magical in the evenings when the day visitors have left.

Gleneagles - impeccable service!

That’s where we spent our honeymoon!

For me it’s The Phoenicia in Valletta. Beautiful retro hotel with fabulous gardens and a two minute walk into the city.

Anywhere with soundproofed rooms.

Cotton House, Mustique
The Venetian, Las Vegas
The Mark, New York

The Sofitel Legend Metropole in Hanoi staying in the Heritage Wing. It was just incredible and I found it a struggle to drag myself out of my room as I was so in love with it. It’s French colonial style and has been a Hanoi landmark since 1901. It even has a bomb shelter that Jane Fonda used to hide during the Vietnam War. Incredible history, service, food, style, location, everything! Sofitel is my favourite hotel brand anyway but the Legend Metropole blew all the others out of the water (and I’ve stayed in Sofitels all over the world from Auckland to Philadelphia).

Palazzo Roselli Cecconi in Florence. Entrance next to a perfume shop, smelled amazing and inside was so beautiful. Staff were lovely, breakfast on the roof terrace - amazing.

The Carlyle in New York
Shangri La Rasa Ria in Borneo
Mandarin Oriental in Kuala Lumpur
The Fortress in Galle in Sri Lanka
All before children I might add 🙈

Lazy Fish hostel in the Marlborough Sounds, NZ. More like a self-catering boutique hotel. Only accessible by boat. No neighbours. Penguins underneath. With the exchange rate it was £6 each per night.

Nsolo Bush Camp, South Luangwa National Park, Zambia. Rustic but v comfortable. Impeccable service. ££££.

I'm all about the remote 😁 but with a comfy bed, hot showers and a good dinner.

The Spirit of Adventure. Fabulous service with an ever changing scenery from your balcony.

Ovolo Woolloomooloo in Sydney - amazing location on the water just next to the botanic gardens and a short walk through to the opera house. Interesting old wharf building, modern rooms.

It was a bit noisy with a wedding party going on right below us, not super late but I was with a young ds who couldn't sleep, so they upgraded us to a gigantic harbour view room on the other side of the building for the rest of our stay.

Hotel Adlon Berlin
The Beach Negombo
Kempinski Frankfurt Gravenbruch
Victor's Hotel Perl-Nennig

Hotel Irma in Merano, northern Italy.
5* but family owned and run, very friendly and personal service, spa treatments, several pools with more loungers than guests.
Amazing views of the mountains.
Superb food with best breakfasts ever served in the top floor, glass walled and roofed dining room. (Or on the surrounding terrace, if you prefer. ) With whole proscuitto hams you slice yourself, creamy overnight oats/bircher muesli, pastries and huge selection of cooked items.
So relaxed and relaxing. And just a 10 minute walk down to the very pretty town of Merano/Meran with stylish shops, cafés and restaurants.

@Downplayit that’s why I always give mine as The Rival in Stockholm - owned by Benny from Abba , it’s just a fantastic bigger boutique hotel with a gorgeous atmospheric bar, beautiful restaurant and separate cafe , truly lovely staff and a fantastic breakfast and a metro 2 minutes walk away - we’ve been 6 times - rooms are super cosy and ‘kind of ‘ Abba themed but in a very tasteful way .

Y Fan in Caerphilly, Wales. It's a beautiful restored manor house with lovely rooms, the owners are really friendly people. Wonderful breakfasts.

I also loved the Hotel Eberle in Bozen, South Tyrol - amazing views down into the valley and across to the mountains, with a cable car passing overhead. We sat out on the terrace one night and watched an alpine thunderstorm. Sadly the hotel was half demolished by a landslide, thankfully it was shut because of Corona so nobody killed. I don't know if they will ever be able to reopen.