Booking the same hotel for next year?

[SippingSipsmith]

Had a lovely holiday this year at a great hotel in a resort. Had everything we wanted.

Thinking about repeat booking for next year HOWEVER we've never gone back to the same hotel twice. We like having a change and it's nice when you arrive at a hotel and take a few days to discover it all etc etc. But where this hotel was just SO nice I worry that if we booked elsewhere we wouldn't like it so much.

Anyone ever repeat booked and regretted it or similarly booked elsewhere and wished you'd gone back to where you went last year? Can't decide what to do...

Understand the agony, we have this dilemma every year too. There is one place we love sooo much we want to go back - but at the same time, we want to experience new places too. Obviously the answer is two holidays per year, but that just isn't going to happen!

One of the reasons we want to return is that DH really feels he can relax a lot sooner, simply because he knows the ins and outs already: even down to the car rental and driving from the airport to our location. He likes knowing which restaurants are really good (and will even randomly text me with a simple message like "Grill & Chill. Just sayin..." ) and which ones we didn't like so much. Where the nicest beaches are. Which trips are worth going on. All that stuff...

I admit I do like knowing too, it is immensely relaxing. BUT other places have the potential to be just as lovely, and how will we know if we don't try somewhere different?

What you could do is return to the same place next year, but resolve to try somewhere different the year after? Maybe you could do an alternate year policy, and see how you get on?

We have been back to a couple of hotels for a return visit and without exception we had a better time the second time we visited as we knew our way around, knew the best bartenders, knew which restaurants were better for lunch or dinner and the kids were comfortable in their surroundings.

We went to a hotel in May and had such a brilliant time we have booked to go in 2018 too - but for a longer stay. Can't wait.