HOTEL DE PARIS MONTPARNASSE

GREAT STAFF, TINY ROOM, GOOD LOCATION NEXT TO GARE MONTPARNASSE

Rue Daguerre, one of the greatest foodie streets in one of the greatest gastronomic cities, is a 10 minute stroll from Hotel de Paris Montparnasse.

The wonderful Marche Edgar Quinet sets up on Wednesdays and Saturdays less than 5 minutes from Hôtel de Paris Montparnasse.

Historic Cimetière du Montparnasse is footsteps away, as are the famous Catacombs underground boneyard.

I would strongly suggest heading south of the hotel through the various low key, very French neighborhoods of the 14th.

There are old villages that became a part of Paris.

Marche aux Puces de la Porte de Vanves, open Saturdays and Sundays only, is the second best flea market in all of Paris.

In perfect 72 F weather, I zig zagged through some not so tourist-choked Paris and -- 2 km and less than an hour from hotel -- turned up at the Marche aux Puces.

HOTEL DE PARIS MONTPARNASSE

GREAT STAFF, TINY ROOM, GOOD LOCATION NEXT TO GARE MONTPARNASSE

My room was very tiny at Hotel de Paris Montparnasse.

Barely 100 SF if that.

Basically a place to store some clothing, take a shower, hit the bathroom and sleep. I was there two days.

I don't think I could recommended it for more than 3 days stay -- and I'm the kind of person who goes out early and comes back late each day while traveling.

It's a typical old, tiny European hotel room -- modernized with plenty of outlets -- regular and USB.

HOTEL DE PARIS MONTPARNASSE

GREAT STAFF, TINY ROOM, GOOD LOCATION NEXT TO GARE MONTPARNASSE

High praise for the staff at Hotel de Paris Montparnasse.

It is a smallish, family-run hotel and I made a couple special requests -- having an extra flat sheet in the room upon arrival -- and they had this covered.

It's my test of front desk responsiveness.

They have fresh filtered water and large glass bottles for you to use for free.

This was an excellent way of saving money on buying water while also saving the planet by not tossing away plastic.

The location is crawling distance from Gare Montparnasse -- which was a big draw for me because I was catching the high speed train to Bordeaux at the end of my Paris stay.

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY

AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita said it is a rule in Japan to change over the room every third day.

I had requested an extra flat sheet on arrival.

And I emailed to remind them. 

But each night, I would come home late and find zero flat sheets.

The every third day service robbed me of my ability to have the sheets customized the way I liked them...and it had me begging for extra sheets then waiting for them in the wee hours.

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY

The rooms at AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita have no individual temperature control.

Even on freezing nights, I would crack the window a few hours to cool things down.

They also can lend you a space heater if the one-size-fits-all temp is cold and you need to warm up.

I found it super odd that the hallways are open to the elements. 

I'm from Miami where its 80F and I arrived to far below 40F.  

Having rain and cold open air was odd for the hallways.

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY

The staff at AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita uses google translate to speak English.

I found it best to type requests in advance on Booking.com messaging -- so they could feed it into translate app and provide me with answers and service.

They recommended some nice locals and chain restaurants.

I paid well under $100 USD for a modern, efficient room in one of the biggest cities on earth. I wish I could do that in NYC.

I would book at another AKA hotel (there are dozens in Tokyo alone) in a heartbeat.

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY 

A mini fridge in the room at AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita was a great bonus. 

I brought home milk, berries and snacks from a 24-hour full-sized grocery about 5 minutes’ walk from the property.

It was about a 12 minute walk to the train station and an equal distance to the joys of Electric Town's gadgets, photo shops, anime, manga, etc.

The immediate area is very low key, so no noise at night.

 

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY

My room at AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita was super quiet and my bed was perfectly firm and comfortable.

There's a great flat screen TV with tons of free VOD.

The tub-shower was clean and worked for a soak after a long day of work.

There seemed to be endless hot water, which I really love.

APA HOTEL AKIHABARA EKIKITA

SUPER QUIET AND EFFICIENT MICRO ROOM

AT FABULOUS PRICE POINT FOR A GLOBAL CITY

I'm used to micro rooms, so I did not feel cramped in the AKA Hotel Akihabara Ekikita.

Everything is super-efficient with plenty of regular electrical and USB outlets -- some right at the bed and others at the desk.

They give you the coolest fold our hair comb, a great toothbrush and razor plus a comfy bath robe.

NOBLE DEN HOTEL

CLEAN, EFFICIENT ROOMS PLUS ROOFTOP DECK

IN LOWER MANHATTAN'S CHINATOWN/LITTLE ITALY

I could instantly see why Noble Den Hotel gets high reviews.

The staff is very polite and resourceful.

The property is an oasis in an otherwise slightly gritty area where Chinatown meets Little Italy -- with the Lower East Side and SOHO nearby.

Mulberry Street next door can be noisy, but the hotel is sound proofed.

The units are small, but super well designed. They have thought of everything as far as space, natural light, comfortable bath, tons of outlets (with USB outlets too), a mini fridge, etc.

The super bonus is a rooftop lounge. It has no bar, so there is no noise are hipster crowds to fight. Just some nice furniture and a panoramic view of lower Manhattan.

Just off the lobby is really good free coffee, hot chocolate and a microwave for heating up delicious food from the neighborhood.

The room fridge is not a mini bar, which is a good thing. All of its space is for cooling beverages, berries, breakfast foods and leftovers.

There are two elevators, so no waiting in the smallish family feeling property.

I was checked in just under an hour early -- for free -- and they safely stowed my bags.

You get a cute stuffed animal on arrival and there are toothbrushes, combs and more in the room, if you forgot to pack those.

Major subway stations are nearby for fast, inexpensive transit.

The price point was incredible for a modern, fresh, well-designed and well-located hotel.

There is a great accessible room with roll-in shower. The only drawback is adjacent elevator shaft noises.

 

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

For a super urban neighborhood just south of Claiborne Avenue, Goldfinches was relatively quiet at night.

I heard a little bit music from the Candlelight Lounge that’s a block away. The last night I did not sleep well at all.

There was a lot of noise from an adjacent room. Not people partying, just lots of banging around the thuds.  

So be advised, Goldfinches is a house carved up into a bunch of rooms with walls thinner than a hotel’s.

Pack ear plugs and appreciate the low price point of the lodging.

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

Probably the biggest negative is there’s really only a tiny window in the Goldfinches’ room so there’s very little natural light because half of that window is taken up by the air conditioning unit.

I’m the kind of person it out and about 16 hours a day, so I just needed to sleep, so the darkness was fine.

But those that need a little natural light might be slightly disappointed. One small negative is it’s three steps up into the bathroom.

One night I tripped and fell on those steps.

Some have commented that the room is too small, but I stayed nearly a week and never felt claustrophobic.

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

It’s a tad confusing getting through a gate and storing bags in an outdoor locker, but the staff was amazing.

They addressed every need and every question -- and I’m the kind of person to ask lots of questions.

They had a list of about two dozen things like food, places, offbeat, museums little bars, not so well-known coffee, shops.

All of their recommendations were outstanding.

They mentioned a couple of careworn corner food stores that a tourist would normally never go to.

But I got fabulous Po-boys and gumbo based on their recommendations.

Bottom line, I paid under $100 per night for a room that gave me access to everything I wanted to do in New Orleans.

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

New Orleans has a crime issue and Treme is not a gilded neighborhood, but I always felt 100% safe and walked everywhere.

I never took a taxi home to Goldfinches.

I got home after midnight from seeing the great New Orleans music and I walked the back streets of Treme to see different architecture and unique things while getting back to the room I never felt endangered in the least.

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

The Goldfinches room is small but very efficient. I love that there were pots and pans, a microwave and a regular oven.

You can heat up leftovers of the great New Orleans food after storing them in a dorm-sized fridge to that worked perfectly.

The shower has nice long lasting hot water.

The bed was comfortable and there was a little table to eat breakfast at.

The room has good air conditioning and it also has a portable space heater for the cooler winter nights.

GOLDFINCHES LODGING IN TREME

GREAT LOCATION FOR EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO DO IN NEW ORLEANS

There are a lot of pluses about Goldfinches’ great location.

You can easily walk into the French Quarter.

It’s also in the heart of Treme and its attractions such as the Backstreets Cultural Museum, Petite Jazz Museum, a couple cool independent coffee shops and the incomparable Kermit’s Mother-In-Law Lounge on Claiborne Avenue.

On the other side of Claiborne is the Laffite Greenway, which you can walk through Mid-City all the way to Bayou Saint John.

There is a bus line along Claiborne just to the north and Rampart Street just to the south, for good transit connections.

CARRIS HOTEL PORTO RIBEIRA

LUXURY IN THE PERFECT LOCATION FOR A FAIR PRICE

My visit included shopping at the legendary Livraria Llelo bookstore and dining at the restaurant row on Flores Street.

Footsteps from the Carris Hotel is the small, 5-star Taberna Dos Mercadores.

I lined up a half hour before opening two days in a row to eat phenomenal seafood rice, then seafood feijoada the next day.

Desserts and wines are also amazing.

I will be seeking out Carris branded properties for all my future travels.

https://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/carris-porto-ribeira.html?aid=1664544&label=review_am&sid=ef59c27ba8cd54f9be48a5eb5408d352&all_sr_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;checkin=2022-09-30;checkout=2022-10-01;dest_id=280642;dest_type=hotel;dist=0;group_adults=1;group_children=0;hapos=1;highlighted_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;hpos=1;matching_block_id=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;no_rooms=1;req_adults=1;req_children=0;room1=A;sb_price_type=total;sr_order=popularity;sr_pri_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0__18000;srepoch=1664289895;srpvid=055b67b2ea540298;type=total;ucfs=1&#hotelTmpl

CARRIS HOTEL PORTO RIBEIRA

 LUXURY IN THE PERFECT LOCATION FOR A FAIR PRICE

The staff is super well trained.

I was treated like someone booking a presidential suite for a month, when I was just a one-night visitor rolling into town early one day and heading to Lisbon late the next.

Porto is such a fabulous city.

I should have stayed 3 nights.

Everything is within walking distance of the hotel.

I visited nearly a dozen classic churches, photographed azulejo adorned building facades and at pastel da nata.

https://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/carris-porto-ribeira.html?aid=1664544&label=review_am&sid=ef59c27ba8cd54f9be48a5eb5408d352&all_sr_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;checkin=2022-09-30;checkout=2022-10-01;dest_id=280642;dest_type=hotel;dist=0;group_adults=1;group_children=0;hapos=1;highlighted_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;hpos=1;matching_block_id=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;no_rooms=1;req_adults=1;req_children=0;room1=A;sb_price_type=total;sr_order=popularity;sr_pri_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0__18000;srepoch=1664289895;srpvid=055b67b2ea540298;type=total;ucfs=1&#hotelTmpl

CARRIS HOTEL PORTO RIBEIRA

LUXURY IN THE PERFECT LOCATION FOR A FAIR PRICE

The desk staff suggested a fabulous locals restaurant, so I could eat fresh seafood while avoiding the mediocre tourist spots that dominate the popular neighborhood.

There was a gourmet grocery very close by, so I could have a bottle of port for the room and eat pastries on my balcony.

The room was worth three times what I paid -- at least.

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CARRIS HOTEL PORTO RIBEIRA

LUXURY IN THE PERFECT LOCATION FOR A FAIR PRICE

The suite had a huge comfortable bed, lavish bath plus a separate sitting room.

I could enjoy city and water views from the small balconies.

Thick glass closed around them to make a double layer of soundproofing.

The hotel itself is in a series of preserved historic buildings, adapted inside with a super modern and comfortable lobby, bar, front desk staff.

My light luggage was stored for late afternoon departure after noon check out.

https://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/carris-porto-ribeira.html?aid=1664544&label=review_am&sid=ef59c27ba8cd54f9be48a5eb5408d352&all_sr_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;checkin=2022-09-30;checkout=2022-10-01;dest_id=280642;dest_type=hotel;dist=0;group_adults=1;group_children=0;hapos=1;highlighted_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;hpos=1;matching_block_id=28064204_88537171_1_1_0;no_rooms=1;req_adults=1;req_children=0;room1=A;sb_price_type=total;sr_order=popularity;sr_pri_blocks=28064204_88537171_1_1_0__18000;srepoch=1664289895;srpvid=055b67b2ea540298;type=total;ucfs=1&#hotelTmpl