Discovering B&B’s
Meeting up with old friends that we had not seen in a few years, we sat down with our coffees and began to catch up. It would be wonderful to have them back in our lives again, so the questions began and the life stories began to unravel. And travel was discussed immediately. We each had done immense traveling and the queries flew. Where have you visited? What did you love? And then we heard the statement, “We have so many Hilton points so we always stay at Hiltons, no matter what country we are in.” Boom. I don’t know if we can be friends with those who have not discovered the rustic farmhouses, the agriturismos, the ancient stone villas, the sobes, the bed and breakfasts around the world. Hmmmm. Who are these people?? And why do they stay in hotels with other Americans?
But let me go back to the beginning. Rick and I were excitedly preparing for our first travel adventure to Europe in 1989. We scoured tour catalogs to decide locations to visit and researched the few travel library books at the time. Pre-internet, one used a travel agent to book anything or one had to make expensive long distance phone calls into another country. We weren’t too worried about lodging and I truly do not know why. Maybe we already were a bit into the “Why Not?” phase of our lives even then!
But then my mother noted that we were traveling to a foreign country and weren’t we a bit concerned that we had no reservations? We actually called
a town in Germany and made a booking for a hotel on our arrival night using a huge library tome entitled Lodging in Europe.
Flying into Frankfurt, Germany, we drove our rental car down to the city of Ulm and checked into our first European hotel. We did not sleep that night because the hotel was right beside the train tracks. We were flung out of bed at all hours of the night as the trains roared through the town.
Deciding that the “planned” hotel might not have been that great of an idea when you knew nothing about a city, we developed a cavalier plan for the next eight days. Driving and exploring through the day, as dusk fell, we began to stop at homes that bore the signage “Zimmer Frei.” This is German for Rooms for Rent. Walking up to the front stoop and asking “Haben zie doppelzimmer?”, we found the most incredible places to stay.
One woman walked us up three narrow flights of stairs to a room with a massively thick down comforter. We didn’t know if were supposed to use it as a mattress or if we were to snuggle under it! We never slept better. We had discovered the traditional B&B. And it would be hard to go back to a chain style hotel again. Sitting in the quaint breakfast room the next morning, we were met with a massive spread of fresh foods. And we were the only people there who spoke English. It was heavenly!
Staying in sobes in Dubrovnik, Croatia or agriturismos in Tuscany, Italy, we delighted in all the lodgings available in various countries. From a converted abbey to a dairy farm, a refurbished barn to a medieval stone villa, Rick and I adored every style of lodging that we have discovered. Breakfast prepared by the best friend of Walt Disney’s daughter in the San Juan Islands or cooking with all the guests at a lovely vineyard in Gaiole in Chianti, we revel in the diverse and distinctive, and totally authentic lodging we unearth. From an ancient 14th century castle to a farmhouse with the cows mooing in the pasture, we adore them all. Even the farmstay in a bed with a mosquito net and roosters crowing you awake on the banks of the Mekong River in Vietnam. The ca phe sua the next morning was a delight!
The lodging has been totally distinctive over the last thirty years, and we found a certain excitement in NOT using hotel chains. Having breakfast with a family or other travelers was a joy that has never receded. How could anyone stay at a Hilton or Accor when you could snuggle under a down comforter with your window open as you listened to the cow bells in the country pasture? Eating the local produce at a home cooked breakfast the next morning is a glorious treat. We enjoy staying with locals and being the only American on site.
Don’t get me wrong. We took the family to resorts in Puerto Rico and Cayman and enjoyed the pool side reading and beach activities. I am a huge proponent of oceanside lounging with a book in hand. But on an average sojourn, the bed and breakfast is our hotel of choice.
Everyone has their own level of travel happiness. Ours usually revolves around meeting people, so we continue to book B&B’s as we journey around this fabulous world. Give it a try. You just might find that we are incredibly right. I can share some amazing ones with you.
Did we reconnect with the friends who stay at hotels? Yes, we did. But we still think they are missing out on grand adventures on this delightful planet.
Fai un passo sul lato selvaggio.