Where to stay when you leave.
5/21/2007 at 9:03 AM
Tags: New York Times, Madrid Hotel Reviews, Andrew Ferren
The New York Times actually does us a favor this week with a helpful review of a stylish hotel--with rooms under $600 a night. It's the Hotel Alicia, which is part of the Room Mate Hotel chainlet, a minimal-service, stylish hotel group for the done-staying-in-hostels set.
Reviewer Andrew Ferren gives his room high marks, as does his friend:
We've often paid three times as much for rooms in which we constantly bump into each other, dodging faux wenge-wood consoles and manqué Mies Barcelona chairs. The place is comfortable and functional with a loft aesthetic of open, flexible space, with pictures propped on broad shelves rather than hanging in gilded frames.
Though the bathroom suffers from that boutique hotel affliction of being smack in the middle of the room, it isn't a deal-breaker, as the toilet's enclosed in its own room. Just don't hold your breath for room service--there isn't any. Then again, that gives you an excuse to binge on churros.
[Photo: Matias Costa for the NY Times]
Related Stories:
· Check In, Check Out [NYT]
· Hotel Alicia reviews [TripAdvisor]
by pbb
4/09/2007 at 11:08 AM
Tags: Barcelona Hotel Reviews, New York Times, Andrew Ferren
The latest hotel review from the New York Times isn't what we normally expect: Reviewer Andrew Ferren doesn't hate on the hotel, nor does he really love it. The Hesperia Tower just sounds better than average. But Ferren spices things up with his knowledge of interior decorating:
Everything seems to have a pewter-lamé thread running through it or a scrunched-up gauzy perma-wrinkle...There is a distinctly upscale ocean-liner feel to the rooms, which are tautly designed and outfitted with luxurious materials: varnished mahogany panels with stainless-steel insets and buttery velour upholstery in shades of wheat and burgundy
Of course, the focus would have to be on design when the hotel's architect, Richard Rogers, just won the Pritzker Prize. The 280-room property also has a rooftop restaurant, a private club with free drinks and snacks and an attached convention center. Good thing, too, the Times notes, as this place is built for business more than pleasure. Rates--that you'll want to charge to your company--start at $520.
[Photo: Stefano Buonamici for The New York Times]
Related Stories:
· Check In, Check Out [NYT]
· Hesperia Tower hotel reviews [TripAdvisor]
by pbb
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