Is this a hotel room????

After spending a couple of delightful but wet days in Amsterdam we decided to head down to the Flemish region of Belgium. We wanted chocolate, mussels, and beer! We spent a short night in Antwerp in a decidedly budget hotel chain called ETAP which is owed by ACCOR. (I think they own all the chain hotels in Europe just about...). Rumor has it that ETAP use to have signs posted by their entrances that stated,  "You are now leaving a luxury-free zone". So true!
The hotel was clean, conveniently, and had parking next door. The room itself was small, very small, and was more like a dorm room, a small dorm room. Book at your own risk... Antwerp ETAP

Yes, this is the whole room!

Sure the bunk is nifty but not in a hotel room

The Bathroom or is it?

Wooden Shoes and Rain

We arrived on a Tuesday afternoon after a lovely first class flight through Iceland (that's what I get for booking late). Our first adventure was to rent a car...a manual. After some stopping and starting we made it out of the airport in one piece. Who knew you can still remember how to drive a stick after 20+ years.

So we checked into an IBIS Hotel near the airport so I didn't have to drive downtown Amsterdam ( I really didn't want to end up in a canal). This was considered a three star under the Netherlands rating scale. I would say that the services provided match what I would expect in the US.  The room also matched expectations. It was clean, had nice windows, and  was an average size room....

Here is there link if you want to make reservations...   http://www.channels.nl/10445.html

And the Future Holds...

It looks like 2010 & 2011 might be a good year for quite a few of the European countries...Something called HOTELSTARS UNION has been brewing for a few years and is now being implemented in member countries to help standardize their rating systems.

I'll give you the link so you can discover the info yourself....I don't have time to explain in detail  since I am off to Europe for 3 weeks with my son for a working vacation :)

http://hotelstars.eu/en/ 

Netherlands, Belgium, and Bears, Oh My!!!

Ok if you are planning to hit a new country everyday here is what you need to know about Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Malta (really), Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Hungary....

Their hotel rating systems are each regulated by a single public standard and defined by governmental laws. And just like France they are based on facilities and amenities but not quality.

Germany, Austria and Switzerland the rating is defined by a hotel industry association using a 5-star system - the German classifications are Tourist (*), Standard (**), Comfort (***), First Class (****) and Luxus (*****) with a possible Superior mark to indicate extras beyond the standard minimum.

France's Rating System

Ok here is start of the low down of some of the European hotel rating system...

France - controlled by the public tourist board with a 5 star rating system which uses 22
measurement criteria to assess the presence of certain features in a given hotel. These include number of rooms-size of rooms-soundproofing-HVAC systems-bathroom facilities design-phone system-electrical equipment.

Oddly enough the French rating system does not rate quality?!?!?

European Rating Systems

Ah, the joys of traveling abroad! Leave your home country and much of what you know and take for granted goes out the window. Such is the case with hotel ratings.
In the US, we depend on  the American Automobile Associations (AAA) to give our hotels diamond ratings based on a level of  amenities (not to mention discounts on rooms). Mobile dishes out stars, the more stars, the more luxury you can expect.
In Europe, you need to know what country you are in to know what rating system might be in place for your hotel (More about that later!) The world doesn't have a standard rating system but there is a move on to develop world wide standards for hotel by the a group called the World Hotel Rating (WHR) which plans a test for this year.