Yes, there really are low cost hotels in London. The English capital might be one of the world’s most expensive cities, but savvy travelers can still find centrally-located London lodgings with genuinely cool en-suite rooms for under £70, perfectly comfortable and clean rooms with a shared bathroom for under £30 and non-skeevy dorm beds for under £12.
Here’s a look at our favorite three hotels and hostels that offer a hip vibe, fun location and accommodations with a level of luxury that exceeds its price tag:
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For most travelers heading to Jamaica the beach is, understandably, the prime attraction. But those who limit their trip to the country’s coastline will miss out. The hilly and lush interior of Jamaica provides its own kind of special vibe. More than that, it is where true quiet and peace is found on the island. And if you are heading to the Caribbean in the summer months you’ll also find the climate in Jamaica’s scenic hills more agreeable.
Here’s a rundown of our three favorite hilltop hotels in Jamaica. At each a swimming pool, a peaceful environment and an amazing view awaits you.
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Technically, a “swimming hole” is any deep place for swimming in a stream, lake or river. But for this post — where are share our picks for the world’s best, coolest and most picturesque swimming holes — Spot Cool Stuff’s travel editors decided on a more ridged set of criteria:
First, we considered only swimming spots that were inside some sort of hole in the earth. That is, our swimming holes had to be substantially surrounded by rock. So somewhere like Idaho’s Redfish Lake, which a popular travel magazine named as one of their best swimming holes, wouldn’t count for us because, really, it’s just a regular lake.
Second, we decided to count only naturally occurring swimming holes. Sadly, this eliminated a very cool hidden swimming spot in Mexico that was created by a giant bomb — check back for our post on that later.
Finally, we only considered swimming holes that offered temperate waters. Because, well, we are cold water wimps. Spain’s wonderful, meadow-surrounded Playa del Gulpiyuri is unfortunately ruled out of contention on this count.
So what swimming holes made the cut? Read on . . . .
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There are few countries with more scenically situated hotels per square mile than Austria. So for this post — part of Spot Cool Stuff’s series reviewing the best hotel room views in various locations — we had to bend our own rules a little:
First, instead of considering hotels across the whole of Austria, we decided to limit our search to countryside. (In the future, we’ll write-up the hotel with the best room views of Vienna — follow us on Facebook, Twitter or email to be updated on that.)
Second, instead of only reviewing one hotel, we’ve chosen two. The Berghotel Schafbergspitze is our choice as the best views from a hotel room, but the quality of rooms (as well as the hotel in general) is otherwise rather bland. Those who want their amazing room view to come along with some amazing luxury should check out the Ferienhotel Fernblick instead.
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It gives a whole new meaning to the term “high dive.”
It brings the experience of swimming to the edge.
It combines the fear of drowning with the fear of heights.
It is the infinity swimming pool atop the Marina Bay Sands Resort & Casino. And from it you can gaze out upon an amazing view of the Singapore skyline — and straight down a 55-story plunge to the ground.
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Incredibly fragile, many of the instruments hang from the ceiling during concerts so as not to be melted by their musician’s body heat.
Ice and music. Depending on your age, those two words might conjure up the infamous 80s band Vanilla Ice and their hit “Ice Ice Baby” or the more recent rendition of the song by North Carolina school administrators announcing a snow day. But what’s really too cool (too cool) is the Swedish musical group aptly named Ice Music, whose instruments are carved out of ice.
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Kadir's is the sort of place travelers end up staying for much longer than they planned.
Imagine a shabby yet chic cabin resort. And then imagine life in The Lord of the Flies — in the first part of the William Golding classic, that is, before things go horribly wrong. That’s the vibe guests get at the eclectic, colorful — and outrageously affordable — Kadir Yörük Top Tree House.
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Go on holiday to Benidorm and chances are you’ll spend much of your time in the resort city on Spain’s Costa Blanca lounging around and drinking beer. So why not spend a bit of time getting some exercise — and drinking beer. That’s what’s on offer with Benibike, an unusual sort of pub crawl during which you power the transportation and your hosts provide the drinks.
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