Hotel Amenities in Europe: What to Look for Before Booking
Before booking, verify:
✓ Elevator access
✓ Air conditioning
✓ 24-hour front desk
✓ English-speaking staff
✓ Wi-Fi availability
✓ Breakfast options
✓ Luggage storage
✓ Proximity to public transportation
Key Amenities to not overlook:
Some of the smaller, boutique hotels in Europe, which are in charming older buildings, do not provide an attendent on a 24×7 basis. While you can get along without one, having someone on site can be very helpful. It’s the kind of resource that is not fully valued until something goes wrong. It is also beneficial if you are arriving late or leaving early. For instance, if you arrive at the hotel before check-in time it may be possible to leave your luggage at the hotel freeing you up to begin exploring the city.
Beyond having an attendent on duty, having one that speaks english is important. No more so than during an emergency. If you experience a situation involving the police, fire, or medical attention having someone to act as an interpretor is essential. We were traveling in the north-eastern part of France, near the German border, when we needed to see a doctor. Unfortunately we don’t speak french and the EMT on the other end of the line didn’t speak english. We were saved by our hotel attendent which translated out symnptoms and obtained an appointment at urgent care.
Many hotels in Europe are in older buildings that are smaller and the passage ways and stairwells are narrower and steeper than in the US. As a result, many do not have an elevator. You need to determine if this is an issue for you. Carrying heavy luggage yourself can be challenging on its own. Carrying heavy luggage up several flights in narrow, twisty stairwells is a whole other level of difficulty.
Summers in Europe can get quite warm. Air conditioning is not readily available. If you want air conditioning be sure to check for it. Also, if your desired hotel is shaped like a square and has an inner courtyard, any room facing the courtyard may have limited airflow thereby making the room warmer.
Wifi can be very helpful on your vacation for sending pictures and videos home, making internet based phone calls, etc. If you plan to use the hotel Wifi make sure to use a VPN application to safeguard your data.
Concerns for older adults:
If you have mobility issues that prevent you from navigating even a few steps then you need to excercise caution when selecting a hotel even if it indicates is has an elevator. We have been such hotels that after taking the elevator we still had to negotiate four steps to get to our room while carrying our luggage.
If walking is an issue, before you book a room make sure the hotel is close enough to any key amenities that you will need. Most important would be access to public transportation such as the metro. A critical part of your research should be to verify that the metro station has, at a minimum, a working escalator in both directions. Just as the older hotel buildings don’t have elevators, the same applies to older metro stations. Also, it might be a risk to rely on escalators, given that we have seen escalators in metro station going in both directions not working.
Extended stay apartment-like hotels:
These hotels, while harder to find, offer a few things that can be game-changing. For families, having a kitchenette can help reduce the cost of your European vacaction. Also, the larger space is often appreciated. It is also common for these places to have laundry facilities, either in the apartment itself, of on the premises.
Hotel features you may not truly need:
Having a coffee pot or tea pot in the room might be a good consideration but the quality of the coffee, as well as the lack of cream and sugar may change your mind. Remember, you are in Europe, where some of the best coffee drinks are available.
A gym or a pool always sounds like a great idea, and for some it might be. However you’re on vacation. If you want a workout, we suggest skipping a few metro stations and walk. Not only will you get great excercise but you will also see much more of where you are. When our kids were younger and we would take them to Europe, they would refer to our vacations as “force marches” because we would walk so much.
Is breakfast a necessity or a nice-to-have?
Should you find a hotel that offers breakfast or just pick up something on the way to the first activity? It depends on what you like, how adventurous you are, and how much effort the hotel puts into breakfast. Smaller hotels that offer breakfast tend to offer something that is somewhat limited and repetitive. The flip side of this is that the breakfast is in your hotel, ready for you and you know what to expect, Eating in a hotel might be a bit pricey, however if you look around you can always find more reasonable places that include breakfast. Usually you can opt to pay for breakfast at the hotel on the days you want to eat in.
One critical thought:
Your health and safety are paramount do not sacrifice its importance in favor of other criteria or suggestions when selecting a hotel and its surroundings.
