Top Five Accommodations of 2017
/Deciding where we're going to hit the hay for the night is one of those crucial decisions that takes up a lot of my pre-trip planning process. As I was working on selecting accommodation for our next adventure (South Africa!), I thought it would be interesting to reflect on my top five favourite accommodation of the last year. A similar post on restaurants will be up shortly!
1. Home, Buenos Aires, Argentina
If you're looking for a hip boutique hotel with a dreamy luscious backyard (with a pool!) and located in the best neighbourhood in Buenos Aires (Palermo!), this hotel ticks off all the boxes. We spent the first 4 nights of our trip to Argentina here and it was a complete haven on those hot and sunny summer days in Buenos Aires. The hotel front desk provides you with this great little guidebook with tons of great recommendations for places to eat and visit, many of which are not the typical tourist magnets. The Palermo neighbourhood is the stuff that hipster dreams are made of. Such an unbelievable concentration on restaurants, bars and shops. Yet, when you step into Home, you feel miles away and able to relax in their wonderful garden. Spend an afternoon in that garden by that pool and I promise you'll fall in love with Buenos Aires, Palermo, Home and, like us, never want to leave that amazing city!
2. Tambopata Research Center, Tambopata National Reserve, Peru
My love of animals has been well documented on other pages on this site. So when it came time to design our Peru itinerary, I determined very quickly that a visit to the Amazon was a priority for me. I kept reading about how the Peruvian Amazon is so incredibly ecologically diverse and pristine, but also how it is increasingly threatened by illegal logging and mining activities, and governments intent on tapping into the natural resources that the Amazon can offer. I needed to see this place for myself.
And the Amazon did not disappoint. Not one bit. As a travel experience, it was life-altering and incredibly humbling.
When we were choosing a place to stay in the Amazon, I quickly settled on the Puerto Maldonado region of the Peruvian Amazon (as opposed to the Iquitos-centered northern Amazon area of Peru, which is much more developed, or the Manú National Park area, which is very remote and more difficult to access). I was seeking a lodge that was small and remote, but that would still provide us with creature-comforts (we did not want to sleep in a tent).
Seven and a half hours from Puerto Maldonado, we arrived at Tambopata Research Center (TRC for short). According to the owners, TRC is the most remote jungle lodge in the Amazon. As TRC is also a research center for the study of macaws, a stay at TRC means that you are constantly surrounded by people who are passionate about conservation, the environment and the welfare of the wildlife, birds, plants and insects we encountered. Every day we were provided with a full itinerary of activities, from daytime and nighttime jungle walks, lectures by biologists, and visits to nearby clay licks to see more macaws and parrots than I ever imagined could be possible (hint: hundreds). Food was abundant and always strategically offered (snacks to make those long bus or boat rides extra special).
Although a word of caution. You cannot visit the Amazon expecting to see animals. This is not a zoo or a safari, where hoards of animals can be found roaming a bare savanna. You need to visit to be soothed by the sounds of the jungle, mesmerized by the variety of textures and plants and grateful for an opportunity to visit such a remote and biologically rich area of the world, which so few people have had the opportunity to experience.
Yes, it'll cost you a pretty penny. But I would return in a heartbeat. I wish I had taken more pictures of the lodge itself, but I was slightly distracted by the jungle around us.
3. Posada Verde Oliva, Maipú, Mendoza, Argentina
It was incredibly difficult for us to settle on our accommodation choice in the Mendoza region. There are so many beautiful options, many with quaint vineyard settings. Wine regions are a highlight for us, so making sure we're staying somewhere that offers a vineyard setting with romance, creature comforts and a central location is quite the objective to attain... but one that I am always happy to take up!
We ended up choosing the Posada (as our driver Miguel referred to it) and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. The Posada isn't located in the most stunning area of Mendoza (it's in Maipú, which is a heavy agriculture area of Mendoza, so no quaint restaurant or neighbourhood in walking distance). However, when you pass through the Posada's entrance gate, you're greeted by a beautiful villa and pool surrounded by olive trees, vines, and the most inviting covered patio.
But what really set the Posada apart for us was the service. It's important to know that we didn't want to rent a car in Mendoza for several reasons: 1) we wanted to consume all-of-the-wine and enjoy leisurely vineyard lunches, and felt that the prospect of having to drive would put a damper on those plans; 2) most of the cars in Argentina are manual transmission, which we unfortunately are not familiar with (I know, the embarrassment!); and 3) automatic transmission cars are crazy expensive! Oddly enough, hiring a private driver for every single day of our trip, including tips, was much more affordable than renting a car. It was also so much more enjoyable! Miguel took care of all the reservations for all of the wineries that we wanted to visit, making sure we experienced the best vineyard lunches, and very quickly figured out what we liked in terms of wineries and made helpful suggestions accordingly. It was so relaxing to spend evenings under the Posada's covered patio, ordering a light dinner, and sampling the wine we had purchased during the day. We were so sad to leave this tranquil haven!
4. Kimpton Taconic Hotel, Manchester, Vermont, United States
Never one to favour hotel chains, there was something that attracted me to this Kimpton hotel in southern Vermont. Maybe it was the oversized porch with rocking chairs, the rustic elegance of the hotel, the cozy rooms or the premiere location in one of Vermont's most underrated destinations, but we were immediately sold by the Kimpton and the town of Manchester.
Manchester offers cute shops and restaurants, outlet shopping, spectacular turn of the century homes, and access to the estate at Hildene, a historic home built in 1905 by President Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln's son, Robert, as a summer residence.
It was lovely to lounge by their pool on a hot late summer day or on their patio after a day of hiking at Hildene. The hotel offered a free cocktail hour at the end of the day, which was a nice touch. We will be back!
5. Summit Lodge Boutique Hotel, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
Reasonably priced and perfectly located in the heart of Whistler village (but off the main pedestrian walking path to avoid any late-night noise), we loved our short stay at Summit Lodge.
I loved the hotel's beautiful rustic hipster style, which also extended to the decor of their rooms. There were nice local art touches throughout the hotel.
In terms of amenities, the hotel offered a free shuttle service to the lifts every morning. And if you didn't feel like taking the shuttle, you could easily walk through the adorable Whistler village. A large hot tub was available in the back of the hotel overlooking trees, and was rarely crowded, thus providing a nice mini-escape within Whistler.
And our favourite part of the hotel? The hot chocolate and/or candy bar that they would put out every night!