Small hotel, small hotel, why so expensive?

Last year when booking a cruise an ocean liner that set sail from Miami with a final destination of Lisbonwe had the option of boarding, as an alternative, at the first stopover, which was New York City.

Since we were very tempted to adopt this fad to enjoy the details of the Big Apple for a few days, we first looked at the differences in fares between Miami and New York, which were acceptable, and later scrutinized the prices hotel rooms in New York.

It should be added that I don’t, but my wife does, she suffers from the cold and it was an adventure that started at the end of October, in the clear northern autumn. During my high school and college years, I lived changing seasons in New England and Nebraska, The latter, which rhymes with Alaska, is characterized by radical extremes in temperatures from over a hundred degrees to less than forty degrees below zero Fahrenheit.

In those young years, I was delighted skiing in Vermont, skating on the lakes of Massachusetts and even fish on them by patiently drilling a hole, throwing the poor worm, hooked on the hook, to certain death in the icy water to catch as a reward, after a few hours of shivering, a fish a little bigger than a sardine, something very different from our usual fishing sports in the waters of the Isthmus Pacific.

Thank God we gave up, as a result my wife’s frigidity, to spend the night in New York. The result of my research showed average prices over $500 a night in “acceptable” hotels in Manhattan. It should be added that the surrounding area is the world’s most expensive metropolis for accommodation, where the Penthouse suite at the Four Seasons Hotel costs an outrageous $45,000 per night, and that without taxes. adding $6,637.50 to the total bill.

We wisely decided to board Miami enjoying the day on November 3rd to visit Madame Tussauds wax museum to later meet my fellow student George Komninakis for a light lunch and a camel walk on the east sidethus saving hotel costs.

Something similar is happening to us this year when we set sail on a cruise from Southampton, which will culminate in stops in 15 countries in Northern Europe and the Baltic Sea. As we were traveling with my daughter Patricia and her husband Mateo, who were in London for the first time, we decided to spend the night in that city for 3 nights to see its most legendary magnets.

On a trip a few months ago, my wife and I chose “modest” accommodation in London, over £150 a night, near Victoria train station, the Sheriff Inn. What was our surprise when we registered that the receptionist He gave us a set of 3 keys on the third floor of the building next door, explaining that the first key was to open the door to the building, the second was the room key, and the third was the bathroom key.

The building did not have an elevator, so I had to climb the stairs, with heavy suitcases on my back, with rest breaks between floors. The wretched room was so, so small, that there was no place to hang clothes, with a bed that took up almost the whole space, thank God, with a small basin at the foot of it, and unfortunately, the window was sealed. An obvious violation of the security code, which did not allow fresh air to enter. The key to the tiny bathroom, which consisted of a toilet and shower, was located between floors, to be shared with all the rooms on the third floor.

I went back to reception to ask for a refund but it was too late, they had already charged for 3 nights including breakfast. It never ceased to amaze us that breakfast consisted of a cup of cold tea and porridge with bag of saltine crackers. When choosing a hotel in London, do yourself a favor and don’t stay at the Sheriff Inn. Otherwise, carefully study the fine print and review traveler comments. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that our selection this year doesn’t turn out to be too Dantesque!