AP just does not make reservations. They're not needed. There are way too many places to stay throughout whatever city AP finds himself in. AP has walked the streets of Paris past "better" places with a lower rack rates while looking for the one that was reserved. AP isn't too picky, he usually stays in sombody's house in places like Bruges. Gasthaus in Keggerland and all of Netherlands not named Amsterdam. It's kind of typical really.
Many people rent out extra rooms in those areas. They typically have separate entries and are isolated from the main home. So those are really more like unlicensed hotels. The gasthaus or whatever they're called are just hotels attached to a restaurant/bar. But most of the time it's just a standard run of the mill hotel like any that I would have booked a reservation for. I'm usually out on the "bathroom is down the hall" type of places. I usually need a pretty good reason to go for that. AP travels super extra light figuring anything forgotten can be picked up there. The hotel is just a place to sleep and brush the teeth and etc. The sights are what its about.
When Mrs. Pancake in in tow, it's a different story. We drop $200+ per night at fancy schmancy places and she still bitches about it. The hotel is the vacation for Mrs. Pancake.
And if it turns out that maybe a reservation is a good idea. For those times when arriving late into the city or just don't feel like wandering around. Otherwise, I just want to get to a hotel. Almost any TI (tourist info booth) can book you a room right then and there. I've also jumped on hotels.com or easyjet.com to book rooms in Europe in a pinch. But never had trouble finding a place crash. Ever.
|