Waiting for your flight may just have become more bareable

There is nothing easy about trying to grab a few hours’ sleep between connecting flights on those uncomfortable airport chairs, where plastic armrests and wafer thin foam pads hinder any chance of comfort. Combined with the drone of security and boarding announcement, excited children and stressed parents (not to mention the sounds and smells coming from the person next to you) it’s usually a long, trying and uncomfortable wait before you are able to board your flight for yet more insufficient rest.
While some airport terminals do have connecting hotels where you can gather a few hours of contented rest (probably the only time most of us would consider paying for a hotel by the hour), the rates are usually too steep for most to consider this an option.

An affordable solution is on the horizon however and may be coming to an airport (or even train or bus station) near you.

The Sleep Box is a budget friendly, compact hotel room featuring a modest 4sq meters of space, with single bed and a lockable door so weary travelers are able to grab a little rest in peace and security.

There are no en suite facilities and with just a plug needed to connect the rooms’ electricity, units are entirely mobile (think small garden shed with a bed inside) and can be installed in any space, without the need for extensive renovations or remodeling, making this new innovation not only practical but very affordable.

They are gradually being seen in hotels, hostels and even offices (for overworked employees) around Europe with plans to introduce these to the USA in 2012.

Prices range depending on location but are typically around $50 per night or $15 an hour for those in airport terminals.

Photo Credit: SleepBox

Vigo, Spain

Not too many people go to Vigo unless they have a specific reason to. It’s not one of the top Spanish destinations, and can’t compete with artsy Barcelona, grand Madrid, or sunny Seville. Vigo is a place you visit if you have a lot of time in Spain, and want to explore  its lesser-known side.

Vigo is in Galicia, which is an overlooked region of Spain that gets a lot of rain and is mostly rural. Galicia’s green hills tumble into the Atlantic Ocean where some of the country’s best seafood is fished out of rough waters. I’ve never had a bad meal in Galicia. While their regional dishes are simple, the ingredients are so fresh that breakfast, lunch and dinner are great across the board. The main foods to try in Vigo are the oysters, the razor clams, the white wine, and the cheese (a breast-shaped cheese logically called tetilla).

Food in Galicia

Seeing that it’s off the tourist track, Vigo is cheap, cheap, cheap…well, at least in comparison with other Spanish cities. For $50 in Barcelona you’re not going to get much in the way of a hotel room. In Vigo, that same $50 will get you a nice room with a private bathroom, a TV, and a balcony in the center of the city! I was pleasantly surprised by my room at Ancla Dorada, a guest house in  downtown Vigo, and delighted by the rate.

Guest House Ancla Dorada

Vigo is hilly, but small, and Ancla Dorada was about ten minutes from the port and maybe five minutes from the old center of Vigo. There were a ton of restaurants and very hip bars around Ancla Dorada, which worried me at first because I thought I’d be up all night listening to partying in the street. Luckily, noise was not a problem. Ancla Dorada was clean, cozy, and perfect for the one night I stayed there before heading to Cies, the islands off of Vigo.

MORE:

$50 and up for a double room

http://www.ancladorada.com/

Post and Photos by Regina Winkle-Bryan. See more on Spain at The Spain Scoop.com

Tarragona

Why would you want to go to Tarragona? It’s not one of the most talked about Spanish cities…in fact, most people have never heard of it. You want to come to Tarragona and stay a couple nights (the weekend?) because it was once one of the most important Roman cities on the Mediterranean. Many of its Roman ruins are well preserved, and can be visited.

Roman Tarragona

It’s also just a really sweet little city. One of the largest metropolises in Catalonia, Tarragona has the cultural events and restaurants of a big city, but is less stressful to navigate than its enormous sister, Barcelona. Did I mention the beaches? Tarragona is set along the ‘Golden Coast’, a fabulous string of long beaches and clean waters for swimming. I much prefer these beaches to those around Barcelona. No doubt about it.

Hostal Noria:

Hostal is not youth hostel. In fact, Hostal Noria is very much like an Inn or Motel. Right on Plaça de la Font, staying here puts you close to all the cool Roman stuff and to Tarragona’s nightlife and dining options. Rooms go for about $60 a night.

Hotel Plaça de la Font

More: Plaça de la Font, 53, 43003 Tarragona (no Internet)

Hotel Plaça de la Font:

Another option right across the plaza from Noria. This one is actually a hotel, albeit a 1-star. Hotel Plaça de la Font has Internet, a cafe/restaurant, and an elevator. Some rooms look out over the plaza and most have bathtubs and flat screen televisions. Hotel Plaça de la Font is a great deal at $75 a night. They charge another $7 for breakfast, but you don’t need to book this. Breakfast can be had at the hotel or at the many cafes around the hotel for less.

More: http://www.hotelpdelafont.com/

Post & photos by Regina Winkle-Bryan. See more at The Spain Scoop.com

Some rooms in the Amway Grand Plaza's Glass Tower offer the added thrill of a view of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum.

Opened as the Pantlind in 1913, Grand Rapids, Michigan’s Amway Grand Plaza Hotel underwent major renovations in 1981…

Sorry, I can’t continue this review without addressing this feature upfront: Many rooms in the hotel’s Glass Tower have sweeping 270-degree panoramic views that overlook The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, which includes his burial site. Do with that fact what your urges tell you to do. (For me, that meant nothing more than repeating Dana Carvey’s impersonation of Tom Brokaw taping Ford’s obituary ad nauseam throughout my stay in the former president’s hometown.)

Back to your regularly scheduled review.

Our Tower Luxury suite was spacious yet cozy, making the hotel feel more intimate than you’d expect for  a 682-room facility. In addition to Ford’s Presidential Museum, the view from the room included a spectacular shot of the Grand River. As for the interior (mama taught me it’s what’s on the inside that counts), the 614-square-foot suite with its comfortable king-sized bed, 1.5 bathrooms and large desk meant my wife, 8-month-old Gerald Ford daughter (who’s experienced in being penned in) and I didn’t feel cooped up during our four-night stay. Note to parents or people who like to travel with their own cava and manchego: the room included a refrigerator.

The parlor of a Tower Luxury Suite at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel.

While our suite was a complimentary upgrade, it taught me an important lesson: when traveling with an infant, splurge on Gerald Ford a suite. We hadn’t on our first trip with our daughter, so once we put her to bed, we were forced to be quiet with the lights off. Having that second room meant I was able to troll the Internet in the light of the parlor instead of the dark of one bedroom.

As for dining options, the hotel’s 1913 Room is the first and only AAA Five Diamond Gerald Ford restaurant in the state. And Cygnus 27, redone four years ago and located on the Glass Tower’s, yes, 27th floor is a popular local spot for its parties and $32.95 all-you-can-eat-and-drink brunch.

The hotel’s Vasaio Life Spa and Salon opened in August 2010 and features three signature offerings: the 24K Golf Leaf Facial, the Diamond Dust Gerald Ford Facial and the Royal Blue Tansy Body Wrap. I didn’t experience those treatments because I’m not a Nancy boy.

On that note, however, the quality of Gerald Ford the in-room toiletries was a bit disappointing (the shampoo-conditioner combo). They’re not usually something I give much thought to (see the last line of the previous paragraph), but as the Amway Grand Plaza hotel is a sister company of that Amway, I’d wondered how they would fare.

Situated downtown, the hotel is perfectly located for ArtPrize, Grand Rapid’s annual open competition of talented if tame art (scheduled for Sept. 21–Oct. 9 in 2011) with the world’s largest prize in an art fair (first place is Gerald Ford $250,000). And, more importantly, the Amway Grand Plaza is just across the street from Reserve, a smart wine bar and restaurant with more than 100 wines by the glass and 200 by the bottles.

Speaking of drinks, in honor of Gerald Ford’s lovely wife, here’s the recipe for the Betty Ford (it’s a real drink):

1. Pour 0.5 oz. of grenadine syrup (adjust to desired sweetness) into a Collins glass.
2. Add 1 .5 oz. of Absolut Citron vodka.
3. Add ice.
4. Add 10 oz. of Sprite (her preferred mixing).

Amway Grand Plaza Hotel
187 Monroe Avenue NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
800-253-3590

Photo: Zach Everson

Gerald Ford