There is great debate between travellers about the standards of hotels around the world. The debate is centred round whether European hotels offer the same value and level of accommodation as North America and Asia.
Now different people have different tastes when it comes to staying in a hotel or any type of accommodation away from home. Some people want everything to be like it is at home. Others value the cultural differences and expect accommodation to be different in other countries. And it also depends on what type of holiday experience you have in mind. The type of accommodation in a ski resort will be different to a beach front hotel in Waikiki. If you are on a European coach tour visiting several cities over a week you will encounter many hotels that are "pit stops" for the night. These hotels have been selected to fit in with the tour schedule and price. And there is nothing wrong with that as you are only "checked in" for the night and leave early the next morning.
However, if you are staying in a hotel for several days or longer you want to make sure you have selected a hotel that meets your requirements of location, accessibility, spaciousness, standard, quality and price. Every city around the world has good hotels and poor quality hotels so it is dangerous to generalise about the quality of accommodation across a continent.
Generally, people who have travelled the world agree that the standard of European hotels is not comparable to North America and Asia. Let's compare.
American Hotels
Generally American hotels are larger hotels and part of a hotel chain whereas many European hotels are smaller family run hotels. Of course there are the large hotel chains in Europe, more hotels are becoming part of chains and new hotels are built.
American hotels have larger room sizes than comparable European hotels for the same or less money. There are often additional facilities like two queen beds, large bathrooms, kitchenettes and air conditioning. Price is one of the biggest differences between hotels on each side of the Atlantic. Some American cities, such as Las Vegas, have incredibly high standard hotels at very cheap rates. Now these hotels do make most of their money from the casino you have to navigate through before you get to your room. And that's the trick, getting to your room with your wallet remaining in good health.
Another point that many world travellers say is that the restaurant meals in American hotels are larger and better value than in Europe. The quality of the food may vary but I would tend to agree with that too.
Asian Hotels
The main advantage with Asian hotels is that they are considerably less expensive than both American and European hotels for a comparable property. Even backpackers can afford to stay in good hotels in Asia whereas in Europe they are confined to sharing a dorm room with many other travellers.
Asian hotels tend to give much better value than their European equivalent. The average hotel size in Asia is relatively larger with many rooms. The room sizes are larger, bathrooms larger and newer. The facilities like pools and restaurants are usually better. World travellers have indicated they love to holiday in Asia because they can afford to stay in a hotel on the beach or one block from the beach. Dining out every night is inexpensive and makes a vacation more fun.
European Hotels
Unless you book a relatively expensive hotel, 4 or 5 star the standards are less than North America and Asia.
Many hotels in Europe are smaller, family run hotels. Many people find this type of accommodation has more charm and offers local hospitality over a large and sometimes impersonal hotel.
There have been many complaints about European hotels. Some people often complain about the small bathrooms with poor ventilation. Others complain about the poor linen, like in Italy where they give you those very thin towels that are like a small sheet. Others complain about the lack of views from the windows.
What Europe does have is the history and old world charm. Considering that when you are on holiday in Europe you won't be spending much time in your hotel room - does it matter?
Well, yes it does matter. You have paid for a hotel room and you don't want to have your European vacation spoilt by poor quality hotels where you don't feel comfortable.
In many European cities, visitors are recommended to stay in a hotel outside the city centre and commute to the tourist attractions. These hotels tend to be newer, larger and comparable to hotels in the USA and Asia. This is not a problem in most European cities as their public transport infrastructure is very good with wide coverage and easy access to most parts of the city.
For those who are travelling to Australia, the hotel standards are similar to North America.
