We have completed our hotel arrangements for the entire trip and I am very excited that we are staying mostly in more local hotels rather than the big chains. I was told that we should stay at the major chains because they cater more to the American tourist, but I prefer the feel of locally owned and operated businesses. And the word is that the rooms are very small in these areas compared to what we Yanks are used to. But the way I see it, the room is where you sleep and take a shower. If you don't plan on getting out and seeing the places you visit, then what is the point of going at all?
I have a feeling Kim and I will be tripping over each other at times, but we are going to have a fantastic vacation!
When we first roll into London, we are staying at the Luna Simone Hotel. This hotel is ranked 5 stars on TripAdvisor and 4 stars on Travelocity as well as being highly recommended by the renowned Rick Steves. By stating that I found the hotel in Rick Steves' London Guidebook, we immediately got a 10% discount on our reservation, making it less than $200 per night, which is very good for this well regarded accomodation. And when I made the reservation, I expressed my concern about getting into London early in the morning and not being able to check in until 2pm. I got a wonderful email back from the proprietors telling me to come to the hotel and we could leave our bags and get a bite to eat before doing some sightseeing and that our baggage would be taken to our room for us! Now that is service!
So here is the wonderfully anticipated Luna Simone Hotel!
When we make our move down to Birmingham for Crufts, it was highly recommended by many friends and previous Crufts attendees to stay at the Crowne Plaza, Birmingham Center, for it's easy access to the Crufts venue. I looked into several of the hotels with more 'local flavor' but for accessibility and convenience, we elected to stay here. Perhaps if we would return to Crufts one day, we will try to support more of a local venue.
The Crowne Plaza, B'ham!
After our whirlwind fun and shopping at what is regarded as the greatest dog show shopping experience on the planet and seeing some gorgeous dogs, we will return to London to join the AAA tour of Britain and Ireland. We will meet up with our group at the Park Plaza Riverbank located on the scenic south side of the Thames with beautiful views of London. We will be there for 3 days with the tour group. I'll be typing a day to day preview soon!
For your viewing pleasure, the Park Plaza Riverbank in London!
After finishing up in London we are off to visit Bath and Stonehenge before moving to our next location in Cardiff, England. We will spend one night at the Parc Hotel in Cardiff just prior to our move to Ireland! Really looking forward to that part of the trip! FINALLY going there, Grandma!
So here is a view of the Parc Hotel, Cardiff, United Kingdom!
Hopefully feeling rested and refreshed, we will be taking a ferry across the Irish Sea to Ireland and motoring to Waterford, home of Waterford Crystal (where my sister says her souvenier is to come from!). We will be staying at the Granville Hotel, which I am told is a marvelous "old world" hotel located right on the waterfront! Really looking forward to this grand mans!
The Granville Hotel, Waterford, Ireland!
From Waterford we move on to the Ring of Kerry and all the lovely views and sights along the way. We will be staying at the Killarney Avenue Hotel just outside the entrance to Killarney National Park following a full day of just being tourists! Hope the beds are comfy!
The Killarney Avenue Hotel, Kerry, Southwest Ireland!
From there we will be spending a day at a working Irish dairy farm before moving on to the big kahuna of Dublin. I am SO looking forward to this part of the tour and was pleasantly suprised when I discovered that based on the tour itinerary, we would be in Dublin for St. Patrick's Day! WOOT!
While in Dublin we will be based at the Burlington Hotel. Won't be much sleeping going on in Dublin, I think!
The Burlington Hotel, Dublin, Ireland!
After we recover from all the fun in Dublin, we will be taking the ferry back across the Irish Sea to Holyhead, Wales and on to Chester, to get rested up for even more fun!
The Village Hotel, St. Davids, Chester, Wales!
We will be taking a wonderful scenic ride through England's scenic lake district, where I will probably go photo crazy. Then on to Scotland, where we will be staying in the capital of Edinburgh, residing for a few days at the Apex City Hotel in downtown.
The Apex City Hotel, Edinburgh, Scotland!
After exploring everything Edinburgh has to offer, we will head south again through the British countryside to York. In York we will be going "all Yankee" and staying at the Marriott York, which I have been told has wonderful views of the York Racecourse. Looking forward to that definitely!
The Marriott York, York, United Kingdom!
From York we will head to Coventry, then Stratford-Upon-Avon for our final tour stop of this dream vacation. We will be staying at the quaint Walton Hotel for a quiet end to our trip.
Back to London for our final night in Europe before we head on back to the States! I hope you have enjoyed my 'Accomodations Tour' and will continue to follow me as I prepare for my trip of a lifetime!
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