Hotel Stay vs RV Stay

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.”

One idea of traveling in an RV is that you have all your stuff with you.  You don’t have to pack and unpack.  You also don’t have to worry about figuring out what hotels to stay at and what hotels not to stay at.  Of course, you do have to worry about about the RV parks a bit.   Some we would never stay at and some we really like.  One thing for certain in an RV is that you always have your own bed with you.

It’s so much nicer to sleep in your own comfortable RV quarters than sleep in a hotel bed.  Actually, it’s even more than that.  I’m sure most of us have our own horror stories about places we’ve stayed in the past and other great reasons for that RV.  However, there are some times that even we like to take a vacation.  Some of those vacations require us to sleep elsewhere.  Such was the case recently.

We took a little trip to the coast.  Since we didn't take our motorhome with us it meant that we needed to get a hotel for the night.  I had two blogs while we were gone and one of those mentioned the hotel we stayed at.

A new reality show on TV is Hotel Impossible.  Have you watched it?  It’s kind of like watching the Kitchen Impossible shows which make you real leery about eating at some restaurants due to the things you see in the kitchen on this show.  The hotel show is like that too as they clue you in to places where the hidden dirt in the room may be hiding.  The middle of this month another hotel show started with Gordon Ramsey.  It was Hotel Hell.   Hmm … wonder what he knows about hotels?  I think we all know a little.  It's what we see when we stay.

Recently I read a news article on some of the dirtiest things about hotel rooms.  There are a lot more places in that hotel room that are just as bad as dirty mattresses.  To begin with you might just keep your hands in your pocket and stay away from the TV remote and the light switch.  Like I said it’s not just the beds we have to worry about.  Maids may clean the bathrooms and change the sheets but they also bring a lot of dirt with them into the room from the other rooms as they mop and use the same sponge from room to room. Doorknobs tend to get wiped down but the bedspreads, curtains and other things you might touch don’t.  One thing I always worry about are the blankets and bedspreads.  You know they aren’t cleaned after every occupant and who knows what happens to them before you get the room.  After watching the show a few times, I now understand I have had reason to be worried.

Having an RV doesn’t mean you always will be able to sleep in your own bed.  Sometimes we still travel and visit places without the RV.  Your RV may not be germ-free but those germs are your germs.  The idea of picking up someone else’s germs isn’t pleasant. Picking up bedbugs would be even worse.  I’m not sure how to get around that other than touching as few items as necessary when staying at a hotel for the night or two.  Perhaps, wearing gloves would even help more … I guess for right now I’m thankful we have our own beds.  Our friend, Linda, suggested bringing a flashlight and checking.  Watching those shows can make one paranoid about the places we sleep and the kitchens that prepare our food.

So, for now I’m happy just to have our own little quarters and take our bed with us most places we go.  Besides we know that we’ll always have a place to spend the night.  Not only does Motel 6 keep the light on but so does Walmart and Flying J with no reservations required. There is an advantage in pulling your own bed with you. 

However, there are some extreme hotels to stay in if you’re really looking.  Here are a few.

	DogBark Park Inn B&B Cottonwood, ID
Hotel Costa Verde 727 1965 Boeing Jet 2 bedroom suite Costa Rica
	Alpha Resort Tomanu Igoo like inn. Northern Japan Rooms are made of ice
Hobbit Motel J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Belgium

‘Tis life on the road.