Drainpipe living

Posted by Staff in Austria, Budget Thursdays

If you happen to by kayaking in the Austrian city of Ottensheim, you will come across three lonely segments of concrete drainage pipe hanging out on the shores of the Danube River.  No, a lazy construction company did not leave it’s trash out…..it is actually a hotel….Dasparkhotel to be exact.

Dasparkhotel has turned three large sections of drainpipe into a boutique budget hotel. Located in a grassy park, the seven foot wide pipes are fitted with a large double bed, side table, lamp and a small window; also located on the property are a cafe, bar and restrooms.

As if turning a pipe into a room wasn’t innovative enough, the way you access your room opens new horizons as well.  Once you make your reservation online, at dasparkhotel.net, you are emailed an entry code for your room.  The code is valid only for your stay and is punched in directly on a keypad located at the pipe’s door….through this system they have eliminated the entire check-in/out process.

Since concrete provides no insulation and Austrian winters are a bit nippy, the hotel is only open from May to October.  As for the price, well, there is none!  They ask you to leave what you can in the room when you depart….they call it the “pay as you wish system.”

You know recycling is everywhere when you find yourself sleeping in a concrete drainage pipe!

Henry Miller travel quote

Posted by Staff in Travel Quotes

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.”

~ Henry Miller

Stay 90 feet above the Peruvian Amazon

Posted by Staff in Luxury Monday, Peru, Travel News

For more than 30 years, Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica has served as the innovator and remained the only true luxury rainforest lodge in the Peruvian Amazon. Bringing a thrilling new experience to guests, Inkaterra has constructed a Canopy Tree House perched 90 feet above the rainforest floor which provides a new sky-high perspective to the 29,000-acre private reserve it currently protects.

Meant to complement a stay in one of Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica’s existing 35 cabañas, the Canopy Tree House is outfitted with two single beds, wash basin, limited electricity and a portable toilet. Its walls are created out of wood and removable mesh screens to provide natural light and 360-degree vistas of the surrounding flora and fauna. During the day, orchids, hummingbirds, toucans, monkeys and other wildlife are a mere arm’s length away; while at dusk, nocturnal species come to life and provide for exciting evening excursions and stargazing along Inkaterra’s hanging 1,130-foot-long Canopy Walkway.

Guests staying in the Canopy Tree house can rely on a dedicated Canopy Butler to arrange and oversee all excursions and special requests. The butler is at-hand on a nearby tower and is reachable by walkie-talkie.

A stay in the Canopy Tree House includes lodge transfers; sundowners with chilled sparkling wine or Pisco Sours; a Canopy Bar stocked with water, soft drinks and beer; light dinner and breakfast; a private bilingual interpreter/guide; and binoculars and flashlights for excursions along the Canopy Walkway and the recently added Anaconda Walk. If sleeping in the middle of the nocturnal action becomes too much to handle, guests can descend to pre-arranged ground-level accommodations. Rates start at US$300 per person per night (double occupancy), and are applied as a supplement to the regular program rates.

For more information, visit www.inkaterra.com

The sock cave

Posted by Staff in Packing, Tip of the Week

When packing, consider rolling your socks up and placing them in your shoes.  The inside of shoes is wasted space and this is a great way to make use of it.

Now if you have really stinky shoes, you might be charged with “sock torture.”