When people go on vacation or business trip, they use brand name hotels like the Comfort Inn or the Holiday Inn. While these hotels are good for getting a decent night’s sleep, they do not offer much more than that comfortable bed. Yet, there is an alternative if you’re looking for something a little more than a bed. A boutique hotel.

What’s a boutique hotel? Think about the relaxed atmosphere at home, combined with artisticly themed furnishings and decor. Mix that in with customer service to die for. Truck loads of must have conveniences; satellite tv, internet access and luxurious spa treatments, make for an appetizing retreat.

Most boutique hotels are begun through older homes that will either be torn down or turned into museums. For this reason, many of the rooms are not modernized. Owners will need to retrofit the rooms to give guests access to high speed Internet, phone lines, cable service and even private bathrooms especially if they are to compete with those big name hotel giants. Some hotels may even offer room service.

Owners of larger boutique hotels, rooms in the double digits and more, may install a fitness center, swimming pool and spa for their guests. Some hotels have an upper deck where guests/visitors can enjoy a meal while looking out at the countryside. They usually have a restaurant and bar on the lower floor/lobby area for guests to take pleasure in as well.

Besides providing all of these amenities, how can a boutique hotel stand out among the high competition of the Holiday Inn, Ramada Limited and even Super 8 Motel? These hotels usually have the same kind of motif but the boutique hotels strive to do something more. Owners have boutique hotels use catchy themes to grab the attention of its guests. Some hotel owners will use the theme of where their hotel is located at, others will use an era or time period to create a unique experience.

New Orleans boutiques, have designed their hotels around the 19th century era. This is fitting as most of them are housed in historic buildings. A hotel called The Hotel Union Square, located in San Francisco, bases its decor theme on the prohibition era.

Remember there are boutique hotels all across the world. While they are plenty in the United States, cities across the world that have them include: Paris, Cannes, Istanbul and Seville. Each hotel in each of these cities has something different to present its guests.

If this all seems interesting, all you need to do is some research through the World Wide Web. If you want to visit Paris, you do have a choice of hotels including boutique hotels. You need to remember that the boutique hotel you want may not have room for you especially if you wait until the last minute to make the reservation. Why? Many boutique hotels are not very big ranging in size of the single numbers to 100 plus rooms.

While the commercial tunes are catchy and make you think about that particular name, sometimes a little research finds you staying somewhere you never even thought about. You should realize that you pay for what you get. A boutique room is not cheap but well worth the cash you spend. With all the amenities you get, there’s no need to stay anywhere else.

Do you want something more on your vacation? Then don’t worry about the money try a boutique hotel and see what you are missing.