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Experience Travel Group

We dislike bland, characterless chain hotels and passionately believe that hotels should add to the travelling experience. Any hotel needs an excellent USP to be featured by us.

We visit all the hotels in our portfolio and this guiding system is designed to provide a semi-objective judgement to help you decide whether the accommodation suggested is the right choice for you. 

Ultimate

There are very few hotels we would describe as 'ultimate'. Hotels in this category must have absolutely everything anyone could want and really be aiming for the stars. These hotels generally go well above and beyond and they would always be at the very top end of the market. These are for clients looking for that extra special place.

Luxury

Luxury hotels would have a superb level of service, very comfortable and usually spacious bedrooms, excellent food, great design and character. For us, when we visited, these places all had the ‘wow factor’. A luxury hotel should satisfy the criteria of the most discerning clients.

Deluxe

This is our first really 'upmarket' category. It might be a beautiful tiny hotel with very limited facilities or a 5* resort hotel with all the trimmings; but any hotel in this category will be a well-run establishment with very comfortable rooms, a strong service ethos and excellent food. 

Superior

This is what we would describe as our standard category. These will be decent 3/4* hotels providing a really good level of service. We would generally expect them to be providing a little something extra, in terms of character, guest experience or facilities too. 

Comfort

This is our lead in category. There will generally be a no frills approach and while some will be characterful, some will do exactly what it says on the tin – provide a clean, comfortable and good value place to spend the night. These places are normally 3* hotels.

Eco/Adventure:

This category covers gorgeous lodges in the jungle, comfortable safari camps and dreamy, but simple, beach cabanas. These places defy conventional categorisation: what is communing with nature to one person may be terrifying bugs to another! Many of these places are very comfortable and the service generally of a very high level – but please read the website review carefully and/or talk to us and be sure to have understood what you are letting yourselves in for!

Basic

The 'Basic' category covers places which are very simple indeed, with extremely rudimentary facilities. These places are used when they are part of the experience, such as a village homestay, or when there are no other hotels available in an area. 

Villa

The 'Villa' is a similar concept to the 'holiday home' in Europe, with some key differences. Our villas in Asia are always fully staffed with cooking and service provided for you. Staff will generally cook meals to your specification and purchase food and drink for you at cost price. They are generally pretty smart and luxurious too and feel in many ways like a small private hotel. Nonetheless, your villa is still effectively a home and therefore you cannot expect the same level of training, English speaking or slickness that you might expect from a hotel at a similar cost. As the owners are not generally holiday professionals we cannot guarantee the quality of a villa matches expectations in a way we can with hotels. That said, the personal local touch means villas are generally much more friendly and interactive than hotels and have much to recommend them. The privacy and space makes them wonderful for families, groups of friends or couples looking for privacy and relaxation.

Homestay

What we mean by 'Homestay' is generally a large family owned house, still occupied by at least some members of the family. Interaction with guests is encouraged and is in fact unlikely to be avoided! These places always have bags of character are usually highly charming and can provide a fascinating shortcut towards understanding local life a little better. Facilities can range from the luxurious, to pretty basic and meals are generally taken as a group and served in the local style rather than from a menu. The service is almost always fairly quirky and idiosyncratic. Great fun.

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Experience Travel Group

020 7924 7133 Get in touch

Call
  • Destinations
    • South Asia
      • Sri Lanka
      • The Maldives
      • India
      • Bhutan
    • South East Asia
      • Thailand
      • Vietnam
      • Cambodia
      • Laos
      • Myanmar
      • Indonesia
      • Malaysia
      • Borneo
      • Indochina
    • Middle East
      • Oman
  • Holidays in Thailand
    • Hidden Thailand Holidays
    • Family Thailand Holidays
    • Ultimate Holidays
    • Multi-Country Holidays
  • Guide to Thailand
    • Why choose Thailand
    • Weather & When to go
    • Hotel inspiration
    • Experiences inspiration
    • Free Country Guide Download
  • Info on Thailand
    • Northern Thailand
      • Overview
      • Chiang Mai
      • Chiang Rai & The Golden Triangle
      • Mae Hong Son
      • Pai
    • Isan
      • Overview
      • Loei
      • Nakhon Phanom
      • Udon Thani
      • Phanom Rung
    • Central Thailand
      • Overview
      • Ayutthaya
      • Bangkok
      • Kanchanaburi
      • Erawan National Park
      • Khao Yai National Park
      • Lopburi
      • Phitsanulok
      • Sukhothai
    • Central Beaches & Islands
      • Overview
      • Hua Hin & Cha-Am
      • Koh Chang
      • Koh Kood
      • Koh Samet
    • Southern Thailand
      • Overview
      • Ao Phang Nga National Park
      • Khao Sok National Park
      • Trang
    • Western Beaches & Islands
      • Overview
      • Phuket
      • Koh Lanta
      • Koh Lipe
      • Koh Phi Phi
      • Koh Yao
      • Khao Lak
      • Koh Jum
      • Koh Ngai
      • Krabi
    • Eastern Beaches & Islands
      • Overview
      • Khanom
      • Koh Samui
      • Koh Pha-Ngan
      • Koh Tao
  • About us
    • Our Story
    • Our Team
    • Our Reviews
    • Our Press
    • Our brochure
    • Our Blog
  • How it works
    • Why choose us?
    • Booking with confidence
    • How much does it cost?
    • Trip planning process
    • Financial protection
    • What happens if something goes wrong on my holiday?
    • Working with in-country partners
    • My Booking
    • Contact Us
  • Holiday Types
    • The Revitalise Collection
    • Immersive Escapes
    • Honeymoons
    • Family Travel
  • Inspiration
    • Inspire me
    • Travel Soon
    • Plan Ahead
    • Month by month weather guide
    • Free Country Guides
  • Sustainability
    • Travel Better
    • Our Counter-Carbon Pledge
    • One bottle at a time
    • Building a Sustainable Future
    • Giving Back
  • Search
  • Contact Us
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