5 great sources for hotel inspiration

Where I find my inspiration

I am always (and when I say always, I mean always) on the look out for new hotels. Or maybe it is more accurate to say, hotels that are new to me. Hotels that awakens an urge to travel. Hotels with that unique thing that makes me want to book a room that very minute. I browse Insta, flick through magazines, buy glossy coffee table books, read quirky local guide books… Ok, I think you get the picture. :-)

Below I have listed five sources of inspiration, where I have found some of my favorite hotels. These are sources that still keep me inspired by continuing to find and share places that intensely tickle my travel nerve.

Design Hotels

This hotel community was launched in 1993 based out of Berlin, Germany. Today they have a portfolio of more than 300+ hotels located around the globe, all privately owned and operated. In their portfolio you will find all kinds of hotels, from vibrant city hotels to old castles and everything in between. What connects all these hotels is a genuine passion for hospitality and for creating purposeful experiences.

Here are five really great hotels that I have discovered and stayed at thanks to Design Hotels:

Timber Cove / Jenner, CA, USA

Le Pigalle / Paris, France

Dexamenes / XX, Greece

Furillen / Gotland, Sweden

ION Adventure / XX, Iceland

Monocle

Monocle has grown into a small empire. It used to be a magazine but now there are books, travel guides, radio shows, shops… In everything they do they have a unique sense of sniffing out what is waiting around the corner, regardless if it is a hot new designer, a global movement or a really interesting hotel project. There are so many hotels I would have never heard about if Monocle wouldn’t have featured them in one of their publications. And I am always eagerly awaiting the next issue of their magazine or travel guides to add more hotels to my list of places to visit.

Here are five really great hotels that I have discovered and stayed at thanks to Monocle:

Ace / Kyoto, Japan

Masseria Moroseta / Ostuni, Italy

Ett Hem / Stockholm, Sweden

Hotel Amour / Nice, France

Rantapuisto / Helsinki, Finland

The Aficionados (previously White Line Hotels)

The Aficionados was launched as White Line Hotels by Iain Ainsworth in London and Markus Burgermeister in Munich and is a collection of their favorite hotels. On their webpage they say that their hotels possess a strong style narrative and are places that makes them smile. I think that is a great way to select ones favorites. They want to be an online resource for people like me and you who seek hotels beyond the ordinary.

Here are five really great hotels that I have discovered and stayed at thanks to The Aficionados:

Bühelwirt / San Giacomo, Italy

De Durgerdam / Durgerdam, Netherlands

Breac House / Dunfanaghy, Ireland

Hospedaria / Tavira, Portugal

Parkhotel Mondschein / Bolzano, Italy

Konfekt

Konfekt is the sister publication of Monocle and even though I know it is aimed at a female reader I buy ever copy and read it with passion. The main reason is the generous travel and hotel section. My favorite spread is when the list different places on one page and share some handpicked places to stay, to eat, to shop, to experience. And if Monocle sometimes tend to lean more towards the more luxury side of the scale, Konfekt usually writes about small, personal boutique hotels, often in unexpected places.

Here are five really great hotels that I have discovered and stayed at thanks to Konfekt:

Les Cabanettes / Arles, France

Rochechouart / Paris, France

Corte Pravecchio / Valeggio sul Mincio, Italy

ROSSO / Altusried, Germany

Villa Arnica / Lana, Italy

Mr & Mrs Smith

I first discovered Mr & Mrs Smith when I was looking for a housewarming gift for my friends Malin and Andreas, and I found their travel/coffe table book about hotels in the British countryside. The company was founded by British couple James & Tamara Lohan back in 2003. A company that started with book publishing and later grew to become an online booking platform and global travel club. This is a site I often use when looking for great places to stay when we have decided the destination but not yet found the hotel.

Here are five really great hotels that I have discovered and stayed at thanks to Mr & Mrs Smith:

Shishi Iwa House / Karuizawa, Japan

Il Palazzo Experimental / Venice, Italy

Pig at Combe / Honiton, UK

Wilmina / Berlin, Germany

Sparrows Lodge / Palm Springs, CA, USA