The TouchingNature.co.uk Guide to Accommodation
Enjoy special places, full of local character, with our growing range of carefully selected accommodation in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy's South Tyrol and Dolomites.
Note: we do not provide a booking / reservation service. Please contact our recommended hotels, B&Bs and self-catering properties directly with any enquiries or booking requests. The contact details are on their individual property page on this site.
We are confident that you will be very happy with our choice of accommodation options but here are a few areas that we feel we should draw your attention to before you contact the property owners:
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The star rating is the official rating awarded to each hotel, country inn, B&B or self-catering property by the accommodation classification board in the individual countries. These are broadly comparable to the standards in the UK and Ireland (please note that there is no European-wide star rating system). Premises may opt to remain ‘unclassified’, which is still quite common in some of our more ’off-the-beaten-track‘ walking areas. |
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In most hotels and country inns you can choose to stay on a bed and breakfast basis or on a half-board basis. Bed and breakfast means that the price includes the cost of a continental breakfast. Half-board means the price includes breakfast as well as the evening meal at your hotel. If you book half-board you will generally receive dinner on the day of arrival and breakfast on the departure day. Where your stay includes half-board, dinner may be a set menu; for late arrivals, hotels sometimes provide a cold plate. Some hotels may prefer to ask guests to order dinner at breakfast time, as the produce is ordered fresh from the market each day. Tea and coffee are not normally included in the price of your dinner and are charged extra. |
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There is NOT the same distinction in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Italian Dolomites and South Tyrol between double and twin rooms as there is in the UK and Ireland. Double beds are usually two single mattresses on one large base, but with two separate duvets. It is therefore not possible to separate them. This type of bed is also often used in a twin room. If you prefer two separate beds, we would recommend booking two single rooms instead (however, these are always popular, so please book early to avoid disappointment). Note that nearly all hotels have specific rooms they allocate as ‘single’ and payment of the supplement does not automatically allow for the single occupancy of a double/twin room. The single supplement guarantees the privacy of your own room; however, single rooms can, at times, be small and occasionally may not offer the same facilities as double rooms. |
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The standard check-in time at most of our destinations is from 4pm onwards but this may vary. Please contact the property if you expect to arrive later than agreed. This is particularly important, as quite often no pre-payment is required on booking; you pay at check-in. Check-out time on the day of departure is usually at 10am, but this may also vary. |
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