zimbali lodge | The Fighting Couple

A Room with a View

By The Fighting Couple on September 12, 2011 in General

We need your help. So we were fighting the other day. You have no idea how many times we have said that! But then again you are on this site. We were having a “discussion” on which of our fave hotels had the very best views? Hotel rooms are just that to us, rooms. What is important to us is what you can see from the room. Great views are travel porn. One of Luci’s all time fave shows is “A Room with a View”. In this “chic” flick, the heroine Lucy Honeychurch and bumbling chaperone Charlotte Bartlett find themselves in Florence with rooms without a view. In the end, she gets the man, and they get a room, oh and it has a view. As a result of this show, as we travel one of key requirements is an amazing view.

Our four contenders are: Conrad-Istanbul, Hiton-Nice, Cavalieri-Rome, and the Fairmont Zimbali Lodge-South Africa

Conrad-Istanbul

This is an amazing property! It lands overlooking the mighty Bosporus. (click on the pic below to get a better feel of the immense view) You can see two continents (Europe and Asia) with this view! How many hotels can claim that? The unique shape of the hotel makes for views of some amazing land and seascapes. What makes this hotel’s view special is your are treated to views with two senses: sight and sound. Every morn and night you are greated with haunting renditons of the call to prayer for nearby mosques.

Please click on photo to get the entire view!

Hilton, Nice, France

What is better than a view of the French Rivera? Nice offers some ob the best water and beach front on the globe. We understand the hotel sold to another chain. Can anyone confirm that? Regardelss the view of the swaying palms, the fine eye candy on the beaches and of course the azure water are not to be missed. You are literally a hop, skip and a jump to world class beaches.

Cavalieri-Rome

Ok we weren’t going to reveal which is favored by who to let you the reviewer an unbiased opinion. But this is Mike’s fave hotel in the world. The mighty Cavalieri is one of the ugliest hotels on the outside. It is about as glamorous as a cement box. But what it lack in outward appearance, the inside and of course the views more than makes up for. Located on a perch overlooking all of Rome and especially the Vatican, the view is breathtaking. As luck would have, as we opened the siding door to our patio, there was a rainbow over the city! The hotel is located in a 50 acre parklike setting. We understanding that during conclave, rooms go for astronomical prices. You could see the white smoke from your room!

Fairmont Zimbali Lodge-South Africa

Lastly, but certainly not least is the the Zimbali. While our room offered a jungle obstructed viewof the Indian Ocean, a few steps down the path to the pool affords one of the most impressive ocean front views! We visited the Zimbali at the end of our safari trip trough South Africa. The resort lodge is an oasis for the soul. The hotel has a number of freshwater pools right on the edge of the ocean. We timed our visit on the shoulder season and had the entire pool area to ourselves. Beat that view? I dont think so!

There are some many great locations out there: an African Lodge, a Mediterian escape or even take in Kensington apartments for that matter! Regardless if they are hotels, hostels, or even serviced apartments treat yourself to a great view!

Now is your chance to weigh in with your opinion. Which is the best view? Just leave a post below.

Avoiding the “Spa” Fight

By The Fighting Couple on August 30, 2011 in General

Çemberlitas Bath-Istanbul, Turkey

Spa. Ah. Just the word makes you feel better. 1000fights likes spas. Let me clarify-the female half of 1000fights likes spas. The male half likes golf. So why not do both? Because we are both incredibly anal about money and equality, 1000fights has a rule. Equal money on vacation. That means whatever is spent on golf, is spent on the spa and vice versa. This policy of equality came after a fight in South Africa. We were staying at the Zimbali Lodge outside of Durban. Mike golfed. Luci enjoyed the pool. But Luci also started feeling very resentful because while Mike was spending fistful of South African Rands, Luci wasn’t. When she tried to book a treatment at the resort, there weren’t any openings. Lesson learned. Here’s a couple tips for the non-golfing ladies and spa attending guys to make sure you aren’t getting shafted on vacation.

Plan ahead. Don’t expect to be able to walk into the spa and get an appointment. If you don’t plan ahead for an appointment, you’ll be disappointed and mad.

Budget. Know what you want to spend. Often times hotel spas are overpriced and under deliver. You’ll spend three times as much on a massage at the hotel versus one at an independent business down the street.

Ask Your Hotel. I know this seems counter intuitive and often times the hotel will pimp their spa, but if you ask for a list of local spas, the concierge will oblige.

Get in on the social networking. Once you find a spa you want to visit both on vacation and at home, “like” them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter. You’ll end up getting special deals.

Surf the group coupon. Living Social, Groupon, Amazon Local usually have a spa deal very two to three weeks. If you know you are going to visit a city, sign up for their deals. Purchasing group coupons means you get more for your money and twice the treatments.

Go web shopping. There are some really great Spa holiday links out there. These specialized websites drive deals just for Spa breaks UK and international spas. You’ll get better deals here than just approaching the property directly. You’ll also have the benefit of discovering several properties at once without having to look up each property individually. The best site I’ve seen is http://www.spabreaks.com. It makes me want to go to a spa now!