Category Archives: Hostels
Hotel Germs in your Room
No one really knows who was in their hotel room before them. Or what kind of mess they made. Maybe it was a bachelor party and the boys got drunk and threw up. Maybe it was used for prostitution and all the sexually transmitted diseases it brings. Yes it happens, especially in the best hotels. Or maybe someone got a really bad virus infection. Worse somebody died in the room. Hotel germs are a fact of life. With so many people using these rooms, hotel germs will tend to be higher than in your house.
The important question is did the cleaning staff really clean everything properly? The TV remote control, the bed light lamp switch, the toilet seat and handle. Cleaning staff are under enormous pressure to clean fast. On average, housekeepers clean 13 to 15 rooms a day, but it can be as high as 30 at some hotels. And there is no universal standard for cleaning hotel rooms.
Like our hospitals, hotels are becoming places where anti biotic resistant bacteria are beginning to thrive. Why? Because of the constant use of commercial cleaning agents combined with heavy use of antibiotics in our meat production systems have created these super bugs. Hotel rooms are places where a huge number of people from all over the country and World bring their own strains of bacteria. And if they bring that strain of disinfectant/antibiotic resistant bacteria you are screwed. As the video below shows, staff are also using sponges and toilet brushes to clean other surfaces which adds to the problem. Fecal contamination from toilet brushes can be deadly, especially if they are used to scrub surfaces other than the toilet.
Just because your room looks spic-n-span doesn’t necessarily make it so. Our friends at Oyster.com dish the dirt on hotel cleaning practices and offer tips on how to freshen up after checking in.
First of all, let’s just start out by saying that not every hotel room is secretly swarming with skin cells of past guests, E. coli, and/or unidentified bodily fluids. Every hotel has different protocol, schedules, and cleaning staff that determine just how clean your temporary home is going to be. We aren’t dumb (and neither are you); we know that not all maids are spending hours scrubbing, buffing, and spraying down every surface and crevice of our hotel rooms. But after digging, we uncovered some pretty dirty secrets of hotel “cleaning” practices, hiding in the sheets, on your pillows, across the bathroom counter, in the glasses you drink from — pretty much everywhere. Think you’re better off not knowing about how dirty the bedsheets are or what infectious bacteria is colonizing on that remote control? Trust us, it’s better to know — and know how to deal with it. And we’re here to help.
Glasses and Mugs. Tv remotes and telephones. Bedding and more!
READ ABOUT IT AT JETSETTER.
Sao Paulo Sauna 269 Chilli Pepper
Brazilian Gay Sauna and Hotel was included in Louis Vuitton Travel Guide.
The top French luxury brand Louis Vuitton has included Hotel and Sauna 269 Chilli Pepper in its new edition of the tour guides.
The Louis Vuitton travel guides offer tips for those who want to know the 15 hottest destinations in the world, including Sao Paulo.
269 Chilli Pepper is the biggest and the best hotel for single men in Latin America. Created by businessman Douglas Drumond, the enterprise has 2,3 thousand square meters and is located at Largo do Arouche, downtown São Paulo, brazilian largest city.
The place offers 5 suites, 124 single rooms at its three floors, as well as 369 lockers for local visitors. Showers and jacuzzis working with filtered water, two ofuros, a winter swimming pool with waterfall, and a summer pool, ionized with sand filter.
There is also a 60 square meters steam room and cooled indoor pool (with filtered water) and a dry sauna designed with ergonomic benches. Chilli also counts on a L-shaped lounge bar with seven square meters, furnished by acclaimed designer Philippe Starck, where several drinks and snacks are served. The second floor houses Mini Cine Cabaret, with a special selection of gay-themed movies. This is the hotel’s sexiest floor, where glory alleys, “Love Corner” lounge and “Surprise Surprise” space are located.
Still at the first floor, the hotel has a charming boutique which offers products by sex shop Alizée, books, E.S Collection speedos and shorts, in addition to exclusive clothes from 269 brand, designed by stylist Rafael Vicente. Besides that, Chilli Pepper’s first floor gains party atmosphere with setlist signed by top DJ Anderson Noise. Sporadically parties take place, and encounters among different tribes happen daily.
Single rooms have soft siliconized-fiber pillows, which guarantees guests a wonderful night sleep. Probel mattresses are very confortable and made in 100% cotton fabric. Sheets, bedspreads and towels are by Topázio brand, an assurance of sophistication.
At 269 Chilli Pepper, single men can definitely find what they look for, at any time and with confort, safety and hygiene. All areas have been developed for the better service to goers, ensuring intense moments of rest and leisure. The hotel can be found at Louis Vuitton’s City Guide SP.
269 Chilli Pepper Single Hotel
Largo do Arouche, 610 (Corner with Jaguaribe Street) Santa Cecília – São Paulo/SP
24h
Phone: (11) 3331-3336
Website : www.hotelchillipepper.com.br
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hotelchillipepper?fref=ts
Twiter: https://twitter.com/ChilliPHotel
Amazing Deals with AirBNB Apartment and Vacation Rentals
While this is not a gay specific service, it’s a COOL service a lot of my gay friends have tried. (Once you create an account, you can join a LGBT group – and search for LGBT places, if you wish).
You have heard of couch surfing, and home sharing – now come AIRBNB. A community marketing unique places to stay, at all price points.
Airbnb makes available a platform or marketplace with related technology
for Guests and Hosts to meet online and arrange for bookings of
Accommodations.
We connect people who have space to spare with those who are looking for
a place to stay. Guests can build real connections with their hosts,
gain access to distinctive spaces, and immerse themselves in the culture
of their destinations. Whether it’s an urban apartment or countryside
castle, Airbnb makes it effortless to showcase your space to an audience
of millions, and to find the right space at any price point, anywhere.
1. Use the search page to find a property. Enter the dates you need and
browse by availability. Message hosts with any question through the
onsite messaging system.
2. Enter your credit card information and click Book It! A host will accept
your request within 24 hours and at that point contact information, the
address of the property and other important information will be shared. You payment is held until 24 hours after your arrival – to make sure there are no problems.
3. Get your itinerary details immediately upon host confirmation of your
request. Contact your host to confirm arrival details. After the trip is
over, share your experience by leaving a review.
As the host, you can list your place for free. AIRBNB takes a small percentage from the renter and the lister, after a transaction takes place.
LOTS to choose from. New York City is the biggest market and has over 2500 listings! But other places like Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington DC , Hawaii, Paris, Italy – just about everywhere, have inventory to select from.
- +19,000 cities
- 192 countries
Since its debut in 2008, AIRBNB,
based in San Francisco, has booked more than two million nights of
lodging all over the world. People rent out their entire home or apartment — or just a room or a
bed — to others who find Marriott boring or want to see life in a new
area as a local would. And some of the spaces are very cool! Stay on Yacht, stay in a tree house, find a place with a hot tub, or simply find a bed to crash on.
My only caution is to be sure to check out reviews / ratings. Since this is an unregulated situation, one must keep in mind, you are not renting a hotel room. The mattress may not be a deluxe pillow top. It could be in a noisy neighborhood. But they are trade offs, as with anything. You must be a flexible traveler – or stick with the chain hotels.
Check out AIRBNB for your next trip!
Gay Travel Tips – HostelBookers’ Top Gay Hostels for 40 Years of Gay Pride
To mark 40 years of active gay culture, leading budget accommodation provider HostelBookers.com has compiled a list of top gay hostels.
28 June 2009 will mark the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots – and, for many, the beginning of the gay pride movement.
Today, the celebration of gay culture has become a global event, with huge pride festivals taking place around the world in June, from Amsterdam to San Francisco.
- Gay Hostel Puerto del Sol, Madrid
The top rated gay hostel on HostelBookers, Gay Hostel Puerto del Sol has an excellent central location in Madrid’s Puerto del Sol Square and offers free entry to some of the city’s most popular gay clubs.
- El Misti Hostel Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro
In the heart of the action in Copacabana beach, this welcoming gay hostel in Rio de Janeiro attracts a cosmopolitan party crowd.
- Gay Pizarro Hostal, Madrid
Situated in Madrid’s famous Chueca district, Gay Pizarro Hostal offers great advice on the local entertainment and a clean, affordable place to sleep.
- Elements Hostel, San Francisco
Lying in the colourful Mission district of the notoriously liberal city, Elements Hostel is clean, modern and affordable.
- London Hostel Gay House, London
Opened in 1984, this gay hostel in London is a well-established and sociable base for gay travellers exploring the city.
Whilst many hostels are gay-friendly, the number of hostels catering exclusively for gay and lesbian travellers is rising in the world’s top destinations, particularly in those cities which have a large gay community or annual pride festival.
Although hostels offer cheap accommodation, their main attraction is a sociable atmosphere and the opportunity to meet like-minded people – perfect for gay and lesbian travellers looking to make friends on the road.
About HostelBookers.com: Great Hostels. Free Booking. No Worries.
HostelBookers.com – launched in March 2004 – is a leading UK-based budget accommodation website. It offers a range of budget accommodation including youth hostels, hotels, guesthouses and apartments in over 2,500 destinations worldwide.
In November 2008 HostelBookers.com also received the UK’s Best Youth Product award at the British Youth Travel Awards (BYTA) run by BETA (British Educational Travel Association). The awards, are designed to provide a platform to celebrate and reward high achievers, gain recognition, and raise the profile of the work and individual successes of organisations engaged in youth, student and educational travel, to from and within the UK.
HostelBookers.com’s properties are reviewed and rated by customers and it remains the only major company in its sector to offer its services with no booking fees. HostelBookers.com also provides a range of free travel guides, plus travel news and information on worldwide events.
New Gay Travel Guide
