“A Hotelcation”

Earlier this month we took a short “hotelcation.” Surely you’ve heard of a “staycation,” a vacation taken while staying home or close to home. A “hotelcation” is a vacation taken while staying in a hotel in your own city. On July 7 we checked in to the Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra, which is located right on the La Concha Beach, for 2 nights and a change of scenery. It is nice to go to sleep and wake up to amazing views:

Our friend Ploy who worked at the hotel until it closed for the lockdown alerted us to an amazing “locals only” deal to be offered when the hotel reopened. The room rate was incredibly cheap for a 4-star hotel, especially for July and August with an ocean view and breakfast included, so we decided, why not? While it seemed silly to book a room in a hotel that is 15 minutes walking distance from our apartment, it also seemed like a good way to contribute to the local economy.

It turns out that a change of scenery was something we needed. We spent the first afternoon on the beach relaxing, had drinks at the patio bar, and then went out for pizza with Ploy & Carlos. We felt refreshed and relaxed by the time we sat down to enjoy our pizza. The next day we spent several hours on the beach – something we rarely do – and then acted like tourists in our own town walking through the old city before lunch. After kicking back during the afternoon, we headed out to dinner at Xarma Cook & Culture, a restaurant we had yet to try but that had been on our list for a while. It was a great meal, with terrific service since the place was almost empty. The waiter even guessed we were from LA! We especially enjoyed the most amazing grilled vegetables, and the pork sirloin tataki with cream of carrot, vanilla, and celery root with pearls of wasabi – a house specialty.

All in all, it was a nice little getaway. While the hotel was not even one-third full, it was good to see the hotel’s high level of attention to the sanitation measures required. which also made us feel that much more confident in our decision to visit. It was a good way to test out how we will experience travel from now on.

No regrets,

Shana & Jeff