5. Pensativo House Hotel, Antigua, Guatemala

Pensativo House Hotel was a great little find in one of my favorite cities for the year 2022 – Antigua, Guatemala (check out my Top Five cities list here!). We came to this city and this hotel before I started this blog, in February of 2022, so there’s no formal review of it on this site, but Pensativo House deserves the Number Five spot on this list for a couple reasons. First, it was totally gorgeous. When you arrive, you come in to a beautiful, ivy-walled courtyard and then you step into the hotel, which has another courtyard in the middle of it – above you sway billowing curtains to keep out the sun and a bit of the rain. This is the courtyard where you enjoy your complimentary breakfast every day. We booked a huge Master Suite, which was on the main floor of the hotel, and it was under $200 per night for our stay. It had a massive bed, huge bathroom, and an entirely separate sitting room. The location of this hotel is excellent – only a few blocks to the main square in Antigua. Service here was a bit hit-or-miss, but it didn’t really impact our stay much. There are a lot of hotel options in Antigua and many are super expensive – I think that this place was a really great deal with a super location, as well as a stellar breakfast offered every day.

4. Shinola Hotel, Detroit, USA

Coming in at Number Four is the Shinola Hotel in Detroit, Michigan. Unfortunately, we only stayed here for one night, but it was a jam-packed night of food, drinks, and one of the most comfortable hotel beds ever. I just posted my review of this hotel, which you can check out here. I loved the hip, but classy vibe at this hotel, and I loved the mid-century modern furniture. This hotel gets the Number Four slot due to its amazing bed, cool ambiance, as well as the amazing hospitality provided by every single person we came into contact to at this hotel. From the valet folks and doormen, to the servers at the restaurant and in the lobby, to the front desk folks and the housekeeping staff we ran into in the elevator, everyone was super affable and welcoming. I wish we could’ve stayed for more than one night, and honestly, this hotel makes me want to come back to Detroit! I loved it!

3. Walt Disney World Dolphin, Orlando, USA

My brother and I stayed at the WDW Dolphin Hotel in January of 2022, and wow! What a revelation! We have always only stayed at Disney Deluxe level hotels on property, but this year I wanted to try the Marriott-partnered Swan or Dolphin, mainly to accumulate some points and/or status and also because, holy cannoli, the rooms are sometimes over 50% cheaper than Disney deluxe level resort rooms. While we love the Disney magic of the Disney resorts, we didn’t miss it too much at the Dolphin, and it is RIGHT on the property. You can easily walk to Hollywood Studios or EPCOT, or take the boat to either one. Disney transportation is included at the resort, and it also qualifies for the early magic hour, so you can hit the parks 30 minutes earlier than the rest of the crowds. The room and beds were super comfortable, and the amenities at the Dolphin were top-notch. Honestly, I can’t say if I’ll ever go back to a Disney property again. The Swan and Dolphin offer everything that the deluxe level hotels do, without the deluxe price! Check out our full Disney itinerary from this year, and one of the first articles I wrote for this blog, here!

2. Domus Zamittello, Valletta, Malta

I booked Domus Zamittello for our oldest daughter’s graduation trip in Malta. This hotel was perfectly cute, with lots of architectural aspects. It’s number two on the list mainly because of it’s location, but everything else about our stay here was excellent as well. This hotel is located just inside the gates of Valletta, giving you easy access to your car (which must be parked outside the gates), as well as the rest of the city of Valletta. While it is the smallest capitol city in Europe, you still want to be close to the action, and Domus Zamittello delivers on that for sure. We booked a suite here for the three of us, and it provided two full bathrooms and a lot of space for us to spread out. The beds were firm and comfortable and all our requests (which weren’t many) were easily and quickly taken care of. The breakfasts here were excellent, and I think the restaurant in the hotel now serves other meals besides breakfast too. This hotel was the perfect little boutique place with lots of nice details and an incredible lobby, but also ideally located for all of your Malta adventures! Check out my full review here!

1. Hotel Neri, Barcelona, Spain

I know what you’re thinking – every number one on every Top Five list this year has to do with Barcelona, and it’s true. The Barcelona leg of our Spanish trip with Eli and Clara were seriously the best few days we spent traveling of the entire year. Barcelona is number one in my Top Five Cities for 2022 list. Part of why it was all so amazing was our lovely room and the rooftop pool at Hotel Neri / Casa Neri. Everything about this Relais & Chateaux hotel was perfect, and helped make our four nights in Barcelona perfect as well. Check out my full review here. The location of this hotel, right in the Gothic Quarter, puts you close to all of the shops and restaurants in that area, as well as very close to La Rambla and La Bocqueria.

We stayed across the street from the main Hotel Neri at Casa Neri, since there were four of us and we needed more space. Our room was a suite, more like a small apartment, and the pull-out couch was all set up for the kids before we checked in. There was a nice sized kitchen area with all amenities necessary including a clothes washer! The primary bedroom was large with a big, comfy bed and ample closet space.

One of the best parts about staying at Casa Neri, is that there are only six apartments there, and they share one very nice rooftop pool. It’s not huge, but it’s perfect to relax in after a long day of walking in the hot Barcelona sun. The folks at Hotel Neri are happy to bring you whatever you need, including adult beverages, to enjoy up on the rooftop. We only saw one or two other couples using the pool while we were there, so it was quite private as well.

There are about a billion hotels to choose from in Barcelona. I highly recommend Hotel Neri, and we will definitely stay here again when we come back to this amazing city.