Fried eyeballs

Provence

My eyeballs were pretty fried after spending hours upon hours researching the worthiness of hotels in different cities in the Provence region. I have a pretty standard routine to do due diligence on these places before I will select them.

1. Check out the hotel recommendations from Rick Steves' guide books, which are packed with practical information and many spot on hotel recommendations.
2. Read reviews on Tripadvisor.com, an independent website where hotels are reviewed by everyday normal people like you & me. Thanks to all the great people who take the time to review hotels, I know which ones to avoid and also what to be aware of. I would like to contribute my reviews and pictures after my trip. That would be my way of helping make the world a better place. ;-)
3. Finally, visit the hotel's website to see how it presents itself.

This process can be very time consuming, especially if you want to be thorough. I know some folks can be very spontaneous and just book any hotel they happen to come across in their travels, but I prefer to be well prepared.