Originally Posted by
mlin32
It depends where I am going.
I have a thing for staying at B&Bs (chambres d'hôtes) in France and Germany where I'm comfortable with the language, customs, and consistent quality of such accomodations, and I like supporting the small guy. Gives much more flavour to my holiday. And in a similar vein, if I feel comfortable with mom-pop hotels in western Europe, I'll do that over a chain.
But I feel in places like the United States and Asia, I'd rather stick with the consistency of a major chain.
This.
I love small boutiques in France. I like country B&Bs in Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. I feel like I know how to navigate those landscapes and get something more interesting than a chain hotel. Elsewhere in Europe, I've been using Booking.com to get apartments or small boutiques. IMHO, Europe is the place where the American brands are the most overpriced, the least interesting, and likely to cause me to miss out on something better.
In Asia, I tend to go with upscale chain hotels (Conrad, JW, Park Hyatt, etc. - or occasionally a true luxury brand). I don't feel skilled enough with local language or customs to find a really good local boutique hotel. In places where there are no/few chains, I browsed English-language online sources to get an idea of what to do, and then contacted guides or lodging options I've found there. I travel for work to India, and although my local colleagues there always offer to have their guy call a guy to set me up with a room at a local place they say is great, I just book the Park Hyatt. It's easier that way.
In U.S./Canadian cities, I go with the business brands I know well. Occasionally I'll do a luxury boutique if I've read about a particularly unique place or had a direct word-of-mouth recommendation. In rural locations, I split between chains (HIX, Hampton), B&Bs, or camping.