Boutique Hotel Forum
 

Would anyone else appreciate a forum on Boutique Hotels on flyertalk?

I would. They are my preferred choice, though they tend to not have a loyalty program, or not a very good one (Amsterdam Hotels in NY).

discussion of more lux boutiques would be best in luxury hotels, and cheaper properties in budget travel..

Actually, I think you are making my point because boutique hotels do not have all the features of full service luxury hotels. Also, many boutique hotels, cannot be categorized as budget accomodation when one looks at their rates.

Actually, think that this topic is better suited for the FT TalkBoard Forum.
Please continue to follow there.
Thanks..
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

Now You're Talking
 

This is my thing. I'm all about the boutique hotel. That's one of my main requirements for a fantastic vacation, it can make it or break it.

I guess I have a question about this:

Which one are we talking about?

1. Destination type boutique hotels where staying in that particular property is the main point of the trip.

Or

2. Suggestions for (and comparisons etc) properties in a particular city (eg New York , Paris etc).

If 1 - then my question is whether there are enough properties of interest to FTers so that it could draw enough traffic.

If 2 - then perhaps it is better served in the various Destination forums.

boutiques are discussed in the luxury hotels forum fairly often..

When I travel, I stay in boutique hotels 99% of the time. By boutique, I often do not mean high end hotels, but 3-4 star small hotels with personality and style. One of my favorites is in Rome--it overlooks the Pantheon. The Albergo del Senato is a very nice hotel , but by no means luxurious. The rooms that overlook the Pantheon are small--but oh , the sight in the morning watching Rome wake up in front of that building.
I also like bed and breakfast places --as long as I don't have to be chummy in the morning at breakfast. A fabulous one is in Asheville North Carolina --the Inn at Wintersun. A beautiful purpose built house that overlooks acres of gardens and the mountains behind. Champagne or wine available when you arrive and a wonderful breakfast. Comfortable interesting rooms with fireplaces and good books.
For those of us that love a boutique experience, luxury is just not enough.

I like this idea, as gungadin explained it. It usually won't give anyone any miles or points, but I'd find it useful as a traveler (not as a points collector).

gungadin, sounds like you would be best off posting in regional forums, especially for non budget B&Bs.

I'm in favor.

IMHO, the type of properties to be discussed might be similar to these:

Small Luxury Hotels of the World.

I'm typing this from a Kimpton property in SAN, which I think also qualifies.

Would also support.
I have my favorite "boutique" hotels. They don't earn me miles or points but are the ones I recommend to family and friends and favored FT'rs.

While there is some traffic in the Luxury Hotels forum, there isn't a hugh amount. Plus, I'm not sure that a Boutique Hotels forum would get a huge amount of traffic either.

It seems to me that while there may be some difference between the two, there is enough overlap that the two concepts could co-exist together. I might suggest that the current Luxury Hotels forum be modified to officially include Boutique Hotels making a Luxury & Boutique Hotels forum. I don't think that any increase in traffic would cause any harm to the existing forum. But if the traffic increase turns out to really be causing issues, we can always split them at that point.

I really enjoy staying at fun/special/unusual hotels, and I prefer them to luxury and chain properties. Such hotels currently do not have a home on FT.

I don't think the typical luxury hotel forum user would enjoy reading (or have much to contribute to discussion) about such hotels, as they typically are not "luxury" (in terms of service and other things dear to the folks in the luxury hotel forum). Likewise, many regular FTers may be a bit put off by the elitism and showing off which often dominates discussions in the luxury hotels forum.

Sure, information about these hotels could be exchanged in the destination forums (or the luxury or budget travel forums), but it would be nice to have a place we can turn to. I, for one, like to plan travel so I can stay at these hotels, and it would be nice to have a forum where something akin to the luxury hotel forum's "Who'll be the first to stay at the new twenty-four-star hotel in Bangkok" would whet my appetite for future trips.

I would consider a place to exchange information about fun/special/unusual hotels (including Boutique hotels) a valuable addition to FT.