Choosing the Right Hotel: It’s About More Than Stars
- Suzanne Lieberman
- May 28
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 4
One of the more common mistakes travelers make is choosing a hotel before they’ve really thought about the kind of trip they want to have.
People often start with star ratings, price, or photographs. They scroll through endless images of beautiful lobbies, pools, and elegant bedrooms, assuming that the nicest-looking hotel must automatically be the best choice.
But travel doesn’t work that way.
A hotel can be absolutely perfect for one person and completely wrong for another.
Over the years, I’ve learned that when clients tell me they “just want a good hotel,” what they usually mean is that they want a hotel that fits them; ie. their pace, their personality, their family dynamic, and the type of experience they hope to have.
And that’s where things get interesting.
Take location, for example. Some travelers want to walk out of their hotel directly into the center of everything. They want the beach on their doorstep, restaurants and cafes nearby, and the energy of a city all around them. They don’t mind smaller rooms or a bit of noise because they plan to spend very little time in the hotel itself. For them, the hotel is a base.
Other travelers want exactly the opposite. After long days of sightseeing, they want calm, quiet, space, and somewhere to decompress. They may be perfectly happy staying slightly outside the center if it means larger rooms, a pool, gardens, or a more relaxed atmosphere.
Neither traveler is right or wrong. They simply travel differently.
Families add another layer entirely.
Parents traveling with young children may care far less about trendy design and far more about practical details such as larger rooms, easy parking, elevators, fabulous breakfasts, or somewhere the children can let off steam after a busy day.
Teenagers may prioritize a pool, a gym and good a/c.
Grandparents may care about accessibility and walking distances.
Then there are travelers who genuinely plan to enjoy the hotel as part of the vacation experience itself.
In those cases, the hotel becomes a destination, not just somewhere to sleep. A beautiful spa hotel, a luxury resort, or a boutique property with atmosphere and character may become one of the highlights of the trip.
Other people barely spend any waking hours there.
This is why online reviews can sometimes create more confusion than clarity.
One person complains that a hotel is “too loud.” Another praises it for being lively.
One traveler says the location is “too far from everything,” while someone else describes it as an oasis. Both reviews may be completely accurate but they reflect different expectations.
That’s also why choosing a hotel is about far more than star ratings.
I’ve seen travelers unhappy in expensive luxury hotels because the atmosphere felt impersonal or because the location didn’t suit their style of travel.
I’ve also seen people absolutely fall in love with smaller, simpler places because the atmosphere was warm, the location was ideal for them, or the experience simply felt right.
Sometimes the “perfect” hotel on paper isn’t perfect in real life.
And sometimes the hotel people remember most fondly isn’t the most luxurious one at all. It’s the place where the breakfast staff greeted them every morning with a smile. The hotel with the little balcony overlooking the city. The quiet lounge after exhausting touring days. The lively hotel in the middle of everything that made them feel connected to the energy of the destination.
Those details are what people remember long after they forget the thread count of the sheets.
That’s also where working with someone experienced can really help. A good travel consultant doesn’t just know hotels; they learn how their clients travel. They help people identify what matters most to them, often before the travelers themselves have fully thought it through.
Because ultimately, the best hotel isn’t the most expensive one, the trendiest one, or even the highest-rated one.
It’s the one that helps create the kind of trip you actually want to have.
If you’re ready to plan your own meaningful Israel journey, I’d love to hear from you - you can reach out via my contact form
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