Another of my list of places that I've stayed at during my music tours. I'm in the fortunate position of not needing to book my own accommodation when I am away for tours, which can be a bit of a mixed blessing... the best part is that I don't have to go through the hassle of doing the booking and pre-paying for the hotel/accommodation but the down-side However, the down side is that I don't get to choose the quality or location of the places that I stay at. That said, most of the places that I've stayed at have been decent to high quality, and generally close to the local main train station or the rehearsal/concert venue. Mostly....
If I really want, I can always ask to book my own accommodation, but that always means also dealing with approval from the ensemble, and staying within a set budget. Seeing as the groups often have some sort of partnership with a local place, they can often get a better deal anyway... so, I often find that it just isn't worth the extra hassle, especially if we are often on the move and not staying in one place for an extended period of time.
So, Gent is a place that I visit relatively often. A beautiful city in Belgium, easy to get to and with nice food! This time was the first time in a different hotel though... the Getaway Studios in Gent is a touch further away than I'm used to for the concert/rehearsal venue, but it is closer to the places that real people actually want to get to (like the town centre and shopping areas).
The place appears to be a converted old school... so, lots of corridors and stone walls. However, most of it has been relatively tastefully redecorated, but you do get the impression that the old style sometimes fits badly with the current use (more on that later...).
The rooms are done nicely in a sort of slightly retro style. I enjoy the style, it seems like you have taken a bit of a step back in time. Although, the thing that slightly irks me (and also a bit about Gent in general) is that does sometime feel a bit self-consciously "hip" (do kids still use that word?).
The studios are nicely equipped with a small kitchenette and fridge/freezer. This is something that I often like in the places that I'm staying at... eating out is very nice, but it can get a touch expensive and as I get older, my stomach starts to rebel against eating too much oily/salty foods... and restaurants tend to use more of that than I do in my own cooking.
Plus, sometimes (often...), I like to just eat in the comfort of my own room... without having other people around, so that I can just put my feet up and watch a Netflix episode whilst eating. Actually, I often do that anyway in restaurants... and let me tell you, that gets a couple of weird looks!
The view from my particular window was quite pleasant... looking out over a large garden and green area. However, this common area tends to attract quite a number of people who will just want to talk and play loud music... thankfully, the windows are strong and closing them will block out most of the sound... including most of the sound from the early morning lawnmower...
So, one of the biggest downsides to the conversion is the fact that every corridor looks like this... It feels like something out of a David Lynch show, and it is incredibly easy to get lost on the first couple of times that you try and get out of the building! It doesn't help that reception (the exit) is not level 0 (the big green button on the lifts), but -1 instead! WTF!
Then there are the solid tiles.... the place resonates like a swimming pool. There is a reason why most hotels use carpet to deaden the sound. The rooms do not have an extra door inside to damp the sound of luggage trolleys and people walking and talking through the corridors, so expect loud sounds to enter your room from this side... and people can have very early transport to catch!
So, a mixed result from this hotel. More sound insulation between rooms and the corridor would have made it a much better place to stay at... however, as it stands, even with the kitchenette.... I would prefer a different place. On the other hand, it is cheapish at around 50-60 euros per night!