Wait, I am not fussy about hotels as in the I-need-to-be-treated-like-a-queen way. But I definitely am fussy. About erm most things haha. I hope I am not alone in this.

The sole reason why I hated chalets was because of the grimy / sandy floors, the thing that they call a bed, icky bedsheets, and god-knows-how-long-it-has-gone-uncleaned toilets. I mean, I love the bonding spirit and all – but I think bonding happens better for me when I’m actually in a nice clean place.

Before this article happened, I felt alone. And almost ostracized.

I know nuts about Egptian cotton sheets, thread counts, herman miller chairs, smart gadgets, and I don’t care too much about the presence of a bathtub. But it MUST. BE. CLEAN. No unsightly stains from unexplained sources on bedsheets, no icky toilets, no dubious looking sofas, and no carpets that make my feet itch.

Luxury is a bonus. And very welcomed.

I am hence the self-imposed (or make that enforced. haha) default hotel IC when I travel with anyone. I am obsessed about stalking Tripadvisor to see how the rooms actually look like, and I immediately strike hotels off when I see things like bed bugs. Oh, the horror.

And that’s why I only travel with selected groups now because I have my minimum standards to keep to. People who feel that motels will do since you dont stay in your room most of the time anyway are now not my travel buddies. Checking into a crappy hotel spoils my entire trip and it drives me nuts to know I can’t relax in my room at the end of a long day because the hotel is not clean. And even for luxury hotels, I wipe down everything with my dettol wipes when I first enter the room. I’ve since upgraded to wiping down my plane seat + tray before I sit down haha.

Quiz of the day: which part of a hotel room is the biggest germ nest? THE REMOTE CONTROL. The air plane? THE TRAY. WHERE YOU EAT ON.

Even Ibis in Seoul worked for me as it was spotless. In places where there is no international chain of hotels at the point of travelling (points acrrual alert!), I pick the bestest of the lot, like when I went to Makassar in 2013 (they now have Ibis and a brand new Novotel. Shucks).

The bestest ever about a hotel stay? CLUB LOUNGE ACCESS.

I can’t even begin to describe how having access to the lounges makes me feel. It’s like belonging to an openly exclusive club where you truly feel like a valuable guest. You can choose to bounce on copious amounts of caffeine (free flow coffee!), go on a random sugar high from the all-day cookies and mini cakes, or get really REALLY buzzed over unlimited beer, wine, champagne / prosecco, and cocktails in the time span of 120mins in the evenings. The evening canapes served can usually suffice for a light dinner – or a heavy one if you stuff your face while at it. For alcoholics, paying extra for Club rooms is definitely a worthy investment.

Of course I have my own budget too – I won’t blow $800 on a room at Raffles Hotel (which brings me to the point: I dont understand what’s so nice about colonial-ish place? Just my 2cents). That’s where my other obsession comes in – stalking hotel memberships for deals. But that’s thoughts for another time.

So ya, I’m not a fuss pot. I am just particular. Very.