Europe travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

 Esch-sur-Sure is a small village set in the mountains, next to the Luxembourg. It is a medieval town which is surrounded by a meandering Sure River. The commune is famous with its open air opera and museums, Flower Parade and eco – tourism, offers 90km of walking paths.
The village is located around a castle built in 927, offer protection against marauding troops of Hungarians. The castle consists of two towers – the lower, built in the 10th century and the upper watchtower which was added in the 16th century. There is a charming view from the valley across the river. The castle is open year round and free admission. Old cloth and candle fabrics have been restored and are again producing typical products of the region. There is a permanent exhibition on the park with cloth-making museum and demonstrations.

A couple of miles from Esch-sur-Sûre are the country’s drinking water reservoir, where a barrage dam makes a fine lake, used for watersports of all sorts. Swimming, fishing, windsurfing, canoeing and sailing are very popular.

Urban hostels in Europe have passed to an elegant transformation over the last decade, creating a viable alternative to the boutique hotel. The picture displays the Urbany in Barcelona. Rooms here have private baths, Wi-Fi and air-conditioning.

A particular room at the Urbany in Barcelona.

The rooftop terrace at Urbany, where the view includes the Agbar Tower, left.

A room in the modern London Central Youth Hostel. Located five minutes from Oxford Street and Regent’s Park, this hostel also has a 24-hour Internet cafe, group tours around the city, entertainment (D.J.’s, live music and karaoke nights) and kitchens where you can make your own meals.

The picture shows the Circus Hostel in Berlin’s lively Mitte neighborhood, located in the heart of the city.

One of the apartments at the Circus in Berlin. Every room has Wi-Fi.

The youth-oriented Yellow hostel in Rome only accepts guests in their late teens to age 40. Dorm rooms are all mixed gender and some have private baths. Foosball in the common room at Yellow, which is near the central railway station in Rome.

When I mentioned a sleeping pipes like part of accommodation might not sound luxury but it is. DasPark Hotel turns concrete pipes into quite comfortable space for your next overnight stay. Almost like a camping a bit more elegant of course, the DasPark Hotel is a series of inconventional hotel room pipes located on a beautiful flora-filled backdrop just steps from the Danube River, Austria.

Design by Andreas Strauss, art college graduate designer. His approach is from a more practical angle. Strauss create a minimal hospitality unit series that made economic sense. He hit on the idea of taking sections of large concrete drainage pipes and fitting them out as individual sleeping space for passing travellers.

Each pipe is outfitted with a bed, lighting, and other furniture, with bathroom and restaurant facilities shared in a public space. And what’s more, DasParkHotel obtains sanitation and other hotel facilities from existing public infrastructure, allowing them to operate on a “pay as you wish” system in which guests pay only what they can afford or wish to contribute. Now that’s some great communal living.