This little friend was on the wall of our “cabin” in Plaplaya, Honduras, on the mosquito coast…. a few inches from my mosquito net. All I could think about as I lay in bed that night was how thankful I was there were no holes in that net. At least the little friend would stay on the outside!

We had traveled all day in the back of a pick up, loaded ourselves into a dug out canoe with an outboard motor and arrived at Plaplaya near dark. With the assistance of an NGO, the village had be set up to host tourists and the small cafe and hotel looked newly finished. That night, in the moonlight, we watched a leatherback turtle lay eggs on the beach, something I’ll never forget. Thankfully I saw no more of this little friend, or his relatives!

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

BARCELONA

For indecisive folk who fancy both beach and city break, Barcelona is a happy compromise. Barceloneta is the popular city beach within walking distance of the Gothic quarter. Alternatively, stay around Poble Nou for local restaurants, easy access to the beach and a short metro ride from the city centre. This way you get the best of both worlds with cultural attractions, seductive Barcelona nightlife as well as soaking up some sunshine. You might also like to consider a day trip along the coast to Sitges, with a bustling gay community as well as a pretty beach.

Casa Gracia Barcelona Hostel

If you are considering summer in the city, top of your list should be air-conditioning or some outdoor space. With both air-conditioned shared and private rooms, the boutique Casa Gracia Barcelona Hostel not only delivers on gorgeous design, it has a charming tiled terrace too. It’s a perfect spot to start your night on the town so pick up a bottle of wine to enjoy at dusk or join other guests for paella on Mondays.

Equity Point Sea

A hop, skip and a jump from the Balearic sea and sand, Equity Point Sea Hostel is perfect for beach bums. Choose from 4, 6, 8 or 9-bed dorms all equipped with air-conditioning and en suites. At lunchtime, it’s a short walk back to the hostel for a siesta or why not buy fresh ingredients from the fabulous La Boqueria market and use the hostel self-catering facilities to pack a picnic. By night, you are just 10 minutes walk from Las Ramblas and the hostel operates free daily tours and offers a free breakfast.

GRANADA

Keep cool in the lush grounds of The Alhambra palace or head into the Sierra Nevada mountain range to enjoy a dip in the lakes. The seductive city of Granada offers steamy nights of flamenco, alfresco tapas and sunny plazas. [Editors Note: We have a good friend that just got back from Granada and can't stop raving about it!}]

Oasis Backpackers Hostel

After a day of admiring The Alhambra, return to Oasis Backpackers Hostel Granada for some equal stylish architecture and interior design. This boutique hostel offers bright and modern rooms and communal spaces including self-catering facilities. Guests can soak up the sun on the roof terrace with views over the Arabic Albaicín neighborhood. They host Argentinean BBQ nights, a welcome drink on arrival and the chance to win free beer on quiz nights.

LISBON

A good opportunity to combine city and beach break on your summer holiday, Lisbon can provide culture, nightlife and sunbathing rolled in to one. The nearby beaches fly the European Blue Flag for excellence and are popular with locals and tourists alike. At Guincho, why not try your hand at surfing, which fantastically wild beach and jut a 25-minute train ride from Lisbon. The shadowy and historic areas of Alfama and the Barrio Alto offer tile-clad buildings and orange tree dotted plazas, great places for keeping cool when exploring the city. Take tram 28 for a 40-minute city tour and lean out the window of this antiquated machine to feel the wind in your hair. Nightlife gets off to a late start around 11pm and crowds spill pleasingly onto the streets.

Beria Mar

Just a few roads back from the shoreline, most rooms at Beria Mar hostel offer views across the Tagus river. The interior is bright and colourful and the surrounding area of Alfama is Lisbon’s historic quarter. They offer a free breakfast, lounge and games room.

And the best bit? Most of these properties are offering 20, 30 or 40% their normal rates in HostelBookers Summer Sale!

Thanks to Cheryl from Hostelbookers who provided these great deals and this post!

If you’re interested in guest posting with IShouldLogOff, contact us at info [at] ishouldlogoff.com!

Good: Siem Reap, Cambodia

We took a chance and followed the advice of our hotelier in Phnom Penh.  We booked with his buddy hotel, $25 a night for a triple.  “It’s a bit outside of town,” he told us. “There’s free shuttle service.”  Needless to say I wasn’t holding my breath but low and behold there was a tuk-tuk waiting for us at the mini-bus stop.  We arrived at the hotel, which was gorgeous, but definitely a bit outside of the tourist area.  It was quiet, peaceful and all together perfect.  Looking off our balcony we saw rice fields and the luxurious swimming pool.  The place was five star by backpacker standards, and the nicest place we’d had stayed in a long time.  We were treated to a delicious made to order breakfast and spent the afternoons relaxing by the pool.  When we booked a car for Siem Reap, our driver ended up being the owner and our car was a Lexus SUV.  The place was heaven and it didn’t blow our budget!

Bad: Marsabit, Kenya

This would have taken the cake until we got to SE Asia.  Off of what little backpacker trail there is in Africa, there exists only two kinds of accommodation: first class and…local. Driving on the “road” from Kenya to Ethiopia we pulled over in the largest town, Marsabit and headed to the local place recommended by the guidebook.  The basic cement rooms had seen better days, and the electricity was intermittent.  Sometimes there was “hot” water, but the only food available was abysmal.  Excellent.  Unfortunately the shared toilets were squatters and our friend was sick, a bad combination.

Ugly: Don Det, Laos

Our bus was late to arrive at the turn off for four thousand islands in Southern Laos.  We arrived at the turn off after dark, meaning it was well past dark by the time we got to the dock and took the boat across to Don Det.  We were frantically searching for a place to sleep in the dark.  Thankfully the island was a bit deserted, but the accommodations were abysmal or outrageous.  We spent one night in a cruddy little hut and “got the heck out” the next day.  Unfortunately that also back fired and we ended up spending the next night (for free) in a crummy hotel room at the bus station.  Dirty sheets, walls and floor.  It was gross and the buses started rolling in at 6 a.m.  We had of course arrived around three, because sometimes a four hour bus ride does take 12.

This column of ishouldlogoff.com aims to answer those questions that we always get asked. What was your favorite this, or your worst that. Every week we aim to highlight a new topic and will do so until we run out of ideas. If you have an idea for a Good-Bad-Ugly post, feel free to tell us in the comment section below or send us an email. To read all of them, click here.

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