Hotel Notes: The Hotel Balcony Test

I have a confession.

When I walk into a hotel room...

I’m rarely looking at the bed first.

Or the bathroom.

Or the minibar.

I’m walking straight toward the windows.

Every single time.

Almost without thinking.

I’ll unlock the door.

Pull back the curtains.

Open the balcony if there is one.

And simply...

Stand there.

I’ve done this in Italy.

France.

Spain.

Greece.

The Canary Islands.

The Dolomites.

Without realizing it, I’ve been giving every hotel the same silent test.

I call it...

The Balcony Test.

Below, paid members of The Private Edit are stepping onto the balcony with me.

We’ll talk about:

• Why the view matters more than the square footage.

• The surprising question I ask within sixty seconds of entering every room.

• Why some of my favorite hotel memories happened without ever leaving the balcony.

• The difference between a room you sleep in and a room you actually live in.

• And why I’ll happily choose a smaller room if it gives me one extraordinary view.

Sometimes luxury isn’t found inside the room.

Sometimes it’s waiting just outside the doors.