Usually, one tends to compare cities when traveling, a bad habit because each place is different and has its own charm. When I traveled to the Baltic countries, I could not help but compare their capitals, especially since when I was looking for recommendations, there was certainly no lack of comments or articles that said what had been their favorite city. Mine was Vilnius, although it was not the most picturesque of the three, it had something special that attracted me from the beginning, it seemed very different to me.
The same thing happened with the accommodation, at the beginning, I did not know what to expect, especially because of the strange location of the eLoftHotel, but in the end, it was a very comfortable place and the neighborhood turned out to be very cool, since it is in the midst of a artistic transformation. But how was our experience at the eLoftHotel?
Location
The hotel is located in the Naujamiestis micro-district (New Town, although it is actually one of the oldest in the city), about 2 kilometers from the historic center. An industrial area that has been transforming over several years into the cultural district of the Lithuanian capital.
But when you get to that borough without knowing this information and have not yet seen Vilnius, it may seem that you have not chosen well the location, because it does not look as beautiful as the old town. Do not get carried away by that idea since it is a very alternative and artistic neighborhood; it is a little as if you were traveling to New York and instead of staying in Manhattan, you would stay in Brooklyn.
To get to the hotel, you enter through a parking lot surrounded by other commercial premises and apartments. The hotel itself is zero conventional, since on the outside, it looks like a warehouse, but its facade was actually designed by the artist Vladas Varkalys. In fact, the hotel is also an art gallery and there are some studios of local artists in the building.
Facilities
The hotel only has 34 rooms -all with different decoration- and as mentioned before, it is also an art gallery, so you will find modern art everywhere, since they decorate it with temporary exhibitions and have a room with its permanent exhibition.
Regarding our room, we had the loft for double occupancy with a kitchenette. We didn’t see the other lofts, but ours was contemporary, large, clean, and above all comfortable. With its equally large, simple, but modern bathroom, in a sauna like style.
To what type of traveler do I recommend it?
To the traveler who does not mind being outside of the main tourist area and who prefers to explore other areas of the city. Also, to those who prefer to stay in holiday apartments, since you have the advantage of having a kitchenette, while keeping the comforts of a hotel such as daily cleaning, a restaurant and a sauna. And finally, to the open-minded traveler because as I mentioned in this post, it is located in an area that is being transformed from industrial to cultural and the concept of the hotel is different.
*Thanks to the eLoftHotel for its friendly hospitality.
If you want to travel to Lithuania and would like me to organize your trip or event through our travel agency Tripdreaming, contact me at silvia.lucero@tripdreaming.com.
For editorial questions, please contact me at silvia.lucero@latrotamundos.com.
