EuroCheapo Review: Calling all shopaholics and opera-maniacs! The Hôtel Peletier Haussmann provides 26 classy, two-star rooms with a nice range of amenities at Cheapo prices. Situated in the center of the chic, Opera shopping area, the hotel is ideally located for those planning to hit the big department stores or frequent the opera.

Rooms are spacious, modern and comfy. Recently renovated, rooms feature large reproduced paintings, striped yellow wallpaper, and some trendy bedding. Bathrooms have sparkling white tiles, and the lobby's exposed stone walls and track-lighting create a warm ambiance. Free Wi-Fi, newspapers and a reasonable €6 breakfast definitely make the Peletier a worthy Cheapo.…full details

EuroCheapo Review: Just try to beat this clean and cozy hotel for value, comfort, and charm. Situated in a quiet residential area, the Pensione Paradise is just minutes from the Lepanto metro stop and a quick stroll from the Vatican. Inside, you'll find a tasteful blend of antiques and antique-inspired furnishings. Plus, the Paradise is notable for its cleanliness.

Tall ceilings make rooms, which have large windows, appear more spacious. Even the single room without a private bath scores big points for a rustic tiled sink and beautiful mounted mirror. Our favorite touch was the bedside radio control switch! And the multinational, multilingual staff couldn't be more pleasant.…full details

EuroCheapo Review: Hotel Antares is the best-looking small hotel in Bratislava, appropriate in scale and coziness to count as a true boutique hotel.

Were it not for the relatively diminutive sign in the front, you might be forgiven for thinking that this 16-room hotel was just another conventional but pleasing modern villa. The 'hood, after all, would be fitting for such a manse. Surrounded by embassies and diplomatic residences in the lush hills behind Bratislava's castle, the neighborhood is precisely the sort of place where Slovakia's well-heeled lovers of modernism would build their smart villas.

The well-lit reception has beige walls and polished stone floors. The rooms don't quite live up to the swank, modern feel of the reception. We were hoping for streamlined simplicity. Instead, we got rust-colored carpets, chocolate-brown bed units, and patterned rug-like blankets. Not unappealing, mind you, but not quite the modernist magic we anticipated. Desk units are nicely configured, if small. The leather desk chairs have wheels, and the bathrooms have a lovely brand-new, well-scrubbed feel, with gleaming white and silver tiles.

As one might expect, business travelers tend to be the most common guests here, and it's easy to see what lures them in. Unlike many of Bratislava's business-class hotels, with their unimaginative furnishings and worn surroundings, Antares offers its guests some boutique style and a helpful staff. The pretty breakfast garden is a major plus too.…full details

EuroCheapo Review: The Hotel-Garni Flora is a three-floor pension on the north side of the Hauptbahnhof. Originally opened for business in 1946, the Flora has been run by a crew of super-friendly new owners since early 2005. Hostel types and other budget hunters will feel right at home.

Don't be put off by the twisting entrance to the pension, which appears at first to lead to nowhere. And don't fret about the limited reception hours: a night porter remains on duty through the night. The international staff is excited and eager. On balance, Flora is a great value, with good things (read: renovations) in the pipeline. Until these renovations sweep through, don't expect televisions in every room. Flora is very charming, if a bit scruffy in spots.

The rooms are clean and comfortable, if not exactly sparkling. And if you're looking for modern décor, keep looking: we love the Flora's 1970s aesthetic, but some might find it unappealing. Half the rooms have private bathrooms, and what treasures lurk within! Anyone a fan of avocado bathroom tiles? How about a matching toilet on a platform, also completely done in a creamy avocado? We hope that as renovations proceed, little details like these will not be lost.…full details

EuroCheapo Review: It takes chutzpah, or at least a finely developed sense of dark humor, for a hostel to hang a huge promotional poster hawking Quentin Tarantino's "Hostel" in their lounge. And what a lounge: swank, with black walls, the hostel's signature stencil wallpaper, a massive mobile, and a corner Internet station.

City Hostel is that unusual beast, a hostel put together at an aesthetic level that few hotels manage. The entire hostel is beautiful if austere, like a super glamorous monastery. Sturdy bedframes, gorgeous stencil wallpaper, and very little else in the way of ornamentation may not sound like a design coup, but in fact these rooms are stunning in their minimalism.

Bathrooms are altogether less glamorous, though the floors feature rows of tiny goldenrod tiles, and shower curtains are bold and colorful. Both touches inject a little flair into otherwise basic bathrooms.

City Hostel is linked to Hotel Classic around the corner, and shares certain of Classic's facilities. The hostel's safe deposit box, for example, is located at Hotel Classic.…full details