If your idea of a romantic getaway is to sleep in surreal, vaguely medieval rooms within a Trojan horse, perhaps you should be spending your Valentine’s Day at the bizarre La Balade des Gnomes Hotel in Belgium. ‘The Walk of the Gnomes’ offers ten themed rentals made of natural materials – the polar opposite of typical sterile, cookie cutter hotel rooms.
Architect Mr. Noel created the hotel on what was formerly an ordinary farm in the charming historic town of Durbuy, to complement his restaurant next door. The most stunning suite, from the outside, is the Trojan Horse, but the hotel also offers a troll’s lair and a Macquarie Island room with a boat-shaped bed.
The natural building material cob, which is mud mixed with lime and straw, provides an ideal medium with which to sculpt irregular walls inlaid with mosaics and twisted branches. Some rooms look like castles straight out of Game of Thrones while others resemble alien landscapes.
No matter which room you choose, staying at this highly unusual hotel is bound to be an experience to remember. Rooms start at just €115 ($153).
