With just under 24 hours in Ypres, we needed somewhere central to stay! My preferred site for booking hotels is hotels.com I used it for all of the hotels we stayed in on our train trip to Hong Kong, and its always got us great rooms at fantastic prices. I grabbed an old copy of the Belgium Lonely Planet from my shelf so I could check out their recommendations too, and use their map to see where places were. Inside the planet I found 105 euros! It must have been left from a trip we did years ago - we didn't even stay in Belgium, just passed through, but it was enough for our hotel on this trip, so thank you past selves for being so casual with your cash!
A hotel that appeared on both hotels.com and the planet was Hotel Regina. Its located on the central square, right opposite the In Flanders Field Museum and just down the road from the Menin Gate. At
€95 for the night, we still had some cash left for a beer! Thanks again past selves!
Like everywhere else in Ypres, the shadow of the war is part of the fabric of the building. However, it was in WWII that the hotel was used to help the repatriation of allied airmen.
A down side to its central locations is that there is no specific parking for the hotel itself. However, it wasn't a problem to find street parking nearby which was free on a Sunday but it did mean we had to put money on the meter first thing Monday morning. If you are staying longer, I'm sure there would be free parking a short walk away and you can get a ticket for half and hour free which would be enough to unload the car.
The staff couldn't have been friendlier and more helpful. When it turned out that a bed hadn't been provided for Little Owl, the reception staff themselves came up with one. The room was plenty large enough to take the put up bed, along side the generous double bed. Our room looked directly onto the square. The 'original' features made it hard believe that this hotel, along with most of Ypres had been lovingly rebuilt after being destroyed in the First World War.
Breakfast was served in the bar area, which made for a relaxed experience in comfy chairs rather than a formal dining room. There was cereals, cold meats and cheese, bread and a selection of pastries, and a rather attentive man keeping our coffee cups topped up!
If you are heading to Ypres, I highly recommend Hotel Regina.
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