Last month my cousin Eva and I planned a short weekend trip to York. We wanted to walk through the old streets, try local food, and go to a small music event on Saturday evening. Because train tickets were cheaper early in the morning, we decided to leave on Friday and return on Sunday. That meant we needed to rent a room for two nights.

At first, I thought the search would be easy. I opened a travel app and found many rooms, but some were too far from the centre and others were more expensive than I expected. One room looked beautiful in the photos, yet the price was high and breakfast was not included. Another room was cheaper, but several reviews said it was noisy at night. I did not want to spend money on a place where we could not sleep well.

Then I found a small room above a family café near the old town. The room was simple, but it looked clean and comfortable. The host answered my message quickly and explained that check-in started at three o’clock. She also wrote that there was a bus stop nearby and that we could leave our bags early if we arrived before check-in. We only had to pay a small deposit online to reserve the room.

In the end, I booked that room. The trip went smoothly, and the room was exactly as the description said. Now I know that reading reviews carefully and checking the details can save time, money, and stress.