167 FROM PRISON TO PERFECTION...

We were on a roll now, another round of drinks was consumed, the noise level went up, and people started to get visibly giddy as we had two hotels in the bag. The next stop on the route is Menaggio on the banks of Lake Como, and we knew this was going to be a wallet-busting stop!

We ignored the Bust Rallies Bible this time. We knew exactly what we wanted and how much we were willing to pay. What we found was that Menaggio was a very popular spot for tourists in mid-June - who'd have thought it?

The choice was pretty limited, but that soon became an irrelevance after the girls saw one hotel and decided we were staying there! We looked at a couple of options anyway, Lisa discounted one instantly, saying it looked "like a prison"...she did have a point, to be honest.

Once an image of a stunning hotel, literally on the shore of Lake Como (with its own speedboat jetty no less) and manicured gardens flashed up on screen, there were squeals of delight from the girls.

Once we saw how much it was to stay, there were squeals of dismay from Richie and me!

Carl chimed in with some sage advice. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime trip, don't worry about the price." He made a great point, but Richie and I still worried about the price! After a bit of back and forth, we took the plunge. Of course, we took the plunge, look at it!!!

Oh, and did I mention that the hotel is 300 meters from the town centre with its bars and restaurants? We might try them after a dip in our pool if we decide not to hit one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

Once more, the credit card was whipped out, the rooms were selected, the details were entered, and shortly after, the confirmation was received. So now, we move from a chateau to an ultra-cool city centre hotel to a stunning 19th-century grand hotel - yet more variety, yet more life spice on to the next city.