Dergvale Hotel

Offering 20 rooms in the residential Upper Gardiner part of town, the family-run, two-star Dergvale Hotel, falls into that happy subcategory of hotels that we think would be especially appealing to a fussy aunt or uncle.

The rooms can't help but please neat freaks: All are tidy, well lit, comfortable and painted in calming pastel hues. They are each equipped with a television and phone. Some rooms have private bathrooms, while the cheapest have a sink only and share other bathroom facilities.

Restyled one too many times, to within inches of its life, the Dergvale Hotel has a lobby that's simultaneously compelling and perplexing. The elegant doorway puts you in one frame of mind, while the patterned carpet and non-working fireplace put you in another.

And just wait until you see the literal underbelly of the Dergvale: its basement bar. Imbued with a retro elan just crying out for hipster inhabitation, it beckons you to sink into its deep red booths for a nightcap or two. Or fantasize about keeping bar in a romantic, history-drenched city while penning a novel about romantic, history-drenched things.

In all, the Dergvale Hotel is basic and old-fashioned (there is no Internet access on the property), but it benefits from friendly service and very low rates.

Breakfast is sometimes included in the room rate (check when booking).