Weekly Weird: Hail a 'Hotel Room' in London

Caroline Morse Teel is the Managing Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Follow her on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline.

Caroline joined Boston-based SmarterTravel in 2011 after living in Ireland, London, and Manhattan. She's traveled to all seven continents, jumped out of planes, and bungeed off bridges in the pursuit of a good story. She loves exploring off-the-beaten path destinations, anything outdoorsy, and all things adventure.

Her stories have also appeared online at USA Today, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo, Boston.com, TripAdvisor, Buzzfeed, Jetsetter, Oyster, Airfarewatchdog, and others.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: "Earplugs. A good pair has saved my sleep and sanity many times!"

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Hiking Mount Kilimanjaro.

Travel Motto: "Don't be boring."

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: "Aisle (when the first class private suite isn't available)."

E-mail her at cteel@smartertravel.com.

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London hotel prices during the Olympics out of your budget? Why not hail a hotel room? At least one cabbie with rent you his back seat. If a moving hotel’s not your scene, maybe a Fifty Shades of Grey themed one is? Read these stories and and more in this edition of the Weekly Weird.

An enterprising London cab driver is planning on making some extra cash during the Olympics by turning his car into a mobile hotel room. The Daily Mail reports that the Relax-A-Taxi will feature a memory foam mattress, Olympics-themed bedding, lamp, curtains, solar powered radio, iPad, portable fridge, and even a stuffed Paddington Bear toy for company. The cab driver, David Weekes, has offered to park the cab outside of his house in north London, and let guests use his bathroom. The price for a night’s stay in this unique accommodation? 50 GBP per night (approximately $77.6 USD; see xe.com for exchange rates). Judging by how much a ride in one of London’s black cabs usually costs, it’s a steal!

Feeling inspired by the popular Fifty Shades of Grey series? One Seattle hotel is hoping to capitalize on the racy books’ success by offering a “Fifty Shades of Seattle” package. Book it at the Hotel Max and you’ll get a two-night stay for two with a 30-minute helicopter tour, a ride in a chauffeured luxury town car, and a four-hour sunset sail in Puget Sound (with a picnic including Bollinger Grande Annee Rose 1999 Champagne). The price to live like the book’s characters? $1,669 (plus tax).

We wish our travel budget was even half as much as the British royals! The Sun reports that the family spent 6.1 million GBP (approximately $9.46 million USD). That includes a massive $80,756 spent on a one-way flight from Los Angeles to London for Prince William and Kate (and their seven person entourage). Wills and Kate, if you’re reading this (which we know you are), please sign up for our airfare newsletter. We guarantee that we can get you across the pond for less than that!

Did you see anything weird on your travels this week? Tell us in the comments!

(Photo: Rob Wilson/Shutterstock.com)

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