I know it is ridiculous but this happened to me recently when I was in Cologne for business. I paid a €80 hotel room for the exorbitant price of €260. Why? Because there is an important event in town and all hotels in the city center have doubled and tripled their asking price. This is usually the case with cities that host a large number of trade fairs and conferences throughout the year. Normal tourists who are shelling out money from their pockets are usually the victims.
Tip: Always research ahead of time. If worse comes to worst, you have Airbnb and B&B sites as a fallback. Or book in the surburbs.
In Taipei I paid about €106 a night at Tango Inn Taipei Ximen Hotel, but when I checked today, they were going at €94 (after discounts). The difference is not huge but it shows that no same price is ever given to a room. I normally book my hotels at Booking dot com for the reason that it is the most user friendly hotel booking website I have ever encountered. But I am not loyal though. I book directly with the hotel if they give me a better price or concession. Such as our stay at Avanti Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City and Makati Diamond Residences in Manila.
What’s the lesson here?
[To read the rest of the post and see more pictures, click the Read more link below]
Shop around. Click around. I do not have a bottomless travel funding so I employ beffitingly some conscientiousness on my part. I appreciate my holiday and travels more when I get the value of the money I spent for. So whatever I am able to save from my hotel costs, I can spend it on my dinner or sightseeing activities. That is a win situation for me.
The hotel is part of the Tango Brand, offering a new trend in casual travelling with a focus on having a great hotel experience in terms of location and the highest level of convenience. They call themselves the leaders of low-key luxury. Hmm, the first time I have ever encountered of such value proposition statement. Does this mean lower end of luxury? Or subtle luxury? Something else?
Except for the strange sewer-like odour in the lift, I love this hotel because:
1. It is a brand new spanking hotel.
2. I love its sleek design. This truly is a design hotel done with taste, elegance and simplicity. The public breakfast area is very impressive; it looked more like an exclusive bar and lounge in Xinyi.
3. The toilet! They have the Japanese Toto automated washlets. The toilet seat has a warmer, it comes with different modes of water cleansing and even has an an air purification system, which really is a butt dryer, haha. #needtobuythisforhome
4. The bed is very comfortable. Firm and good. The pillows too.
5. The food is nothing spectacular but they offer the concept of 24-hour buffet. They served croissants, muffins, green salad, fruits and drinks. So in principle, you can just come back and grab something to eat and drink anytime throughout the day.
6. There is a public self-service laundry area.
7. Staff at the reception were very nice and helpful. They speak good English. They did a lot of work for me re-conforming my reservations in Chinese by phone. Thank you so much!
8. It’s literally around the corner of Ximending Pedestrian Zone. I feel safe staying in a crowded area.
9. Ximen metro station is just a 5-minute walk. Location of the hotel is convenient as a base to go around the city with the metro.
That’s all folks!
Note: I only review hotels I have stayed at. I am not paid to do this nor my stay is sponsored. This post is part of the ongoing documentation of my travels.
Here are my pictures and I start with the room as I received it on my first night.
The automated washlet with a seat warmer, different modes of warm water cleansing, air purification (yes, the butt dryer) and more that I have no clue because they are all in Chinese.
I really liked how they revolutionised spacing here. The toilet and bath are separated from the hallway and bedroom with two sliding doors also acting as side wall panels.
The breakfast is rather simple but this is a 24-hour self-service concept so you can stuff yourself with muffins every 4 hours if you want.
The breakfast lounge from a different angle. Just look at the lighting design.
The door across the hotel.
This is the small and quiet alley the hotel is located. The busy Ximending is just around the corner. I really liked that it is in a quiet area but very near to everything.
I do not stay up late outside so my late evenings are usually spent internetting and watching TV. That's Marie Le Pen of France and Geert Wilders of the Netherlands... they are the Trump counterparts in Europe.
On the corner of the hotel is this cool street painting of the American and Canadian flags.
Destination: Ximen, Wanhua District (Taipei), Taiwan
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Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
All pictures were taken by a point and shoot pocket camera or a smartphone.
