Travel: 2012 to 2013 Stay at Hualien11, Hualien, Taiwan

Taiwan is one of my favourite countries to visit. Hence, I became the official planner whenever we plan to visit Taiwan. In 2012, Hualien was on my list because I was attracted by the beautiful sceneries of Taroko Gorge and Pacific Ocean along its highway after watching Welcome To Taiwan on Channel News Asia (CNA).

When it comes to hunting for accommodation, I look for a hostel that is in close proximity to the train station, within our budget, provides good range of facilities (in particular en-suite bathroom and free WiFi) and of a good rating.

Of all the hostels I searched using HostelWorld.com, Hualien11 caught my attention with its 95% ratings. In comparison with a few others of similar ratings, it seems nearest to Hualien train station. Less than 10 minutes walk from the Back Station exit! By the way, this is not a sponsored post (in case you are wondering).

From their Info tab in HostelWorld.com, the list of tours Hualien11 could help to arrange made it even more attractive (save all our time and effort from planning). Its uniquely designed rooms (all rooms come with en-suite bathroom) caught my attention too! Yes, every room is REALLY designed differently.

The room we stayed in 2012 was a family suite (Sorry, forgot to take a picture of the room! But, you can see it from their website[1]. It is the Plato themed room 柏拉圖四人套房). The room we stayed in 2013 is a probably a White Cloud/Blue Sky themed:

Managed to take a picture of another Double Bed room which was probably waiting for its hosteller to arrive:

I must share that we were delighted to find out that Hualien11 is very close to supermarket, 7-11, fruit stalls and vegetarian eateries. So being hungry at Hualien11 might be the last thing you will experience. FYI, Hualien11 is run by Lisa and her son (I call him Little Boss). Though breakfast is not provided for, hang out in the lobby space with Lisa and she might surprise you by sharing a dish or two which she had just cooked or seasonal fruits.

Dining area in the Lobby

I fondly remembered that we arrived after midnight in 2013. Guessing that we were probably famish, she fried us some noodle so that we did not have to sleep on an empty stomach! I have also tasted her dishes when I was not hungry of course. Hence, I can vouch that her culinary skill is pretty good.

Any down side? Probably just that it does not provide you with any scenic view. Also, if you are not a dog person, you should probably inform Lisa beforehand as she has one by the name of Lucky. By the way, they do not have a swimming pool within the building which they listed as one of their facilities under the Facilities tab in HostelWorld.com.

When in Hualien, stay with Lisa and Little Boss at Hualien11. That was how I felt ever since I stayed with them since 2012. Till this date, we still keep in touch with one another. Lisa is indeed a very hospitable person and staying at Hualien11 really makes you feel at home while being overseas.

References:

1. Hualien11
2. Facebook - Hualien11
3. Tripadvisor - RYWsg review of Hualien11

Travel: Oct 2013 South Gardens Hotels and Resorts, Taoyuan, Taiwan

Oct 2013 in Taipei, we stayed as usual at H132 Hostel (then known as Star Hostel) until hubby's Taiwanese friends checked us out of it on our last day there. As you can see from my other post on H132 Hostel, it is of reasonable standard (about a 3 to 4 stars hotel) with chic modern decoration for a stay that costs less than USD100/night.

That night, they checked us into South Garden Hotels and Resorts. If not for them, I am sure we would never have ended up there. Firstly, the location. It is quite a secluded area tucked away from the busy streets and shops. At least that was how I felt. Secondly, the cost. His friends got us checked into a Starlight room, which costs about USD500/night! Clearly not within our usual budget. The cheapest there was about USD340/night.

But as they always say, locals know best. We felt that way the moment we stepped on the property. It left us in anticipation just from the looks of its foyer.

 

Little rubber ducks swimming around to commemorate arrival of Rubber Duck in Kao Shiung

The reception and lobby area is also very spacious and, I feel, gothic looking. If you have forgotten to bring along your travel adaptor, need foreign currency exchange service, limousine pick up service to high speed rail station or airport, or even wheelchairs and medical kits for handicap, just approach the Front Desk. Oh, their check in time is 3pm and check out time is 11am, which is typical.

Within their compound, you can choose to have your meal in the comfort of your room, have a light bite at the Cheers bar located on ground floor or move up to 2nd floor restaurants for A La Carte or set meals. Because we booked in only around 8pm (after his friends enthusiastically showed us around Daxi district), we did not get to explore the hotel enough. We only managed to have our breakfast there before we head out to airport.

Activities wise, they have hot spring at B1 and 2nd floor, swimming pool and kids' pool at B1, sauna center and aroma therapy or massage center at 2nd floor, recreation center at ground floor (gym, entertainment room, kids' playroom, multi-function room) and I even saw a mini golf course behind their lobby area.

Basement: Hot spring, kids' pool, swimming pool
Ground floor: Recreation center

Mini golf course with excellent view

Their rooms did not let our expectation down. The refreshments in the fridge as well as those placed on the tables (such as mineral water, tea bags, instant coffee mix, sugar and creamer) being complimentary. There is also a in-room safe deposit for use.

Their bathroom and toilet are separated. On top of towels and bath robes which are typically provided by hotels, their toiletries impressed me quite a bit.

The room is spacious and elegantly decorated. What I liked most about it is the open air tub. It is definitely a great way to unwind and relax in total safety and privacy.

King size bed

Open air tub

Would I stay there again? Probably not (because it is not within our usual budget range set for Taiwan). But, it was definitely a nice experience and we enjoyed it very much. By the time we left, we were fully recharged.

References:

1. South Gardens Hotels and Resorts
2. Tripadvisor - RYWsg in Taoyuan

Travel: 2014 Jul Marriott Mai Khao Beach Vacation Club Phuket, Thailand

Hubby got invited to stay at Marriott's Mai Khao Beach Vacation Club Phuket[1]. We have no idea who recommended us, but I for sure am grateful to whoever he/she might be. The 4D3N stay was free (air tickets not included of course). The only price to pay is to sit in for their sales presentation for at least an hour. The sales talk took place at Marriott's Phuket Beach Club. In fact, there are 3 Marriott's property within that area: Marriott's Mai Khao Beach, Marriott's Phuket Beach, JW Marriott@ Phuket. By the way, this is not a sponsored post (in case you are wondering).

Sales presentation venue

We went when QW was just 3 months old. Well, some might say she is too young for a plane ride. At least our paediatrician (PD) Dr. Ho of Australia Clinic think so. I still remembered his words when we told him about the trip, "Baby, can you don't go? You are too young and you haven't finish all your vaccinations yet."

I wavered. Had it not been that hubby had already bought the tickets and booked the room (which was expiring by end Jul), I probably would have asked him to cancel the trip. But not surprisingly, we did see younger babies (at most a month old) on board. Kudos to their parents. Seeing them did put me at ease by a little though.

Good thing about going to Phuket is the plane ride is short enough for QW (2 hours) not to become too cranky. To better prepare ourselves for the plane ride, I did some research and found the advices given by Mama Natural[2] pretty useful. Hence, I faithfully nursed QW when the plane took off and landed. I was glad that QW cooperated pretty well though she did not seemed to like the baby/infant buckle.

Not sure what are your feelings about Phuket Customs. I am totally loving them! For both our arrival and departure, the Customs officers immediately led me to a new counter when they saw me carrying QW. The same goes for those parents who were carrying their babies. They get cleared faster as well. Clearing the Customs faster to me meant that I have more room (freedom) to move about in case QW becomes fussy.

Once we cleared the Customs, our ride to the Vacation Club was already waiting for us. Took us about 15 to 20 minutes to reach the Vacation Club.

Foyer

Lobby

Reception

Welcome drink

Before I forget, we went with his family and my siblings. A total of 6 people because we saw from their website that their typical 2 bedroom villa sleeps 6[3]. Check out the interior of their villa apartment:

Entrance

Bedroom 1 

Bedroom 1 toilet 

Bedroom 2 (King size bed)

Bedroom 2 wardrobe and TV

Bedroom 2 toilet

View taken from living room

Dining area

Kitchen cutleries

Kitchen cooking wares

Kitchen dinnerwares

Washing machine, dryer, iron, ironing board, etc.

Balcony

Most of the stuff you need to whip up a meal can be found in the kitchen, ranging from cutleries to dish washing detergent. The only thing you need to get hold of is your ingredients.

Being quite a distance from touristy places like Patong beach and Phuket center, it does not mean you will be bored stiff there. Rather, I find this place is tranquil and helps to revitalise a lot! A good place if you want to just wind down and recharge. Here are some things you can do within their compound:

Play a game of snooker in their billiard pavilion

Relax at their swimming pool

Dine in at their restaurant 

Vegetarian menu

Play a ball game

Join one of their activities

Some other to-dos within their compound but I did not take a photo of are

• kids club: activities for kids
• gym
• yoga pavilion
• bicycle rental
• table tennis tables
• Not forgetting, SPA!

If you finished occupying your time using the facilities within their compound, here are some other activities that you can do in their surrounding:

Take a free shuttle bus to explore their 2 other properties

Shop and dine in at their next door Turtle Village 

Buy your ingredient to cook a meal
(located within Turtle Village)

Take a stroll

Go to the beach 

Panoramic view of the beach

One thing I really liked about their beach is it gave me the feeling of a private beach. True to what you see in the panoramic view, there is no/hardly anyone at the beach. The waves are pretty strong here, so I won't recommend swimming in it. But, a walk would be pretty relaxing when you want a place to de-stress.

Before I forget, there is another thing you can do at Turtle Village apart from shopping and dining. They have a couple of booth which promotes their property: Anantara Phuket villa. For, again, the price of attending their sales presentation (when we visited them), you can sign up for their freebies which may be Phi Phi islands tour, body massage, etc.

Maybe, it was because of all the freebies. Maybe, it was because we just relaxed around the very spacious villa. Or maybe, it was because we did not go to where most tourists go. I find that Phuket is a pretty good place to relax and recharge. Hence, I do think that Phuket is worth at least one visit. But, my personal preference is still Taiwan or New Zealand for repeated visits.

Would I visit Phuket again if not for those freebies? Unlikely, since I have already seen most of Phuket. Anyway, we enjoyed our Phuket trip and returned home fully recharged. Goodbye Phuket, maybe see you again~

References:

1. Marriott's Phuket Beach Club
2. YouTube - Mama Natural: 10 Tips for Airline Travel with Baby
3. Marriott's Phuket Beach Club - Villas & Amenities
4. Tripadvisor - RYWsg in Mai Khao, Thailand