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| Silks Place Taroko |
Taipei - Dandy Hotel Da-An: we stayed at the Dandy for two nights, booked through Agoda. The location of this hotel was perfect; right across the street from the Da-An park, a few blocks away from Din Tai Fung and walking distance from my grandparents' apartment. For less than $100 per night, I can't really complain. It did smell a little funky particularly near the bathroom, we were occasionally woken up by hallway noise in the middle of the night, but the room layout was good and it was spacious enough for us and all our luggage (Taipei hotel rooms can be tiny) and free internet worked in our room. The free breakfast was ok; I'm actually glad it wasn't better because there are so many tasty breakfast options in Taipei (ie.
here).
Taichung - Hotel One: we stayed at Hotel One for one night. I love this hotel; it's very clean and modern, the staff is young and hip and speaks perfect English, the rooms are huge with amazing views, the beds are super comfortable and the shower is amazing. It didn't hurt that we had an enormous suite for our visit. The breakfast buffet is great with a huge selection and awesome views and we had a celebratory drink in the very hip bar full of trendy people. Free wifi works well in the room and the room is well set-up for work, as it is a business hotel. The location is very convenient as well; walking distance from a Chen Pin (Eslite Bookstore).
Kaohsiung - the Splendor Hotel: we stayed at the Splendor for one night, booked through Agoda. The location is nice, in the iconic 85 Tower, the tallest building in Kaohsiung and second tallest building in Taiwan, also designed by C.Y. Lee. We were very high up, on the 50 something floor, although in the morning, our view was of a giant Ikea. The hotel is somewhat dated; very 80's Trump / Vegas style with lots of gold and mirrors. The HVAC system also gave me the worst allergies and the bed wasn't very comfortable. The free breakfast buffet was pretty extensive and decent and there was internet in the room, but only free if you used the T1 connection. Free wifi in the lobby only.
Taitung - The Chief Spa Hotel: we stayed at the Chief Spa Hotel (Tian Long) in Wulu for one night, booked through Agoda. The location was quite remote; a dark twisty drive that was actually scarier in the daytime when we could see how treacherous the roads were. It had a nice natural outdoor hot spring with two different temperature pools, one that was in the 40s when we got in. It also was across from some nice hiking trails. Very secluded, and a nice break after all the cities we visited. The rooms were a little dingy and the bed was uncomfortable, but at less than $100 a night, it's hard to complain. The free breakfast buffet was extremely limited, but after several days of overstuffing ourselves with breakfast buffets, we were fine.
Taroko - Silks Place Hotel: we stayed at the Silks Place Hotel in Tianhsiang, right in the middle of Taroko park for one night. The hotel was beautiful; minimalist modern and sleek, and very comfortable. As part of our package, we had an awesome free dinner and breakfast buffet, a really great deal for about $150 a night. I would definitely stay here again, the location can't be beat; it's one of the few hotels actually inside the park, and mostly filled with Western tourists. The free wifi worked well everywhere and service was fantastic; the front desk actually bought train tickets for us and had her colleague pick up the tickets for us at the train station.
