Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Taipei - W Hotel

I have been a big fan of W Hong Kong (and many other Starwood hotels such as St. Regis) and I was told many times how great W Taipei is. It didn't take me too long to decide that this is the hotel I should stay.

Hotel entrance
The check-in was quick: do remember to sign up as a Starwood Preferred Guest before your visit to enjoy complimentary in-room wifi at W Taipei. The registration is FREE and there are different privileges that you may be entitled to, simply by being a member (vs many other similar programs require certain amount of accumulated spending). For example, my room was upgraded when I was staying at Le Meridien in Paris last Christmas.

This is where I am sitting and writing this blogpost. If there's one thing that I should be unhappy with this room is this orange blanet - the fabric is too rough.

I LOVE big beds! I am still deciding which one I should go for tonight!


Shampoo, conditioner, body butter, face wash and body wash are Bliss products which I used a lot when I was a frequent Bliss spa visitor in Hong Kong.

I visited Woobar in the afternoon for a lychee martini - NTD380 plus 10%
Bar on the 31/f floor - the view is so so but the mocktail that I had was good - NTD320 plus 10%. I met a staff called Patsy there and she's very nice. I hope she'd be visiting Hong Kong soon. 
And somehow they knew that it's my birthday and they sent me this lovely cake. 

My experience in the hotel so far is great - everyone I met, including the receptionists, waiters, guest service officers, is helpful and attentive. I am hoping that the weather will be fine today so I can enjoy a drink by the poolside. Fingers crossed!

Taipei - the basics (part one)

Ok I have spent 30 minutes with the introduction but I cannot write a good thing - so let's make it practical and straight forward!

Visa
The application cannot be easier - I have it done online within 10 minutes but remember to bring the printout and carry that with you all the time. I was asked to show the paper together with my passport when I was checking in the hotel.

Taxi from the airport to the city
You pay for the convenience - the fare was NTD1,260 for my trip to my hotel at Xinyi District. Not cheap considering how much people in Taiwan make on average.

Watch out for part two on public transport.