After a day of solid work in the office..finally reach home at about 8pm. Wonder how I managed to survive all the madness the world has been leashing out for so many years! TTA? Yucks!
Anyway after a quick dinner, I sat down to purchase a travel insurance cover for the 5 of us. Citibank was having a good promo with 30% discount if we sign up from now till 31 Dec 2012. Being true-bred Singapore lang, hurry hurry signed up and no lose out. paid S$138 for the whole trip & family. Underwritten by ACE. :))
Just like our past trip, we always book our hotel here. Rates are good and there are $$ given for the next booking. Worth!
For our accommodation in Taipei, I originally checked out Rainbow Hotel, located at Ximending. They have a room that can accommodate up to 5 persons! Only disadvantage is that there is only one bathroom and my worry of mad rush in the morning. From the reviews I gathered from other travelers, this 5 pax room seems to be somehwhat comfy and spacious, no frills. The cost per night at that time I enquired was NT4480 per night. Not too bad a deal. Hot favorite with Singaporeans and Malaysians because of its excellent location. Step out of hotel only can shop till dropped and it is very near MRT. Wonstar is another really popular hotel.
I almost nearly made a booking with Rainbow Hotel, and by fate / chance, I happened to chat with an old friend, who has visited Taipei last December with his family. He did not stay at a hotel, but went for minsu (民宿). He strongly recommended Taipei York, which is located in Ximending too.
Well, I dropped the minsu owner, Mr Liu, an email out of curiosity, googled around for more info and hey! this minsu is indeed a popular choice with travelers from Asia! Staying in a minsu is generally cheaper than staying in hotel. Reason being : there is no full housekeeping other than someone coming in to clear your rubbish for you. Plus point is that there is a kitchen where you can cook, a washing machine and a dryer.
After many rounds of email exchanges with Mr Liu, I am comfortable enough to make a booking with him. He has a few units and as my specific request was to have a double room and triple room just immediately next to each other, he recommended Room B & D. Check out these 2 rooms here :
Room D - Triple Room
Room B - Double Room
Hopefully when I arrive there it is as nice as it looks ! :)
From my friend's description, this minsu is like a condo unit with 2 - 4 beds per units to choose from. Each bedroom is self-equipped with its own attached bathroom, TV, pantry etc. Just like a studio apartment. Also there is a kitchenette and the washing machine and dryer is located here. I am not sure, but some reviews mentioned that the dryer is coin-operated and some says not. Strange huh..
(Latest update : I am back from Taipei...refer to my Day 1 posting for more details)..
Anyway, for our 10 days stay, owner gave some discounts, End up, it will costs a total of NT32130.
Payment is quite easy, Mr Liu accepts Paypal payment or funds transfer to his Singapore HSBC account. However, be forewarned that he will pass on the admin charge, exchange rate difference buffer etc to you. For example, I thought would have to pay him approx S$680 as 50% deposit, but ended up regardless of whether I deposit money into his HSBC account or through Paypal, I end up paying about close to S$50 extra. However, for the other 50% which I will pay him in cash, I will not have this problem. Oh another point to note, if you are using Paypal, do not opt for the use of prevailing bank rate. Use Paypal exchange rate and log in the conversion rate first. After some research, I realized that we lose more if we leave it up to the bank to do the currency rate exchange...
For those who are traveling in groups of 4s, Taipei York also have a 4 bedder room. heehee...I read from their websites. Most of the rooms do have a sofa / couch, thus it may be possible to accommodate and extra person. Do check with the owner if you have the intention to do so.
I am really looking forward to staying at Taipei York. My first experience staying at a Minsu.
Yes for sure I will take pics and post it when I am back. I can't seem to find many photos on the interior of the rooms. Mostly everyone is referring to the website and its posted pics.
Wah, I write as though I know so much about Taipei York! Honest to goodness....never been there!
OOOOH...exciting and after kids exams next week, I can start counting down ! YAY!!
No comments:
Post a Comment