Best Hotel in Taipei

In case you’re wondering, yes, I’m still in Sydney. Saucer and I went on a trip to Taiwan just before I left for Sydney and I thought I should start posting our travel stories in case they become outdated. First and foremost, accommodation! That is usually one of the, if not the most expensive part of a holiday. Since we were going to be in Taipei for 7 nights, we had to find a place which was convenient and economical. After searching high and low, we settled for CityInn Hotel Plus right smack in the shopping area of Ximending. From the airport, we took a bus that dropped us at Ximending, where we only had to walk 5 minutes to the hotel.

Double bed room

Checking in was a breeze because we already pre-booked our stay. It is wise to book online for the best rates and to guarantee your room, because the rooms at CityInn sell out very quickly. In fact, we only managed to book 5 nights out of our 7 nights stay there since the other 2 nights were fully booked. But that’s another story for another post. We managed to get quite a good rate of about RM170/night online and it was the best value hotel that we’d ever stayed in.

Sofa and study desk

Our room was clean and fully air-conditioned, with all the amenities that we needed, and more. There was a 32-inch LCD TV on the wall with more channels that we could watch (more than 70!) and free internet access 24/7. Everything in the room was modern, including the switches. Instead of the conventional switches, they had the touch panel switches with labels and backlight – perfect when you have to turn on the switch in the middle of the night on the way to the loo, yes?

Electronic safe

Backlit switches

Minibar and complimentary drinking water

The bathroom was spacious and clean, with a rain shower of good water pressure. I didn’t expect to have the full set of toiletries (including toothbrush and paste) considering the rather cheap rate we paid, but we were given that and more, refilled daily. For ladies, you’d be amused to find that they even provided a sanitary pad in the set of toiletries, and for men, a condom!

Clean bathroom and toilet

Sanitary napkin given

We stayed at 2 different rooms in the hotel since we had to break our stay due to the fully booked period in the middle. Our second room was very colorful, but just as comfortable.

Double bedroom #2

Study desk

At that point, I was throughly pleased and happy with the room, even though small, but very modern and functional. But I was to be pleasantly surprised when we went down to the basement where the common area was. The common room was spacious and clean, with comfortable couches and a TV for the comfort of the residents. Next to the lounge was a dining area with plenty of tables and chairs, perfect for eating that take-out meal or the cup of instant noodles.

Lounge in common area

Dining area

On the same level was the pantry with a microwave, hot and cold drinking water and, wait for it, a coffee machine! Seeing a coffee machine there immediately sealed the deal for Saucer, since he loved a good cup of hot coffee every morning we’re there. The hot water and microwave proved to be extremely useful when we bought cup noodles for that midnight snack too! Speaking of which, there was a 24-hour convenience store located just opposite CityInn.

Pantry area

Coffee machine and hot water

Microwave

Just next to the lounge was another area for internet-surfing.

Complimentary use of internet

And if all that is not enough, here is something that will blow you away. Well, it did blow me away – the hotel provided free use of washing machine and dryer! That was honestly the first time I came across such facility, which was extremely useful when you’re there for a long period of time. Knowing this beforehand allowed us to pack less clothes and allocate more space for shopping! We used the washer and dryer twice during our 5-day stay and were absolutely satisfied with the results. Since we were there during the cold months of spring, the warm clothes from the dryer definitely provided us comfort.

Complimentary laundry facilities

Weighing machine for your luggage

If you can’t already tell by now, I am absolutely smitten with this hotel and would highly recommend it to anyone going to Taipei. They truly have travelers in mind with all the facilities provided free of charge. I mean, there was even a weighing machine at the lobby for you to double check your luggage just in case it is overweight! Oh, did I mention that aside from all the wonderful facilities provided, the one thing that makes it perfect is its location. Not only is it walking distance to the shopping district of Ximending, it is only 2 minutes away from the train station, which makes it absolutely convenient to go to anywhere in Taipei. My advice? Book early to avoid disappointment. And no, this is not sponsored.

CityInn Hotel Plus at Ximending

Getting there: Take MRT to Ximen Station, go to Exit 3 and CityInn is on your left.

CityInn Hotel Plus
No.63, Baoqing Rd., Zhongzheng Dist.,
Taipei City 100, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Tel: +886 (2) 7725-2288
Fax: +886 (2) 7725-2799
E-Mail: service4@cityinn.com.tw
Website: www.cityinn.com.tw/EN/Cityinn4/index.aspx

*Note: Read the rest of my Taiwan Escapade here!