Recommend December 2010 - (Page 46)

No matter where they go in Taiwan, visitors will ﬁnd an enormous array of accommodation options that range from the most sophisticated and elegant ﬁve-star offerings, to mountain and beach resorts, boutique hotels and even hostels—all offering the ﬁnest in service and accommodating staff, a hallmark that’s become a staple of the Taiwanese hotel industry. Here’s just a few samples of the accommodations awaiting your clients in beautiful Taiwan. Howard Hotels, Resorts and Suites (howard-hotels.com) has 12 properties throughout Taiwan, including three resorts and nine city hotels, with ﬁve hotels in Taipei alone with most of them geared toward business travelers. The resorts, however, are all located in some of the most pristine tourist areas in the country. The Howard Beach Resort Green Bay, for example, is located along the northeast coast, a 30-minutes drive from Taipei. Here, visitors can enjoy the beauty of the nearby Yehliu Scenic Area, Jiufen, Keelung and Damshui or indulge in hot spring baths. The resort offers 241 oceanview guestrooms, including Japanese-style rooms, deluxe suites and family rooms that include a personal safe, dual-line telephone, central air conditioning, mini-bar, satellite TV channels, and bathroom with separate bath and shower (suites only). Rates from about $192. The Howard Lake Resort Shihmen Dam, meanwhile, is located by the tranquil Shihmen Dam. The resort’s design concept combines Chinese classicism with modern western aesthetics utilizing natural colors of lake greens and woody browns complementing the enchanting smell of orchids and cypress to create an alluring hideaway. The resort’s Elegant Room category offers spacious accommodations and its Japanese rooms have woodﬂoor space for an extra bed, convenient for families with young children, while the lake-view rooms offer views of the shimmering water and nearby mountains through the ﬂoor-to-ceiling windows and balconies. The Shihmen Dam is located at Longtan Village in Taoyuan County, with nearby attractions such as the Spillway, Playground, Plum Pavilion, Songtai, Ferry Jetty, Sijhou Park and Botanical Garden. Rates run from $182. The 405-room Howard Beach Resort Kenting offers a mountain backdrop surrounded on three sides by water—the Paciﬁc to the east, Taiwan Straits to the west and Bashi Channel to the south, giving it a long, ever-changing coastline with rich marine resources, a beautiful underwater world and a vast and unique terrain. Nearby attractions include Sheding Park, a primitive and largely undeveloped natural park with grasslands, forests, limestone caves, coral reef valleys and unspoiled landscapes, as well as the Checheng Fuan Temple, Taiwan’s largest temple for the earth deity. Deluxe and executive level rooms offer ocean or mountain views with rates running from about $228. The ﬁve-star Grand Hi-Lai Hotel (grand-hilai.com.tw/english) in Kaoshiueng has 538 rooms and 29 suites, all with harbor and city views, marble baths, 30-inch satellite TV and 6-inch TV in the bath, mini-bars, sightseeing services and private tours of the hotel’s art and cultural collection, as well as an executive club outdoor pool, ﬁtness center, sauna and massage service. One distinctive feature is its Hello Kitty rooms and a 540-sq.-ft. Hello Kitty suite that features a living room, dining room and a master bedroom, designed, as the hotel information says, “…for a joyful family vacation.” The Hello Kitty pink suite is decorated with Hello Kitty miniature vases and paintings, a Hello Kitty mini-studio and a complete Hello Kitty tea set. The large bathroom has a jumbo sanded Hello Kitty mirror and kids or mom can enjoy a Hello Kitty bubble bath. For the ultimate in accommodations pleasure situated in a national park, there’s the Silk Place Resort and Spa (silksplace. com.tw), in the country’s Taroko Gorge National Park. This is a Four Seasons-managed property with an achingly beautiful minimalist design set amidst a lush mountain background and overlooking T14 recommend.com http://www.howard-hotels.com http://grand-hilai.com.tw/english http://www.com.tw http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend December 2010

Editor's Notes
Hotel Desk-Marriott International
Tour Talk-Globus
Services-SABRE; Apple Vacations & Travel Impressions
Ritz-Carlton
Hertz & Hawaii
Las Vegas
Tauck World Discovery
Florida
Southwest Airlines
France
Ireland
Italy
Delta Air Lines & Rail Europe
China
Thailand
Singapore Airlines
2011 Taiwan Travel Planner
Tahiti & Goway Travel
Costa Rica
Brazil & Avanti Destinations
Egypt
South Africa
Abercrombie & Kent & Isram World of Travel
Israel
Jamaica
Sandals & Beaches Resorts
St. Lucia
GOGO Worldwide Vacations
Cancun
RIU Hotels & Resorts & Apple Vacations
Riviera Maya
Celebrity Cruises & Royal Caribbean International
Princess Cruises
Carnival Cruise Lines & Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Crystal Cruises & Viking River Cruises

Recommend December 2010