Jacaranda House — Hotel in Donghe

After visiting Taipei,Kaohsiung and Taitung we'd rightly thought we may be City'd out so rented a car to drive up the east coast of Taiwan.For the first night we wanted a small beach town and after reading the Lonely Planet, thought Dulun fitted the bill. However,further research indicated that Donghe better suited the description LP had ascribed to Dulun- a seaside village with a laid back surfer vibe and just a couple of bar/restaurant/accommodation options. I found Jacaranda House via Trip Advisor and was so glad I did!||We found the small hotel easily enough alongside the single-lane highway 9 which forms one of Donghe's 2 'main streets'. The building was built by an artist and you can't miss it- painted yellow with large shaped picture windows and Art Deco angles. We pulled into the car park and were greeted by the smiling friendly staff. We were shown to our 1st floor corner room and it was nothing short of stunning. Split level, with dark wood floors and stylish decor and lots of light via multiple windows. French windows led to a balcony overlooking the crashing surf through a grove of palm trees. The bathroom had a large bath and shower again looking out to the sea. It's naturally windy here and if you like to fall asleep to the sound of wind and waves, Jacaranda House is for you! The hotel had a scooter for rent for 400 NTD £10UK/$13US and we had a fun couple of hours exploring the area around town.At night there are a couple of surfer bar/restaurants and an Italian. We ate at Low Pressure surfer bar and the food was good. In the morning Jacaranda House serve a home cooked breakfast which was very good if a little unusual to Western tastes- tomato soup (delicious!) isn't something I've eaten as a breakfast starter before!||In summary, Jacaranda House is an excellent small hotel- the best room we had in Taiwan by a long way and the price (75GBP) was well worth it. Donghe is a nice little town too, why the Lonely Planet ignore it in favour of Dulan...

After visiting Taipei,Kaohsiung and Taitung we'd rightly thought we may be City'd out so rented a car to drive up the east coast of Taiwan.For the first night we wanted a small beach town and after reading the Lonely Planet, thought Dulun fitted the bill. However,further research indicated that Donghe better suited the description LP had ascribed to Dulun- a seaside village with a laid back surfer vibe and just a couple of bar/restaurant/accommodation options. I found Jacaranda House via Trip Advisor and was so glad I did!||We found the small hotel easily enough alongside the single-lane highway 9 which forms one of Donghe's 2 'main streets'. The building was built by an artist and you can't miss it- painted yellow with large shaped picture windows and Art Deco angles. We pulled into the car park and were greeted by the smiling friendly staff. We were shown to our 1st floor corner room and it was nothing short of stunning. Split level, with dark wood floors and stylish decor and lots of light via multiple windows. French windows led to a balcony overlooking the crashing surf through a grove of palm trees. The bathroom had a large bath and shower again looking out to the sea. It's naturally windy here and if you like to fall asleep to the sound of wind and waves, Jacaranda House is for you! The hotel had a scooter for rent for 400 NTD £10UK/$13US and we had a fun couple of hours exploring the area around town.At night there are a couple of surfer bar/restaurants and an Italian. We ate at Low Pressure surfer bar and the food was good. In the morning Jacaranda House serve a home cooked breakfast which was very good if a little unusual to Western tastes- tomato soup (delicious!) isn't something I've eaten as a breakfast starter before!||In summary, Jacaranda House is an excellent small hotel- the best room we had in Taiwan by a long way and the price (75GBP) was well worth it. Donghe is a nice little town too, why the Lonely Planet ignore it in favour of Dulan...

Let’s start with the room -|We were upgraded (for free) to a room facing the Pacific Ocean on the second floor. Room was spacious, with a large couch, and very clean. We noticed that there were slippers in every section of the room (bedroom, toilet and balcony). The staff would refill complementary packs of biscuits and instant noodles every day. Hot, drinkable water was provided, without fail, every day, in a flask, and we thought it was a very thoughtful act of service.|The bathroom was also very spacious and had both a shower and a bath tub. There were large windows so we could shower with a lovely view of the ocean every day!! Loved the lingering light jasmine fragrance in the bathroom as well.|Bed was large and comfortable. I had the best sleep I’ve had in months!!|A 4 course home cooked breakfast comprising of a soup, salad, main and yogurt dessert as well as a drink is provided from 8 am - 10 am every day. It was nutritious and very hearty. |The owner and his staff were approachable, helpful and kind towards us. We missed a public bus once and all of them immediately whipped out their phones to search for other available options for us. The owner also kept asking us if we needed help with activities and he took to driving us to Taitung City when we had an available last afternoon in Donghe. |We would recommend that you drive or rent a scooter as that would give you more flexibility to travel around. However, if you are like us, there are public buses and the bus stop is just 100m away. You just need to ask the very friendly staff for the bus timings. 7-11 is also located about 200m away. |In terms of food, there are a couple of eateries around. The owner will be more than happy to recommend them to you.|The only drawback about this place is the intermittent wifi which can be resolved by disconnecting/connecting repeatedly or if you get your own data plan.|Overall, a superb experience. We are already planning to come...