湘品旅館 — Hotel in Hualien City

This more of a 2* hostel-style accomodation. Maybe I would rate it a little higher if we hadn't paid $75/night for a 2* hotel listed as a 3* that normally prices less than $35 a night... We had quite a few stairs to climb, the rooms had small holes gouged out of the wall/ceiling, really messy paint job, no hand soap (just body soap and shampoo), and the hardest mattress I have experienced in a long time. The bathroom is a bed shower and sink in one small room, fairly normal for a country like Taiwan, but be aware you have to close the bathroom door to access the sink.

If I had realized it was going to be more of a hostel than a hotel and if that had been reflected in the price, I could have adjusted expectations. My friend was so shocked/disappointed she started looking for any open hostels or decent hotels nearby, but we decided to just try to make it work since we had already paid.

Anyway, if you like super hard beds and you're just coming through for the backpackers experience, it checks the boxes and you'll probably be happier with it than we were. It's conveniently close to the night market and other shopping/restaurant areas and they have instant ramen/water in the shared space on the first floor. Really, had we known it was more of a hostel experience or 1-2* hotel and it had been priced like it, I would rate it a little higher. Despite my dislike...

This is a self check-in hotel. You must contact or send a message to the owner of the hotel, instructions will be explained via Line. I must say, their instruction is very detailed, even to a foreigner like me, English instructions was included. Airconditioning is very cold, room is very clean. They got parking area for cars and motorcycle. The only downside of this hotel is sound insulation, something a light sleeper should be aware of, I feel bad whenever I need to turn on the faucet and shower, it feels like the other rooms can hear it, same as I can hear them using it. Also at 4am, since some occupants need to leave early, I can hear them opening the door, eventhough I stayed on 3rd floor. But, these stuffs were very much compensated by the owner by free stuffs. You can take earplugs on first floor, where you can also take bottled water and cup noodles as much...

I think the primary advantage of this hotel is the location, it's only about 5 minutes walk to the night market.

However, the room itself isn't too much. There is no lift to the 5th floor, so be weary if you are carrying a lot of luggage. There is no bed, only a mattress so it kind of feels like you are crashing at a friend's house rather than a hotel. Luckily, the lobby has tables for you to eat takeout food, because inside the room it would be uncomfortable to eat.

There is hot water so that is a plus, but the door to the bathroom doesn't shut completely. Keep in mind that checkout at this hotel is earlier than most, at around 10 am (rather than usual times of noon).

Average price is 1100-1500 NTD/night. So it is high for the value, but again the location is the primary advantage of this place. The lady who runs the...