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Archive for February, 2011

It’s getting close to Christmas and it was time for a luxury vacation on Koh Samui, one of the finest beach destinations in Asia. While researching online for a nice hotel with 2BR suites Kirikayan Luxury Pool and Villas caught my eye. It looked great. Luxury in a peaceful mountain setting away from main tourist hassle. It’s exactly what I like, no compromise. The booking included free airport transfers to and from Koh Samui airport. There were various free shuttle services to a private strip on Mae Nam Beach and to Chaweng Beach, the island’s central tourist strip with shopping, restaurants and entertainment.

Comfortable living room area with LCD TV and a small patio. The apartment contained two bedrooms, one with kingsize bed and another with twin beds, a kitchen and dining area.
Source for Discount Reservation at Kirikayan Villas.

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It’s been awhile since I stayed at Oxford Suites on Makati’s nightstrip around Padre Burgos Street. Oxford Suites Hotel is in a very busy and noisy area, but I guess that’s why most people want to stay there in the first place. It is located next to Royal Bellagio and Makati Palace Hotels, Bottoms Up and Billboard. The rooms are comfortable, but show a bit of tear and wear just like all other houses in this area that are in operation for a couple of years longer. Unfortunately, beds are just queen sized, a bit small for two people. Split type aircons keep the room cool.
Some units are rented out as part of a regular hotel operation, others are privaetly owned condominiums advertised by it’s owners and agents for much cheaper rates in local print media and over internet advertising portals such as Craigslist. It’s a fine hotel for a couple of days and I would stay there again. At the last time I visited, neither WIFI nor ethernet cable connections for internet ensuite were available. Just access from their business center and lobby was available for a fee.
What I noticed from advertisement on websites: they feature very old photos from more than 10 years ago. Keep that in mind when you make a discount booking at this Makati City hotel.

My daytime schedules for this visit to the capital of the Visayas in the South of the Philippines was very busy. I was looking for a basic tourist hotel. Clean and cheap, but in central location on F. Ramos Street in downtown. A quick online search yielded various solutions and The Diplomat Hotel looked like a good choice. This hotel is very busy and frequented by individual tourists and large groups of travelers from Europe and Asia. For the low pricing there is not much luxury to be expected. It’s simple and clean budget accommodation. The hotel is very guest friendly. Wifi internet coupons for 1 to 3 hours are available for a fee from friendly Cebuana receptionists. Considering price and locations, Diplomat Hotel can be called a good Cebu hotel deal.

Basic amenities with empty fridge (bring your own drinks). I booked a single, but received twin beds as the house was overbooked. F. Ramos Street is an excellent location close to Osmena Circle, Mango Square, Robinsons Shopping Mall and Volvo Thunderdome bars. Taxifare with Yellow Taxis from Cebu International airport costs around 350 Piso. When exiting airport arrival area follow signs to ‘public taxi’ up the stairs. It’s a bit hard to find, but metered taxis are much cheaper than other transportation services offered by touts and baggage handlers.

After being disappointed with small rooms in many other Buenos Aires hotels I decided to make reservations for club rooms at both Buenos Aires Sheraton Hotels by SPG. During the first days I spend at the Sheraton Libertator right in the middle of the city beside their famous shopping arcade around Libertador and Florida street crossing. After a long flight from Singapore to Buenos Aires via Frankfurt I was jet-lagged like an old dog and slept for at least 2 days. During this time I used their club lounge and room service very often and was very pleased. The lounge view from the club levels down to Puerto Madero and the river is awesome. Their food delicious. Well, you can’t go wrong ordering meat dishes in Argentina, anyhow. Eeven McDonals burgers taste like a delicacy in over here.

My bedroom at Sheraton Libertador in Buenos Aires

The last 3 nights before my return flight, I booked into the Sheraton Park Tower and Convention Center across the street from their main railway station. Again, nice views from the club lounge. This place is more busy than the Libertator branch and I like it a bit more because hotel rooms are slightly bigger and brighter. It’s much more comfortable than all the other hotels in Buenos Aires that I have previously stayed at. Unless I want to try out another place, I will come back to this Sheraton again.