ozstamps

Been here at Sheraton Grand Taipei Hotel for a few days over New Year at about $500 a night. Hotel rates in downtown Taipei go insane over this period, which sadly I did not realise, until I booked during December.

Probably pre-booking during sales etc would have saved big bucks.

Indeed a few days before I arrived, no rooms of any kind, and ANY price, were bookable on Starwood website at any price. Not even Suites at full rack rate.

Got Lounge access - thank goodness, as their access costs for that are not cheap, I agree.

Took this photo this morning at Desk at Floor 17 Lounge.

2 persons is 1870 TWD or about $US115 a DAY for access.



HOWEVER a top end lounge, so access is well worth getting. @:-)

For breakfast there is a full chef there, doing made to order omelettes etc. In evening he is there carving roast beef. On one night he was custom making Pastas to order. etc.

Great good and drink choices, indeed the Evening deal is easily a full meal for absolutely anyone. Lots of hot choices.

Hours as at January 2017 2016 were -

7-10.30 am Mon-Fri
7-11am weekends

2-4pm Afternoon tea

5-8pm Drinks
5.30pm-7.30pm Food

Nice place, and to be honest, glad I spent the money.

Taipei as a city whilst clean re litter etc, and very little graffiti, is a depressing decaying, "grey" and decrepit sort of place, city and environs, with most buildings looking untouched in past half century, with all kinds of mis-matching balconies and stuff bolted on to every building looking a total mess more akin to Nairobi or Accra etc.

House or exterior Paint appears to be something unprocurable in the country, as no-one has even bought any!

During our week here travelled over much of the country, and outside Taipei which most visitors never see, is very pretty. East Coast especially Taroko Gorge, and Alishan Mountains and Sun Moon lake etc in the Centre Mountain area, but sadly most see only tired old Taipei and surrounds.

No issues with late check-out, indeed they were kind enough to extend it until 6pm as my plane was late evening.

Lovely room, and top marks all around for this Hotel. ^

bocastephen

It's not nearly that bad

Very few cities in Asia have the same clean aesthetic of western cities, mainly due to the difference in age. Taipei is spotless, the apartments inside some of those "decaying" looking buildings can run into the millions of US$ and be absolutely stunning and there are neighborhoods with beautiful new buildings that sell for millions more.

ozstamps

I never entered any of those run down looking buildings of which I drove past many 1,000s of seedy looking blocks, in the past week+.

The fact remains near none have had a cost of paint for 50 years, that was my exact point. If the interiors are all of 24 Carat gold my point remains. I was commenting on the jerry built and tacky EXTERIORS.

I've traveled to over 150 different countries and have a rough idea of what exists elsewhere.

paolo64

@Ozstamps
Taipei itself has many hidden gems and is worth persevering with. At first glance it can appear rather 'grey' but there is much that is charming to be found as well. Winter weather ( if one can call it winter) adds to the gloominess.

username

The has been a lot of unsuccessful "urban renewal" efforts in Taipei. The deals involve developers knocking down buildings. All the owners in the building have to agree to move and agree on what they will get in the new building. Some don't want to move and some want more $/space. So, that is hard to start with.

On top of that, housing price has been dropping partially because the government wants to make housing more affordable. So, there is even less incentive for people to do it.

The old neighborhoods don't look so great. Walking around in those no-sidewalk alleys can be dangerous (scooters, tripping over something, stepping on something, bumping into something, falling into something, etc.) Looking at these old buildings does give people the wrong idea about the city and the residents' wealth.

One can definitely eat a lot cheaper in Taipei instead of paying for the lounge.

TerryK

That's only if you take both meals, plus afternoon tea, at the lounge.

ddjen11

for the past ~45 yrs, my aunt has lived in a 4-story building 2 blocks away from Sheraton Taipei which is where we stayed when we visited her family. It's one of those gray, decaying looking buildings. she paid TWD $200K ($40 TWD=$1 USD back then) , now it's worth USD $6 mil+. each floor is small ~600 sq ft space, I had bigger suite at Sheraton.

uanj

I always caution first time visitors to Taipei and try to guide their expectations down. While the East Coast of Taiwan is beautiful and one of my favorite places in the world, Taipei is more of an acquired taste. There are interesting things to do and places to see, but it is not a typical tourist city. The food is great, though. Tainan, Lugang, Hualian and Taidong are much more interesting for casual visitors.

bocastephen

Which is a waste of an entire day - you're basically stuck in or near the hotel, running back and forth for each service.

For less than 1/4 of that cost, two people can find an amazing western or Taiwanese style breakfast, a filling lunch, delicious afternoon tea with mind-blowing desserts, and dinner at any number of wonderful restaurants in Taipei - which is considered one of the top food destinations in the world.

Spending over $100 to pick over stale buns and dessert already sneezed on by Chinese tourists is not the best use of time or money.

ddjen11

True, for breakfast walk 2 blocks from Sheraton to Hua Shan Market, "Fuhang Soy Milk" on the 2nd level. Imagine the lines outside apple store back in it's hay days, from 6am there is line from its store front on 2nd floor down to stairways, to outside of market around the block, to other side of block. If you have been to Franklin BBQ in Austin you know what I meant. Btw it's Chinese traditional, not western.

bocastephen

I tried this place, unfortunately in September (big mistake), and honestly was not impressed. We waited far too long, were sweaty and miserable, and the food was so-so. My favorite place is just outside Da'an MRT station (right turn from the main entrance) - much better, but albeit a hike from the Sheraton, however one can exit Da'an, have breakfast and continue walking towards 101 for a nice morning sightsee stroll.

I do the breakfast buffet thing in Tokyo, Hong Kong (nothing beats the breakfast buffet at the HK Sheraton and Towers restaurant ), Seoul and the rare visit to Shanghai - places where outside breakfast is not so convenient and I prefer to save for dinner, but Taipei's main draw is the food culture, and that can't be found inside a hotel lounge.

The Sheraton is wonderful for its rooms, service and location - but eating outside is a must.

username

Also try the vegetarian restaurant behind the Sheraton (the one with the red sign). It is very good. Love their tomato noodle soup. I think lunch special there is less than NT$200.

escape4

I had a 7-night stay here: one night paid, one free night award, and 5 nights on points. I got upgraded to a very nice suite; an upgrade was quite generous given that my stay was a full week, and that I was only paying for 1/7 nights (not sure if this matters at all). The suite was very comfortable. The room was right across from the elevator but I never heard anything during the night to disturb my sleep. There are 1.5 bathrooms, which is convenient if not travelling alone. There is a DVD player in both the living room and the bedroom.

The Club Lounge at this hotel is excellent. Three hours of free drinks is more than most hotels, and there are 5+ stations of hot food, some western and some asian. As mentioned by others, there is also a chef preparing a meal which changes every day - noodle soup, pasta, etc. The breakfast in the lounge is perhaps a notch below evening fare. It is mostly western breakfast items and not as many asian choices as expected. But it was good enough and I had breakfast in the lounge only because I wanted to avoid the crowds downstairs.

I found the location of the hotel to be very good. There is an MRT station right outside the hotel on the blue line. If you want the green line or red line without having to transfer, you can simply walk from the hotel to the main station in less than 10 minutes. It is great having three subway lines within easy reach.

All in all, not a whole lot of negatives to say about this property. While the room is not modern and luxurious as at some other hotels, generallly speaking the daily room rate at the Sheraton Grand is considerably cheaper than Le Meridien, W, and Grand Hyatt. I found it to be excellent value for the money (whether cash rate or points). I would not hesitate to return.

bcrdukes

Booked a 5 night stay at this hotel on some points this month. Looking forward to a positive experience!

kurt711

What are the hours for the Lounge at this hotel? I'm getting in rather late, around 11:30PM and wondering if lounge is open at those hours to grab something to drink before heading to one of the late late night markets on saturday night. Thanks.