Montigo Resorts Nongsa Batam December 2012

This is a super belated post. Last Christmas, a group of us went to Batam for our annual Christmas gathering. My friend suggested Montigo Resorts Nongsa in Batam which I have not heard of. I only know of Harris and Holiday Inn Hotel. Apparently it is quite a new property about a year old labeling itself as 5 stars luxury resort in Batam.

This is the check in lobby of Montigo Resorts Nongsa Batam. The place is really beautiful. In fact, I can see Singapore across the sea and even spotted Marina Bay Sands.

A map of the resort. The villas are all built along the 1 kilometer stretch of private beach facing the South China Sea. Unfortunately the private beach is still not fully completed when we were there. The beach and water was muddy.

Upon checking in, we are transported to our 3 storey villa by buddy. The first floor considers of the living hall, a toilet, a kitchen bar, balcony and pool.

Balcony area with an infinity pool facing the sea.

There are 2 bedrooms on the 2nd floor. This is the master bedroom which is really spacious.

This is the view from the master bedroom. The left side is the spa villa. As you can see from the photography, the private beach is still under construction and muddy.

The toilet is very spacious too. It is like half the size of the bedroom. Unfortunately the bath tub was quite dirty so I never used it.

The other bedroom is smaller and comes with twin beds. There is also an in room toilet and tv.

On the top floor is the sky terrace. In front is the view of the sea while the back are the hillside villas.

The design of Montigo Resorts Nongsa is really nice and the place is beautiful. It doesn't feel like I am in Batam at all, I felt like I am somewhere in Phuket or Bali. There is basically nothing at Nongsa area and its about an hour drive to Batam City. It is suitable for a nice romantic weekend or getaway from the hustle life in Singapore. There are also a lot to be desired on their housekeeping and maintenance.
For a year old property, the place is considered quite dirty and worn. The private beach was also not ready yet.

Montigo Resorts Nongsa, Batam
Tel: +62 778 7768888
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MontigoResortNongsa
Website: http://www.montigoresorts.com/

The Nap Patong Hotel, Phuket

Back in September 2012, I went to Phuket for a short weekend getaway. After some research on tripadvisor, I decided to book my stay at The Nap Patong at Patong Beach. The chic, stylish ambiane and modern minmalist design hotel is located at the tranquil end of Patong Beach. The beach is 5 minutes walk from the hotel while the hectic centre of Patong's dining and entertainment district is about 10 minutes walk.

Massage parlours and restaurants can also be found just a few steps away at the main roads even it is a distance away from the heartbeat of Patong beach.

Love the Tiffany blue theme of the hotel and the spacious check in lobby. There is even beach beds placed at the lobby itself.

Besides the lobby is where the bar and restaurant is located. This is where the morning buffet breakfast is served.

The room is spacious and clean. Love the morning sun shining into the room. It also comes with complimentary wifi.

The bed side comes with an Iphone docking station for one to play their favourite music as well as charging their phone.

Simply love these hotel door hangers.

Although the toilet does not come with a bath tub, it is still quite cozy and big.

For light travellers, The Nap Patong provides complimentary bathroom amenities. Even the shampoo is consistent with the Tiffany blue theme.

My room also comes with a balcony which has a great view of the swimming pool. A perfect day to have a can of beer, rest and relax and enjoy the beautiful view.

The Nap Patong Hotel is a new and pretty well maintained hotel with nice friendly service staffs. It also received a lot of good reviews in tripadvisor. Although the hotel received many good reviews, the location of the hotel which is at the start of Patong beach is still a distance away from the vibrant part of Patong beach.


The Nap Patong Hotel Phuket
5/55 Haad Patong Road,
Patong Beach
Kathu, Phuket 83150
Thailand
Tel: +66 (0) 76 343 111
Fax: +66 (0) 76 343 116
Email: nap@thenappatong.com
Website: http://www.thenappatong.com/

Taiwan Trip September 2012 - iTaipei Service Apartment (京站國際酒店式公寓)

After our stay at Hualian, Taiwan, I travelled back to Taipei and stay at iTaipei Service Apartment (京站國際酒店式公寓) for a couple of days before returning to Singapore. iTaipei which is actually a residential apartment which some rooms are rented out to holiday makers like me. This is a new trend in Taiwan. The service apartment is conveniently located just opposite Taipei Main Station and on top of QSquare Shopping Mall.

At iTaipei Service Apartment, there are several theme rooms such as French Sentiment, Purple Charm, Japanese Zen style, Amercian Neoclassicism, Paris Vogue, Grander Chinese style, Modern Bvlgari and Armani Style. We got the Modern Bvlagri room and I simply fell in love with the interior design.

The TV can be rotated 360 degree to face either the sitting area or the bed.

A small kitchen area if you want to prepare your own meals.

The toilet is quite small but I am not complaining. It comes with rain shower too.

The standard amenities are provided at the service apartment. If you need to wash your clothes, there is washing machine too.

(photo from iTaipei website)

With its strategic location that is near to basically all the transportation, I would recommend hotel makers to consider iTaipei service apartment. In addition, it is just located above the QSquare Shopping Mall. The only inconvenient is locating the check in area for the service apartment. It is actually located outside the shopping mall near exit Y1/Y3 (beside the carpark entrance). Just overcome this obstacle and you will find that iTaipei service apartment is a nice place to stay in Taiwan and reasonable priced too.


iTaipei Service Apartment (京站國際酒店式公寓)
Website：http://www.myresort.com.tw/
Facebook：https://www.facebook.com/taipei.apartment
E-mail：itaipei@mail.jsl.com.tw

Taiwan Trip September 2012 - Bayview Hotel (七星潭渡假飯店)

Back in September 2012, I went for a 5 days trip to Taipei seizing on a 1 for 1 Jetstar air ticket promotion. Since I have been to Taipei a couple times, I decided to take a train ride down to Hualien to stay at Bayview Hotel (七星潭渡假飯店) after seeing all the beautiful photos on my friend's facebook page.

Upon our arrival at Hualien train station, the hotel staff picked us up together with another Singaporean couple. The journey from the train station to the hotel took about 10 minutes.

As we were still early for our check in, we went to the hotel's cafe next door to rest and wait for our check in time. We did not explore the area as we were tired after a long journey travelling on plane, train and car to the hotel.

Stepping into the cafe, it felt as if I am in Greece. Helping ourselves to the free beverage and local snacks while we waited for our check in time.

This is our Deluxe Family room for 4 with balcony overlooking the pacific ocean. As the Deluxe Double Room is fully booked, the hotel was very kind to offer me the Deluxe Family Room with the same rate for the Deluxe Double Room. Simply love the white and tiffany blue combination.

This was the view of the Pacific Ocean that greeted me everyday. In the background, that's the fishing boat that will bring in freshly live catch everyday.

The view of the popular beach, Chi Sing Tan (七星潭) was just stuning isn't it?

Next morning after our breakfast, we rented the free bicycle from the hotel and went biking along the coastal area.

We cycled up a hill top to catch the beautiful bird's eye view of the beach.

Along the cycling track, we also saw lots of pineapple plant growing alongside the track.

Moving in shore, there are many interesting buidings spotted too.

I really enjoyed my stay at Bayview Hotel at Hualien. The staffs were very friendly and helpful. The room was clean too. If you want to go to Hualien town, the staff can help you arrange a taxi for a fixed fee inclusive of return trip. Upon reaching your destination, tell the taxi driver the time and place to pick you up. You only need to pay the driver after returning back to the hotel.


Bayview Hotel (七星潭渡假飯店)
Website: http://www.hotelbayview.com.tw/english/index.html