My mother and her friends used to go to Hong Kong to shop. She would buy camphor chests, carvings, transistor radios, English chocolates and cookies, and other things. By the time I grew up, Hong Kong was no longer a bargain place, but it continued/s to be a vacation destination for Filipinos.
Today, Celine Conejos shares reviews on some Hong Kong Hotels and restaurants.
A Philippine Diplomat's wife, Celine Conejos is a permanent resident of Makati, although she currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland. She reviews hotel, restaurant, and attraction sites in TripAdvisor under the name of Coellum. She says this of herself:
"My father was very fond of traveling. He passed on his wanderlust to me. I enjoy traveling and planning for my trips. People close to me benefit from this. My children have many good memories of happy vacations together. At present, I live in Geneva temporarily. Being in the heart of Europe gives me many opportunities to see new places."
The following reviews first appeared in TripAdvisor and are reprinted with Celine Conejos' permission. I look forward to posting more of her reviews about other places in my blog. Thanks to Celine Conejos for sharing her reviews.
Gateway Hong Kong - 5 Stars
No. 13 Canton Road, Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
Good Location, Spacious Room
I normally stay at Marco Polo Hong Kong Hotel next door but I guess I was not paying attention when I made my booking online. I booked at Gateway by mistake. The Gateway does not have Harbour View rooms. However, our room was very spacious. There were two double beds, a desk and a side chair. The bathroom was also big. Checking in was a breeze. They let us have our room at noon, though their check in time is 2pm. It was a very satisfactory stay. But next time, I will pay the additional $US 60 or so, for a harbour view room in Marco Polo Hong kong. I do like this chain of hotels. They are constantly renovating their rooms and the personnel are always helpful.
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers - 5 Stars
Great Harbour View but Small Rooms
My family and I occupied 2 harbour view rooms. The views from the rooms are just wonderful. My husband and I enjoyed admiring the view after a full day of shopping. The rooms are on the small side. The bathroom had a glass wall so that one can enjoy the view while brushing one's teeth! There was a separate shower stall from the bath tub which is always nice. We had difficulty controlling the lights in the bedroom. When we turned on the master switch, all the lights would go on. Yet when the master switch was off, there was no way to turn on individual lights. There was a constant supply of free water, two little bottles per person. The wifi was not free in the rooms. However, my sons and I checked our email in the lobby. By mistake my son got wifi in the room not realizing that we had to pay 115 HK per day. The print when he logged on, he says was so small. The breakfast buffet was adequate but not particularly special by Asian standards. We had it on two mornings. I would stay again at this hotel for the view and the excellent location.
Marco Polo - 5 Stars
Gorgeous Harbour View Room
My 85 year old mother and I stayed at this hotel for 5 nights. This is my third stay at this hotel. It is part of the Harbour City shopping complex, making it convenient for shopping. The harbor view room is huge with a king size bed. There is a separate little room for the luggage and the refrigerator. The best part about the room is the view of the harbor. We loved watching the Star Ferry go back and forth, and cruise ships going in and out.
The staff were warm and always tried to be helpful. I push my mother around in a wheelchair. They have a lift in the lobby for wheelchairs since the entrance has about 5 steps. The bathroom however, was not convenient for an elderly person. The bathtub is difficult to get into if you are physically challenged. Another negative factor for me was that there was no free wifi in the room. One expects that now from the best hotels.
Crystal Jade La Mian Xian Long Bao - 5 Stars
Zone GW 3328, Harbour City, Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
Safe Choice
We ate here twice during our 6 day trip to Hong Kong. The soup dumplings were delicious as always. We tried a noodle soup flavored with peanuts and chili. Very satisfying. For a vegetable, we chose beans with chili and pork. It is hard to beat a location in Harbour City. One can get a number and shop nearby while waiting to be called. If you go at 11:30 am, you will be ahead of the lunch crowd. Beyond noon, you could be in for a bit of a wait.
Tim Ho Wan, The Dim Sum Specialists - 5 Stars
Shop 72, G/F, Olympian City 2, 18 Hoi Ting Road, Tai Kok Tsui
Dim Sum Place Popular with Locals
Eating here was an interesting experience. We went to the one in IFC. Finding it was a challenge. It is located one floor below the check in counter but the signage is only in Chinese. The logo is 2 green dragons facing each other. The receptionist gave us a number. Numbers were called in Chinese so my husband was constantly asking if it was already our turn. When we were given a number, we were also given a pink ticket. It had a list of their dishes and we checked the ones that we wanted. Pink tickets were in English. It would have been helpful if there had been pictures showing the items. We guessed most of the stuff that we ordered, not sure what to expect. The food was delicious. In particular, the pork buns were good. They were different from the usual white buns. There were two dishes in thin white rolls which were good but I can not remember what they were called. Perhaps a little more experience with their menu would make it easier to plan a meal there. The staff were efficient and smiling, though they spoke no English. The guests were predominantly locals. I would like to go back there on a future trip and become more familiar with their menu.
Read also
Celine Conejos Reviews Makati Restaurants
Guest Blogger: Manny Gonzalez Reviews Paris Restaurants
Dinner at Les Deux Magots with Cuenco Cousins
Tags: Hong Kong, hotels, restaurants, reviews, travel, holiday, Asia, China
This is all for now,
Cecilia
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