DATE STAYED: April 21, 2012 – April 22, 2012 (2d/2n)
THE RATE: 15 USD/day (For consistency’s sake, 1 USD is 43 PHP)
THE ADDRESS: 256 De Tham street, Pham Ngu Lao ward, district 1, District 1 – Pham Ngu Lao / Tay Balo, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
THE FACILITIES:
The hotel is in Pham Ngu Lao so it’s accessible, near many travel agencies, and walking distance from the city’s tourist spots. But then again, so are hundreds of hotels/hostels/guesthouses.
We stayed at a double bed room on the top floor with windows. I blogged before that we didn’t make a reservation here nor was this hotel researched before we left Manila. Since I’ve been to Ho Chi Minh before, I know that we could find a cheap hostel even in the wee hours of the night. Amongst the few that have open lights, the cheapest offered to us was 20USD and that’s with moderate haggling already. So, after fifteen minutes of looking, we decided to ask the hotel where we were dropped off by the cab from the airport. The receptionist told me that the rate was 15USD. I asked if I can look at the room first. The room was basic (bed, aircon, bathroom) but it was better than the room offered to us earlier by a guesthouse. We decided to stay here, partly because the room was okay and partly because we were exhausted. The receptionist also asked for my passport but I gave a photocopy instead.
I also paid for an additional day’s stay – from the time we checked in until 12nn – since we arrived past midnight. I think guesthouses will give a better deal for early check-in.
What is inside our room? a double bed, aircon, telephone, desk, chair, hook hanger, television with cable, mini refrigerator, and an en suite bathroom with hot and cold shower. They also provided toiletries. We do NOT have a closet. I think other rooms have one. Weird but not a big deal.
Pros: elevator (after our hostel in Thailand, elevators are a plus), desktop computer with internet connection (I used it to transfer photos from camera to usb). They also have their own travel agency. I didn’t book with them but I guess they’ll give a big discount if you’ll stay at their hotel. According to Agoda, the hotel has free in room wifi. I didn’t notice so I can’t confirm.
Cons: NO free breakfast. The room is a little cramped so the windows definitely helped in giving illusion of a big space.
THE VERDICT: 4/5
Will I stay here again? Maybe. If there are no other options, I can stay here again. But I know there are a lot, A LOT, of cheaper hostels in the area. I gave it a 4 if only because of the morning view from our room.