Luxury inside: business boutique and style on the cheap

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Splurging on a hotel in Taipei used to mean a night at the Grand Hotel (圓山) or the Grand Hyatt. But today the choices have grown for pampered and swanky overnight stays in the city. In the last of a three-part series on luxury accommodations in Taipei, we look at a boutique hotel geared toward business travelers, and a couple of mid-to-low priced hotels aimed at young and hip travelers.

LES SUITES TAIPEI DA-AN: BUSINESS BOUTIQUE

Regarded as one of Taiwan’s first “boutique” hotels, Les Suites Taipei Da-an aims to woo business travelers who have seen it all when it comes to hotel living. With cozy rooms and suites filled with designer furnishings, Les Suites Taipei offers a touch of home for the business trip experience.

What is immediately striking about Les Suites Da-an, located just a few blocks from Sogo Department Store on Zhongxiao East Road (忠孝東路), is the low-key, quiet reception area. Instead of a large, imposing counter with chattering clerks and service staff scurrying about, one finds a small desk manned by only one or two persons in a small lobby with polished marble floors and walls. It feels more like an entrance to a small museum or a luxury apartment building.

With the decor, Les Suites Da-an takes the less-is-more approach. Stylish simplicity and warmth are the words that best describe the rooms and suites, which cost between NT$7,000 a night for the 33m² “standard” room to NT$9,900 for the 55m² “deluxe” suite. Much of the furniture has a modern European flair — lots of clean, straight lines and soothing curves — but Asian influences pop up, too. Bali-style batik upholstery can be found on a few chairs, while many rooms have prints of ink bamboo paintings and Chinese calligraphy. The modern appointments are balanced by earth-tone colors, with lots of browns and warm whites.

The hotel’s boutique attitude carries over to the amenities. Beds are fitted with linens from UK brand the White Company, while bathroom toiletries are from another British brand, Molton Brown. Local art and craftsmanship also gets a nod as guests find ceramic teaware from Yingge (鶯歌) in the rooms. Flat-screen TVs and stereo systems are standard in all rooms.

Business travelers might be lured by the home-away-from-home comforts, but the hotel remembers to cater to guests who need to get work done. All rooms have cable Internet and the two meeting rooms, furnished much like the guest rooms, accommodate up to 20 people. Business center services are available, including fax machines and A/V equipment for presentations. Wi-Fi is also available for free in the first-floor lounges.

Guests can surf the Internet on hotel-provided laptops in the library or browse coffee-table books on design and architecture. The adjacent lounge feels more like a home living room, at least in comparison to the typically sterile hotel lobby — there is a display of black-and-white photographs of Taipei, French windows with a view of a tropical garden and a table with coffee, chilled beer and soft drinks.

One unusual but useful perk: Les Suites Da-an provides each room with a mobile phone with a local number. Guests have to pay for their own calls but can receive calls placed through the hotel for free. For example, if you’re out exploring Taipei and a colleague calls the hotel looking for you, the hotel transfers your colleague directly to your mobile. The phone could also come in handy for international visitors — hotel staff say they are prepared to help with communication challenges, whether it’s giving directions to a taxi driver or figuring out exactly what that shopkeeper is saying.