Hualien Seaside Ocean B&B

“This sets the standard & our expectations for B&B/homestay in Taiwan”

We just returned from a 30-day round-the-island trip in Taiwan where we stayed in various hotels/resorts, inns/guesthouses, and B&B/homestays. We'll review and rate each establishment within its category. 1) Location Goldilock is about a 10-minute drive from Hualien Railway Station and the city ce… more

We just returned from a 30-day round-the-island trip in Taiwan where we stayed in various hotels/resorts, inns/guesthouses, and B&B/homestays. We'll review and rate each establishment within its category. 1) Location Goldilock is about a 10-minute drive from Hualien Railway Station and the city center. This B&B/homestay is in a quiet and rather upscale neighborhood. There are restaurants, cafes, convenience stores, a self-service laundry shop, and other stores within 20m. If you want to be next to the railway station or in the city center, this place may not be for you. However, if you are like us who want to be in a local residential area and near the seaside, this is a good choice. The jogging & cycling path along the seaside is 100m away and Hualien Port is 2km away along the same path. 2) Transportation Like many other B&B's in Taiwan, Ms. Vicky Chen 陳小姐 provides pickup and dropoff services at Hualien Railway Station. Vicky was already waiting for us when we arrived at the station. Subsequently, Vicky drove us to several places when she was available. For times when she was not available, we called the taxi company recommended by Vicky and got a discount of 10% to 30% off the meter rate. 3) Orientation & Recommendations After a quick and simple check-in process, Vicky gaves us various brochures and maps while sharing with us a list of places to visit, eat, drink, relax, etc. Vicky conversed in Mandarin and English, so we were able to get all the information we needed to plan our activities for the next 2 days. Thanks to Vicky's tips, we had some of our best meals during our 30-day stay in Taiwan and we were able to make efficient use of our time to visit the attractions. This part was especially helpful and important to us. We liked the restaurant 鵝肉先生 so much we ate there twice to try the different dishes. 4) Breakfast As mentioned by previous reviewers, breakfast is included but is served in a restaurant across from Goldilock. Vicky brought us to the restaurant and paid for the breakfast. All we had to do was to order from the menu and enjoyed a hearty and delicious breakfast. On the second morning, Vicky took us to another restaurant around the corner for a local breakfast consisting of Taiwanese pancakes and soy milk. 5) Rooms and Facilities The rooms have different layouts and are clean and spacious with two double beds in many of the rooms. This means up to four persons can stay in a room with two persons to a bed. There is ample space to spread our bags and personal belongings on the floor. Like the rooms, each attached bathroom is clean and spacious. Some bathrooms are with shower stalls, so that the toilet and sink side stays dry. Hot water and water pressure are both adequate. Hair dryers and disposable toiletries are provided. We didn't use the air-conditioner as the weather was cold during our stay. It would have been nice to have a heater but the comforters are very thick which kept us warm. There is no elevator/lift in this house, so ask for a lower floor if you have heavy bags. There is a LCD TV in every room but we preferred to hangout in the living room/reception area where we watched TV and had hot coffee and Chinese tea while chatting with Vicky. 6) How We Felt During Our Stay Vicky and her husband, together with their two lovely daughters, live on the top floor in this house. From the moment we stepped into Goldilock, we felt like staying with friends rather than in a B&B/homestay. This is what staying in a B&B/homestay is all about! We were relaxed, comfortable, and knew we could trust and depend on Vicky for all our traveling needs. In fact, after we left Hualien city, we were able to use information and contacts provided by Vicky to get taxis for private tours to Taroko National Park and other places. Goldilock was the first B&B/homestay during our trip and it certainly raised our expectations on subsequent stays in Taiwan. We will definitely return to Goldilock for our next visit in Hualien and will not hesitate to recommend this home-away-from-home to other travelers.

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