HotelChatter - Tag: Vietnam Hotel Scene

Ho Chi Minh City: Appliances Caught Between Centuries at Saigon's Continental Hotel

ced138 — 2009-02-13T09:02:51-05:00

All this week our roving correspondent Claire Duffett will be sending back her reports on the Vietnam Hotel Scene. Any questions or suggestions? Send 'em our way and we'll have Claire answer them for you.

We’ve been infatuated with Hotel Continental Saigon ever since we read Graham Greene’s The Quiet American way back when. Alas, we modern-day journalists can’t afford to stay in the place where Fowler and his fellow foreign correspondents partied back in the 1950s.

Despite our modest means, we still managed to catch a glimpse of the hotel when we passed through town a few weeks ago. And it met—and exceeded—our expectations.

Halong Bay: Floating Hotel Surrounds You In Natural Wonder, Wood Paneling

ced138 — 2009-02-12T10:31:03-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/7156/DSCN2253.jpg" class="top">All this week our roving correspondent <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/user/ced183">Claire Duffett</a> will be sending back her reports on the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Vietnam%20Hotel%20Scene">Vietnam Hotel Scene.</a> Any questions or suggestions? <a href="mailto:tips@hotelchatter.com">Send 'em our way</a> and we'll have Claire answer them for you.When we imagine living on a houseboat, it usually involves a serious amount of wood paneling, good scotch, and seriously outdated 70s furniture. So we were pleasantly surprised when, minus the booze, we discovered that a floating hotel on Halong Bay, Canh Buom 8, possessed these traits. The tour boat shuttles travelers around the thousands of island jutting out of the bay. For boat standards, the cabin rooms--there were four on either side of the small, antique ship--were surprisingly spacious.

Hue: La Residence Hotel and Spa Is Rightfully Snooty

ced138 — 2009-02-11T11:56:39-05:00

Just north of Hoi An, along the Perfume River, is Hue, the former royal capital of the Nguyen dynasty. Down the road from the famed UNESCO palace ruins is La Residence Hotel & Spa, the town’s most understated luxury hotel. This French colonial relic recently underwent a massive expansion and renovation. It now has 122 rooms, 91 of which face the river. To complete the modern facelift, this week, it added free WiFi through the hotel.

Hoi An: Old People Love Vietnam's Life Heritage Resort

ced138 — 2009-02-10T11:01:22-05:00

If you think Life Heritage Resort sounds like an old folks home, well, you wouldn’t be entirely wrong. The resort chain has three locations in Vietnam, and we visited the one in Hoi An when we passed through town. With austere courtyards, and spongy, imported grass, the hotel resembles our grandparents' condo in South Florida more than it does a contemporary hotel beside the country’s most treasured ancient city.

Hanoi: The Hilton Hanoi is Not the Hanoi Hilton

ced138 — 2009-02-09T09:01:01-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/7156/DSCN2313.jpg" class="top">All this week our roving correspondent <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/user/ced183">Claire Duffett</a> will be sending back her reports on the Vietnam Hotel Scene. Any questions or suggestions? <a href="mailto:tips@hotelchatter.com">Send 'em our way</a> and we'll have Claire answer them for you. <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/hilton%20hotels">Hiltons</a> PR division in Southeast Asia probably despises John McCains nomination for U.S. president more than they did the release of One Night in Paris," Paris Hilton's sex tape. Suddenly, Hanoi Hilton, resurfaced as a euphemism for unspeakable torture and hardship. Well, guess what, Hanoi has a real-life Hilton and its actually quite lovely. The stately <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hilton+Hanoi+Opera/ian/139371">Hilton Hanoi Opera Hotel</a> and the Hoa Lo Prison museum, aka "Hanoi Hilton" buildings are located only a few blocks from each other.