Home Away from Home: The Bayview Park Hotel in Ermita, Manila

Due to an appointment at the US Embassy, my family and I spent a night at the Bayview Park Hotel along Roxas Boulevard in Ermita, Manila, right across the US Embassy. It was the closest hotel to the US Embassy (it was right across the embassy), and we didn't want to be late for our early morning appointment. After searching online for possible hotels, we decided to settle with this hotel, which, according to the hotel listing on the Manila Bulletin, is a 4-star hotel.

The Bayview Park Hotel (got this photo online)

Back in September, I went on a 5-day trip to Singapore and stayed at the Bayview Hotel. Since they had similar names, I originally thought that the Bayview Park Manila was operated by the same group as the one in Singapore. After a quick check online, however, I found out that the Singapore hotel's parent company, Bayview International Hotels & Resorts, only operated hotels/resorts in Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand. Now I'm really curious as to who owns and operates the Bayview Park Hotel. Would anyone know?

Anyway, we checked in at the hotel before 9pm, as I still came from school to attend classes, the last of which ended at 7:30pm. Getting to Ermita from Ortigas was such a breeze--fortunately, we did not get stuck in traffic and we made it in about 20-30 minutes.

One of the first things you'll see upon entering the hotel

The hotel, unfortunately, didn't have basement parking. Guests who have their cars with them would have to park in front of the hotel, and guests would have to leave their keys at the valet because they might have to move cars that would be getting in the way of other cars. Don't worry--there are security guards to watch over the cars 24/7. I wish this hotel had better parking facilities, though. It would certainly give guests a peace of mind, especially since the hotel is located in one of the "seedier" areas of Metro Manila.

The hotel's lobby

The front desks

The hotel lobby seemed rather unimpressive, and is rather dull compared to other 4-star hotels in the city. Apparently, the hotel was built sometime during the 1990s; however, the hotel lobby made me feel like it was somewhat older than that. Perhaps a bit of updating would do the trick.

Since we arrived late, there weren't really much people checking in so we were immediately attended to by the staff behind the front desk. They were friendly and attentive, which is expected of all hotel employees, really. 

Some reminders for foreign visitors. Hmm, interesting.

We were originally supposed to get a Superior Room. Since it had only one bed, my mother had requested for an extra bed for me to sleep on. However, we were upgraded to a Deluxe Room, at no extra cost. This is definitely much appreciated. 

After checking-in, we proceeded to our room on the 11th floor--however, we were left to go to our room alone. Although we only had one luggage bag with us (as well as a few other things), someone could have at least offered to help carry our stuff to our room--I mean, that's supposed to be a standard thing, right? Oh well.

Stairs

Useful information about the country for foreign tourists. They were still playing the old "Philippines--More than the Usual" Department of Tourism Campaign (from the early to mid-2000s), though. 

We took the elevator to our room. The elevator was okay, though it could have had better lighting. It also seemed to be moving rather slowly than the usual.

The hallways were nothing special (they are what you would expect to see in hotels), though the presence of fire extinguishers (easily seen) are a big plus. At other hotels I've stayed in, I don't think the fire extinguishers are easily visible to those who might need them. 

The hallway. See the fire extinguisher?

Before checking-in at the hotel, I actually had to search for reviews of the hotel online, and the reviews I found online some how lowered my expectations of the hotel. When we got to our room, however, it actually turned out to be quite better than I had expected. The Deluxe Room had one queen-size bed and one single bed, and a nice-looking LCD TV. It had the usual facilities like a small refrigerator, mini-bar, hair dryer, etc. Also, all rooms had free Wi-Fi connectivity, and the internet connection was actually pretty fast. I was able to do my schoolwork and check my social networking accounts without hassle. 

The beds. They were okay and I was able to get a good night's sleep.

Room service menu

I apologize for the mess

The walk-in "closet" in the room led to the bathroom. The toilet and shower areas were separated from the sink and the closet by a door. There was another door which led to the sink and closet from the room, so you'd actually have to go through two doors if you wanted to use the toilet. Having this would also allow you to brush your teeth even if someone was taking a shower. I think this is actually pretty nice.

The bathroom had the usual supply of toiletries for the guests. The shower was okay though the water pressure from the shower head could be improved. A big plus for the bathroom would be the handheld bidet for--well, you know what it's for. I think handheld bidets are a nice touch (and aside from the Bayview Park Hotel, the only other hotel I've stayed in that had one of those was Hotel Stotsenberg in Clark), and I think public toilets should start having them too--all for the sake of hygiene.

Have a look

Bayview Park Hotel-branded toiletries

Our room had a view of the US Embassy and Manila Bay, though the windows were actually quite dirty and were tinted (maybe to protect guests from the afternoon sun?). I wasn't really able to appreciate the view that much. Maybe they shouldn't have tinted the windows since there were curtains anyway. 

After our appointment at  the US Embassy ended at 9am the next day (the day after we checked-in), we still had enough time for a breakfast buffet at the Lobby Lounge. It is indeed located right at the lobby (true to its name), though the restaurant seems to be a bit awkwardly-situated. It felt somewhat out-of-place. For a hotel of its size, seating at the Lobby Lounge also seems limited. As an alternative, though (if the Lobby Lounge did run out of seats), the hotel had its own Starbucks Coffee branch at the ground floor, though I'm not so sure if you could enter the coffee shop from inside the hotel, instead of having to go outside. Strangely enough, there is another Starbucks branch right across the street from the hotel. 

Speaking of food, there are a number of restaurants nearby, as well as a convenience store for those who'd rather not eat at the hotel. After checking in, my dad and I had dinner at a nearby Chowking. I didn't really feel that safe walking to Chowking--but maybe it's just me. I'm really just not used to going to that part of Metro Manila. 

The Lobby Lounge

Going back to the Lobby Lounge, there weren't enough food choices as what you would expect from five-star hotels, but, as we say in Tagalog, pwede na (it's good enough). They had the usual stuff like scrambled eggs, hash browns, bread, cereals, etc. I wasn't really able to take photos of the buffet and the food I ate since we had just come from the US Embassy and we weren't supposed to bring our cellphones and other gadgets inside.

Anyway, I didn't really like the other food choices (like corned beef, and fried fish) so I settled for cereal, scrambled eggs, and hash browns instead. The scrambled eggs were of the usual hotel quality (read: it was good) though the hash browns were a bit inconsistent. Some were crunchy while the others were a bit cold and soggy. We ate breakfast rather late (around 9:30am), and they only served breakfast until 10am. Despite this, however, they were still constantly refilling the food. I don't think I could say the same for the drinks, though--they didn't really bother to refill the juice dispensers anymore. My dad had to settle for half a glass of Mango juice. 

Since I still had to go to school for a 1:30pm class, we checked out of the hotel less than an hour after breakfast. It's too bad we couldn't stay longer--I could've checked out the pool area and the other facilities that the hotel had to offer.

Conclusion

Overall, I did have a pleasant stay at the hotel. Aside from some gaffes (like the windows, lack of parking facilities, etc.) I would say that this hotel is still a pretty ideal place to stay in, especially for those who have an appointment at the US Embassy, or for tourists who want to explore tourist attractions like Intramuros, or Manila Ocean Park. While this hotel may still have some work to do before they could catch up to other 4-star hotels (particularly, facilities-wise and aesthetically), the location does give this hotel an edge over its competitors. Maybe they could work on improvements and at the same time capitalize on their location to attract the tourists. This place already is actually attracting tourists (there was a large group of Koreans as well as some Europeans/Americans while we were there) already--but a bit more wouldn't hurt.

Score: 14/20

(The Bayview Park Hotel Manila is located at Roxas Boulevard corner United Nations Avenue in Ermita, Manila. For more information, please visit their website at http://www.bayviewparkhotel.com, and like them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bayviewparkhotelmanila?fref=ts).