Agora Garden Hotel, Taipei City

This hotel was very nice. Rooms were clean, staff was helpful and friendly. Would stay there again. Good hotel for Westerners.

The hotel is exactly a 3 star hotel. It could be a 4 star or 5 star, but they would need to renovate everything and change the decor. They have a gorgeous backyard, however, that too is in need of repairs here and there. This is an okay hotel, size of room is spacious, and staff are friendly. My main complaint is that they don't have a concierge, and neither do they have a fluent, or decently fluent front desk staff. When asking about nearby restaurants, or how far is this place to that place, whether they can recommend any restaurants, etc, there is no one that can communicate with me effectively for me to get anywhere. Basically, I had to do my own research on the internet to find places to go, where to eat. I have stayed in other hotels in Asia, and have not encountered this problem. True, the other hotels were higher end, but in this hotel, I have randomly come across a few who speak more decent English, however, are not employed at the front desk, and are never around when I need assistance. Instead, if I ask a question, the 3 girls at the front desk, talk within themselves, and somehow I get an answer, but it is not detailed. Only a name in Chinese, which I can give to the taxi driver to take me there. There is no one single person who speaks English sufficiently. If you are staying here because they have a stove, remember to bring you own pots. They charge 3.00 us to rent the pot/pan per day, which I think is ridiculous. Also, I did not trust the buffet food. I am really into organics, and the origins of my food, so this may not bother you. The buffet is vast, and assorted, but I just did not trust it. The decor of the hotel room best matches a Best Western. The outside and lobby does look nice though, and fooled me. When I got into our room, I was a little disappointed. Location though, is very nice, as it's walking distance to the Taipei 101 building, and the dept stores. There's a high end grocery store in the 101, called Jason's, that I really liked. Location was good, though I think it's a 10 + min walk to the subway. I took the taxi everywhere, so I don't know exactly, so you should research that yourself. Btw, I stayed here for a week.

For the Westerner in Taipei, the Agora Garden is a great hotel option, offering comfortable, clean rooms, a responsive staff, a great breakfast buffet with "American Style" food as well as Chinese, several restaurants to choose from in the hotel, and much more. The suite we stayed in offered a kitchenette with a comfortable, if small living room, a huge bedroom and bathroom, and two balconies. The location is within walking distance of the downtown area shopping center, and closely located near several appealing residential neighborhoods, convenience stores to fill your refrigerator, and for those traveling with Children, an excellent McDonalds with a McCafe serving "Starbucks style" coffee and pastries. I can't recommend the hotel enough - if you plan to stay in Taipei for any length of time, this is a great place to consider.