Our folks’ horrible night was over. My daughter’s harrowing day on the other hand, had just begun. The whole gang was in high spirits when we checked out of Sanva Hospederia, a century-old rundown hostel where we stayed overnight. The shabby rooms left most of us sleepless, and its resident mosquitoes marked our then seven-month old daughter Luna with nasty bites.
We were looking forward to finally moving in a semi-swanky accommodation, something my parents and our backpacking infant truly deserve.
My sister hailed a cab along Avenida De Almedia Ribeiro, a couple of blocks from Sanva Hospederia. Only she and our parents with Luna in tow hopped in, for cabs in Macau allow a maximum of four passengers at a time. And instead of taking another cab, hubby and I walked to the bus stop near Grand Lisboa Hotel.
Bus 21A whisked us out of the bustling Macau Peninsula and to the almost-southernmost point of sleepy Coloane Island. The driver, who didn’t speak a single English word, gestured for us to alight at a deserted stop after we showed him the hotel’s name in Chinese on a piece of paper. We shuffled to and fro the street, in search of the hotel. It took us about five minutes to spot a teeny weeny sign and a staircase heading downhill, partially hidden by dense foliage.
The pool lies at the foot of the stairs. I found my father sitting on a lounge chair, lazily watching a couple of guests swimming despite the chilly climate. He rose when he saw us emerge from the bushy rear access and led the way to the front desk where my mom and sister were waiting.
The marketing officer I had been corresponding with regarding our reservation via email is Filipino. He swiftly processed our check in and handed us the keys. The bellman, another fellow Filipino, assisted us to our rooms. The whole family was awestruck as the doors unveiled beautifully furnished Portuguese-style interiors.
Four-star Pousada de Coloane Beach Hotel has only two types of rooms: The standard room which has twin beds, and the superior room which has a king size bed. Each of the hotel’s 30 rooms has a jacuzzi and private balcony overlooking Cheoc-Van Beach. Such features made me choose this particular hotel. The rate of a standard room is 862.50 MOP, inclusive of service charge and tax (230 MOP per additional head, service charge and tax included).
We booked one room for two nights for my parents and sister, but only one night for me and the hubby (uhm, we slept at cheapo Sanva Hospederia again for our last night in Macau). 2,587 MOP is a hefty price which we shelled out the first time for accommodation (our post-wedding honeymoon suite cost only half of the standard room rate), but we never regretted such expense… Especially after seeing the sheer mirth in my folks eyes as they laid on their beds. Priceless.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to idle. We’re heading out that afternoon to see The Venetian and City of Dreams. So yeah, I had to drag my dreamy parents out of the plush sheets.
Macau Series: Meet My Backpacking Folks
Meet My Backpacking Folks
Century-Old SanVa Hospederia
Largo Do Senado: And The Family Chaos Continues
Comfort is our primary concern, thus we have to find a good accommodation and couple with service crews who really understand english is a plus thing. Awestruck din ako gaye sa ganda ng loob.:-). BTW, nice to be back here. Have a nice day to the family.
Love the family photo! 😀 Now is the time to splurge naman hehe 😀 I want to go back to Macau din to backpack then bonggang accommodation sa last night. Will keep this post in mind 😀
Btw, can’t wait to read about your parents. Dali post naaaa! 😛
Ay wait ayun na pala LOL Akala ko Up Next T_T
Kuya Bonz, room rate is our primary concern. Lol.
Mica, we rarely splurge. And splurging while backpacking with parents is pretty justifiable 🙂
If it were up to me, room rates first din. And if the Happy Meal is with us – proximity to the nearest patch of sand with water.
Plan on going to MAcau for the beach next time. Last time we were there, it was raining pretty hard
ang galing.esp.yung mga beaches naman nila di masyadong crowded no so yung view maganda.hehehe.ito ba yung beach sa baba ng A-ma temple ba yun na bago sa taas ng bundok.me napansin kasi akong beach doon.:D
Well justified splurge indeed, minsan lang tayo magtravel abroad with our parents.
Eileen, oh yeah I remember! Happy Meal is a water baby too!
Anton, I think it’s a different one. I have not visited A-Ma Temple though 🙁
Claire, so true. And they really deserve it!
you’re one of my fave writers bff! Feeling ko nakagat din ako ng lamok like Luna. hehe
Biased ka BFF! Hahaha. Aylabyu 🙂
Family photo, loved it! siyempre hindi pwedeng mawala si Luna dito. She’s my idol, traveling the world kahit may gatas pa sa labi lol – ang classic ng hitsura sa loob ng room.
Edmar, LOL @ “may gatas pa sa labi”… Haha. Literally 🙂
khanto, ansaya naman dyan sa hotel na tinuluyan nio… gusto ko yung may bathtub. heheheh 😀
Khanto, nasulit ko sya kahit overnight lang kami sa room namin 🙂
I miss this! Pero parang bitin!
Gabe, we can’t afford to stay longer eh. Hahaha!
wow! sosyalan! nice ng mga rooms, its good to splurge once in a while esp kapag kasama family. 🙂 cute ni Luna. congrats sa PBA! 🙂
Gael, being nominated alongside awesome travel bloggers like you is already victory for me 🙂
Haha you called that “semi-swanky” I wonder what a non-swanky looks like…glad ur folks and Luna got a well deserve rest in that place. Missed that part in Macau during my hurried daytrip haha
Poor Luna suffered from the bites the whole time we were there 🙁
may beach pala sa Macau? toinks. hehehe. saya Gay! next time, babalikan ko ang Macau pero I’ll spend a day talaga dun. 😀
Yez Ed, on Coloane Island. Not outstanding though.
such a far cry from your first accommodation. but yes, seemed a little pricey, too. is the beach any good?
Not so spectacular, Gladys. And it was mostly gloomy when we were there so we were not able to fully appreciate it.
What a beautiful hotel and truly worthy of a splurge. I love those headboards.
I love those headboards for our own house!
cheap accomodation is what i am after. but cheap accomodation doesn’t necessarily mean a nasty or bad accomodation. ang cute ni luna.hihihi
ganda ng bed! hehe
wow ang ganda ng room!! Kung hindi lang sana mahal baka dyan din kami mag-stay ng barkada ko pag punta namin dyan sa March. kaso ang mahal!
Joan, yeah it’s really too pricey. But then again, it’s pretty reasonable for Macau.
Oh yay, the Macau series continues! I’m thoroughly enjoying these posts with the ‘rents:-D
Thanks Kim/MJ. Hopefully I finish it soon.