Conrad Manila

The opening of Conrad Manila makes the re-entry of the Hilton brand back in the Philippines. 

Location

The property is being managed by the SM Group and it has the prime location of being right next to SM Mall of Asia and the SMX Convention Center.  There is a bridgeway (yellow bridge below) that links the mall to SMX and MOA.  If you don’t feel like going to one of the biggest malls in the country, there’s S Maison.  

S Maison is a high-end mall located right in the Conrad property.  The decor and feel of the hotel reminds me of the upscale wing of ION in Singapore.  There are not a lot of stores open yet so for the time being, you can head to MOA for your shopping needs. 

Apart from the Conrad name, one of the biggest draws of the hotel would be its unique architecture. It looks like a ship out to sail.  I wasn't able to take a picture of the facade and just like the facade, the interiors are also beautiful.  

The structure below is the toilet by the lobby.  The inside looks really clean.

Check In / Out

The front desk is located on the 3rd floor and as soon as the elevator door opens you get greeted by a flood of natural lighting because of their floor to ceiling window panels. 

Their standard check-in time is at 3PM and they offered to give me a call as soon as the room is available, I didn’t receive a call back but seeing that it’s all new, the staff are all in training, I didn’t mind.  I had a few things that I needed to do in the mall anyway. 

Room 

I booked the Deluxe Bay View room and was immediately drawn to the windows. I spent a good amount of my time having coffee and staring out. 

I could get used to waking up to this everyday. 

One unique feature of the room is its ability to sense if someone is in the room. This means that you don't need a separate key card inserted into a slot by the door for things to work.  

They have a Nespresso with a lot of pods. 

There's also a pillow menu with detailed description of each pillow.

The In-Room dining menu is very thick.  Plenty of options to make sure you don't go hungry.

There were plenty of sockets and the light switches by the bed were also properly labeled.  Wifi is also strong and stable. 

The wardrobes are well lighted from within instead of just having one overhead light. 

The bathrobe at Conrad trumps all hotel bathrobes I've ever tried.  It feels really luxurious and soft (the bathrobes in New World comes a close second).

The bathroom has huge sliding mirror as its door and you get separate toilet and shower stalls. 

Sadly, there's no bidet and the water pressure of the rainshower is not strong so I ended up using just the handheld shower.  Also, due to the shower knob that they have, there's no way to adjust how hot you want your shower to be. There's just one heat setting so no long hot showers for me. 

Hotel Amenities

They have a couple of elevator banks but only one is operating at the moment which is located at the far end of the hotel while my room is on the other end. If I had a Fitbit, its numbers would have been over the roof from all the walking that I did. Make sure to request for a room near the lifts unless you don’t mind all the walking. 

The red dot below is where my room is and you don't even see where the working elevator banks are from the below evacuation plan.

The pool and the gym are both on the 4th floor and true to its theme, swimming there feels as if you're in a ship deck.  They also have a sauna and a steam room but there's no jacuzzi. 

The hotel also has a lot of restaurants but I didn't get to try any of them.  I did have my morning coffee at C Lounge and it's just a nice place to relax. 

The cup of coffee comes with a small biscotti stick and things that you might need for your drink.

Staff Courtesy

I have to commend their front desk staff, Genevie (I think, I’m not certain) as she was very helpful during the check-in process and gave me a birthday cake when she found out I was close to celebrating my birthday. 

Also to Ricky from the front desk and Bobby from the concierge who made an effort to engage and converse with guests and make them feel welcome. 

Conrad Manila

Seaside Blvd. Cor Coral Way

Mall of Asia Complex

Pasay City, Philippines

New World Makati Hotel

Location

New World Makati Hotel is located right across Greenbelt 3 so the hotel is perfect if you're intention of visiting Manila is to shop.

Check In / Out

I can't believe how spacious the lobby is.

The hotel has an ongoing promotion till the end of the month offering their residence club rooms at half the price.  We took advantage of that promotion so we were led to the residence club floor to check-in.  We arrived at a little past 12 and all three rooms that we booked were given to us without any fuss.

Checking out was also easy as pie.  We were also offered to stay a little longer and have a cup of coffee in the living room (lounge).  It's a great way to make a lasting impression.

Room Size

The room size is adequate and as it is newly renovated, the design is modern.

They have an open closet that I like.

The Evian water bottles also have large price tags to avoid any confusion.

I forgot to check the Wifi speed but I didn't have any issues with the speed and was consistent throughout our stay. 

They also have fire masks available in your room.  Talk about being prepared. 

I had a few issues with the room but they were all minor, I couldn't find the robes to use for sleeping, and the digibox for the cable TV was not set-up.  Again, very minor, nothing that's a deal breaker. 

Bathroom

Apart from the door, one of the bathroom wall slides open so you can watch TV while you're in the tub.  I also particularly liked the cool air coming in while you're enjoying a hot soak in the tub.

The shower area is separate which I like and it's the only hotel I've stayed in that has a proper bath mat.  I hate getting the bathroom floor wet so having a huge bath mat is a big plus.

New World also has the best bathrobes ever.  They're fluffy and heavenly. 

Since the room is newly renovated, it would've been great if they installed a bidet. 

Lounge

We spent a huge amount of our time in the Residence Club Living Room.  How could you not?  The lounge has comfortable sofas and has an amazing view.

The buffet spread during cocktail hour was good.  If you're the type who likes to be left alone, you're going to love it at the club.  They pretty much let you be from making your own coffee to getting your own wine.  

Breakfast

We were allowed to have breakfast only at the Residence Club and we were initially slightly disappointed because the lounge spread is pretty limited.  Upon checking, there were no eggs, pancakes or bacon!  

One of their chefs approached us and told us about the menu on the table.  As it turns out, apart from the spread, you can also order anything you want from the menu.  Pancakes, Bacon, Eggs, Steak then!  

Hotel Amenities

The gym is 24 hours and I forgot to take a photo but they have a few cardio machines and a few weights.  It's located in one of the floors that they haven't yet renovated. 

Here's a photo of the pool that we also didn't get to use. 

I also liked how their business center looks like from the outside.

Overall, we had a wonderful time and we can't wait to be back.

New World Makati Hotel

Esperanza St cor Makati Ave

Ayala Center, Makati

http://manila.newworldhotels.com/en/