Modern Plaza Hotel

At about 750 TWD a night for a week, the friendly, accommodating staff and cleaners were a plus. The bed was soft, the room spacious for the low price, and the water was hot. The shower was the only time I felt at peace, because it made the noisy hotel seem quiet. I had to come downstairs several times to ask how to get on Wi-Fi and where to find shampoo and body wash. That seems like information they should give at check-in. Hygiene was bad enough that anyone fussy about it would have a miserable time. The old hotel smell of smoke was in the entrance, elevator, and room. I killed seven mosquitoes by hand, mostly in the first couple of days. The windows have no bug screens, so I guess a previous guest let them in. Someone's long hair was in the supposedly clean bed and in the bathroom too. I suspect the room hadn't been vacuumed. Soundproofing was the worst part for me. I could hear the elevator ding and people blowing their noses or sneezing, and there wasn't a single moment of rest. Even after most guests checked out, someone at the floor booth played music videos or shows loudly without headphones. After I complained to the front desk, they stopped and put headphones on, but I had to complain several times because there were different people on the floor. Wi-Fi was unreliable too. People also ignored the no-smoking rule. I'd get used to the room's usual stink, then a fresh wave of smoke would come in. I reported it to the front desk, and he said he'd investigate. The smell was worse than the hotel's normal odor, and it made me cough and gave me a headache, so I started wearing a mask indoors. A cockroach also appeared in the bathroom; it seemed like they came through the water disposal system.

At NT$603 when I wrote this, it cost less than half of nearby hotels. The only comparable price was a hostel, but here I got a private room and bathroom. For that reason, I'd book it again if I needed a cheap place in the area. I can live with the drawbacks at that price, especially since how much time do you spend in your room on an overseas vacation? Keep your expectations realistic and you'll be fine. I was. The location is easy to spot: about a five-minute walk from Kaohsiung Main Station, with two sizable 7-11 stores nearby. Step outside and you can see all three. The name says “Modern,” but the place looks stuck in the 1980s. It's dated and old, with a musty smell as soon as you enter, and the soundproofing is basically nonexistent. The staff, on the other hand, are extremely polite and nice. If you ask, they'll provide toiletries for free, including a toothbrush and toothpaste. Shampoo and body wash came in travel sachets, which was a first for me.

The staff were very friendly, and the location is excellent, right across from the main Kaohsuing Train Station. There are 7-Eleven stores across the street on two different sides of the building. I stayed two nights and could hear the street below, but I was only there to sleep. The rooms are basic, and pretty much everything else is too. The name and prices are the only modern things about the property. The rest feels like it's from the 1950s or 60s, including the staff. The TV looked like it was from 2010 and had no HDMI. They could spend a little money updating the rooms.

The room was so unhygienic that we left almost as soon as we saw it. There was a hole in the ceiling, cigarette burns and urine stains on the bedding, yellow crusty pillows, bedbugs, and cockroaches. Even the old electric fan was coated in grime and dust. Staff offered another room, but seeing roaches and bedbug droppings made us unwilling to try it. We booked because the listing said the hotel had been renovated recently, which clearly wasn't true. The staff were polite and did what they could, so I don't blame them. A building can be old, but asking guests to pay for a place in this condition is unacceptable. The greedy landlord putting profit ahead of customers is driving the business into the ground. It feels like the hotel has been deteriorating for decades.