Discovery Motel - Yonghe

The staff were nice, but the room looked nothing like the Agoda photos. It was old and smelled of smoke, with chipped floors and a damaged bath. Without a shower curtain, the bathroom flooded. Not family-friendly, and I'd avoid it.

The breakfast was pretty good, and the staff were friendly, though their English was very limited. The rooms smelled smoky and damp, and there were cigarette burns on the bed and sheets. Thin walls let us hear everything next door. At 5:30 a.m., guests came back from the loud KTV upstairs, whose bass we could feel through the ceiling, and turned the TV up. After we complained about the noise, staff moved us to another room, but it was no better, maybe even worse. It seems to be a sex hotel, though that wasn't made clear when we booked. There are things in the rooms that I wouldn't want young kids seeing, so definitely avoid it with a young family. Three nights of bad sleep cost too much.

At first glance, the room looked huge and luxurious, but it was freezing in winter. There's no heating, only air conditioning. Staff brought extra blankets, but the air stayed cold. It was also outrageously expensive. It's a love motel, with a vending machine stocked with butt plugs and vibrating clit rings, plus three channels of very average porn. I'd only stay here if, like me, you arrived on a Saturday with no other options and foolishly paid three or four times what it's worth.

I came for nine days because I needed to be near a family event. This is a motel, not a hotel, so the amenities are different. Look up motel culture in Taiwan. The building is much bigger than it looks from the front and has two parts: business and presidential suites for longer stays, and walk-up Mobile Garage suites for short stays, almost a separate section. Room 509 was very large and had hard wood floors instead of carpet, both pluses. But it smelled of smoke, the blanket had a cigarette hole, and the shower head was loose. With no shower curtain, water got all over the bathroom floor and made it slippery. The subway is about a 20-minute walk away. I gave it four stars for several reasons. If you need to be in the YongHe area of Taipei, there aren't many options. It's not modern, but it's very spacious and clean compared with other hotels I've stayed in around here. The staff were exceptionally friendly and caring throughout my nine days. They always smiled and went out of their way to help with my requests. After I complained about the first room, they moved me to 501. It had clean new sheets, no smoke smell and a working shower head. It seems to be hit or miss, so if you have a problem with your room, ask to switch. It was easy to ask the friendly staff. Every day, we could pick two bowls of instant noodles for free at reception, which was a first for me in all my years of traveling. After nine days and 18 bowls, I still had flavors left to try. They also put two cans of soda in the fridge daily, plus two bottles of water, cookies and chips, all complimentary. I only learned in my last three days that a community bus takes you to the MRT station for free. There's also an MRT station being built on the corner, which they said would be finished by next year and make getting around easier. I enjoyed walking to the station through RenAi Park, the biggest park in Yonghe. One extra star is for the auntie who made breakfast every day. She clearly cared about the food. I saw her carrying fresh ingredients from the market at 4 a.m. to get breakfast ready. The menu changed daily, and the home cooking was delicious, a nice break from restaurant food outside. She told me she carefully limits the oil and salt because she cares about her customers' health. Sadly, she has one day off each week, and the other aunties' cooking is, cough cough, not quite as good. With the food, kind staff and my daily walk through the park, I may stay here again next time I'm in Yonghe.