“Staying in a 5-star luxury hotel is great, but sometimes there’s a lot of unnecessary things there that you have but don’t use or don’t need.”
This is an opinion hotel general manager H.T. Cheah shared with Manila Standard. For him, there are instances when a guest needs only the basics: a secure room, a comfortable bed, fast and reliable Internet connection, and a hot and cold shower.
Of course, holiday-makers and staycationers checking in a hotel for the purpose of pampering themselves welcome a bit more than a basic room and a fitness gym.
But travelers who are staying in Manila for a day or two, individuals on a business trip, or those flying out of the country from Ninoy Aquino International Airport usually prefer only the essentials.
These travelers are the target market of the first Holiday Inn Express in the country, located in the Newport City development in Pasay City.
Formerly the Remington Hotel, Holiday Inn Express is the mid-priced hotel brand of InterContinental Hotels Groups offering affordable rooms equipped with basic yet modern amenities.
According to Cheah, the hotel's general manager, once renovations have been completed by early 2019, the hotel will offer 737 rooms and will be the largest Holiday Inn Express in Southeast Asia.
As of early July, Cheah said roughly 35 percent of the eight-story hotel has been renovated, starting from the first three floors. But they are currently accepting guests in the hotel’s old standard rooms and renovated rooms.
“Currently we have 534 rooms operating, both the old, which are the Standard rooms and the newly renovated rooms,” he said.
Once the transition is completed, Holiday Inn Express will only have one room category, the 21-square-meter Superior Room, with either one queen-sized bed or two single beds.
Each Superior Room is equipped with the same amenities such as blackout curtains, comfortable beddings, a choice of firm or soft pillows, en-suite bathroom with hot and cold shower, seating area, universal power sockets, high speed Wi-Fi router, in-room safe, flat screen television, refrigerator and coffee and tea making facilities, hairdryer, and basic bathroom toiletries.
Facilities in the hotel include a gym, a meeting room, and a do-it-yourself coin-operated laundry (one token costs P120 and is good for one cycle). In-house dining comes in the form of the 24-hour lobby café offering breakfast buffet and a la carte meals. Guests in a hurry or those leaving before the breakfast buffet opens can get a Grab & Go packed breakfast from 1:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. from the café.
Since the Holiday Inn Express brand features a limited-service concept, room service is not available, but guests can order from their room and pick it up at the lobby café.
Cheah said the café area and the entire lobby will also be renovated and will be called the Great Room, a multi-purpose space offering various seating types—dining seating, high table, and chairs, coffee tables—where guests can dine, relax, work, and meet with friends.
Construction will start at the end of July, and once completed, in six to seven months, Cheah said it “may be the biggest Great Room in all Holiday Inn Express in Southeast Asia.”
Holiday Inn Express offers free airport shuttle to guests going to and from NAIA terminals 1, 2, and 3. It is 10-minute walk from the NAIA Terminal 3 via the Runway Manila bridge.
Call (02) 908-8000 or go to www.rwmanila.com for inquiries and more details.