Hotel Miramar Garden Taipei opens
With an opulent lobby, decadent restaurants and eager staff, the Miramar Garden Taipei fits in with the five-star hotel set. However, with rates averaging NT$2,300, it stands apart in terms of price.
The Miramar is Taiwan’s first hotel started under a build-operate-transfer (BOT) model and the savings are passed on to guests. The hotel is the first under former premier Yu Shyi-kun’s plan to increase tourism on the island by 2008 through cooperation with private businesses in the industry.
Under a BOT-style contract, the government provides the foundation or land for an operation and contracts a private company to build on it. The company then operates the business, taking in the profit, and returns the whole of the operation to the government after a given period.
In this case, by agreement between the hotel and the Tourism Bureau, the average room rate will be NT$2,300, with the exception of June 5 to June 10 when the Computex computer show will be held at the World Trade Center. General Manager Linda Chu notes that room will generally run between NT$2,000 and NT$3,000, depending on the class of the room, which is considerably under the average rate of NT$4,200 for rooms in five-star hotels around Taipei.
The 12 above-ground floors and two basement levels hold 200 12-ping guest rooms, two restaurants, a lounge, gym, sauna, outdoor swimming pool and spa, amenities fairly typical of five-star accommodations. In addition, a garden and waterfall in the back of the hotel, contemporary decor and a view of Taipei 101 from some rooms add to the style. www.chinapost.com.tw
