Hong Kong is a melting pot of tourists, businessmen, overseas workers, foreigners and locals. It is the city that buzzes even at its unholy hour. It exudes an extraordinary energy to each person walking on it. Because of its power, I realised Hongkies, including myself, have one thing in common. After a day's work, they crave for a getaway. Last May, we eyed Silvermine Beach Resort in Mui Wo.
Hong Kong is known for its fast paced lifestyle. When you live here, you adapt to it subconsciously. It is proven by how its development could be compared to a concrete jungle since it is made up of towering apartments, sky-high buildings lining up the harbour and busy high tech mass transit railways in between. Despite the fast modernisation of Hong Kong, it is still remarkable as to how they preserve their customs by putting it into practice. Their rich culture can never be undermined as they do celebrate festivals the traditional way still that are solely their own. Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn Festival and the Dragon Boat Festival.
Ultimately, Dragon Boat Festival is one of the most prestigious events held in Hong Kong. Supporting my husband, last May 29 and the rest of the Team Mushu, we were able to experience a staycation at Silvermine Beach Resort in Mui Wo. And in this post, I will talk about what to expect of the resort.
LOCATION:
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| this is the receiving area and this is where the front desk is located |
Rowing for the Dragon Boat Races is quite physically demanding as I had my own experience of a winning race with Team Mushu two years ago. My husband wanted to have a good rest before and after and thought of a good way to deal with it. And we researched for the best accommodation for our family. There popped up Silvermine Beach Resort.
Mui Wo's tranquil location is highlighted by a simple 3 storey, 33 year old hotel that faces a vast beach upfront and extends to a mountain view at the back. Built in 1983, I have observed that the renovation last 2014 had did it good since the doors use upscale technology.
The colours of the halls are bright and it had a modern feel. I loved the way its walls were in pastel colours. It lifts up the mood and most of all, I love how the terrace faces the vast horizon of Mui Wo Beach. As I sat down and sipped my coffee, I looked straight out, and I felt a hopeful energy surging in.
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| a terrace where I find it very good to have coffee at while looking straight out in the horizon |
FACILITIES:
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| My daughter checks out the place. |
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| We went for an Italian dinner which was a good 15 minute walk from the hotel. |
During our stay, the room had a water boiler complete with the tea set and a huge bottle of mineral water. The usual give away of hotels I've gone to had two small bottles only. The refrigerator was surprisingly empty. Don't expect any canned refreshments or bottle shots. Room service is available which is my husband's favourite thing to have but this time, we opted to eat outside and try one of the restaurants around the area.
The room is fully furnished. It got a working desk, a wardrobe closet and a huge bed that is the most comfortable I've ever laid on together with my Samoan husband and my not so little girl. It's bigger than a king size bed I promise you. A bedside table suffices it with an access to all the lights which I find very handy since I didn't have to move my baby away from my arms in turning them off come sleeping time.
My friend helped me book the sea view room that opens up to the beach where I had the best view in watching my husband's races from. I loved the idea that the room can be covered entirely from the sun if you want to take an afternoon nap and when you're ready to face the morning sun, the rays are allowed to uplift the entire room in an instant as you raise the blinds.
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| The windows that I watched some of the races from when it was too hot. It was raining that day hence the skies were not very clear. |
It is complete with a flat screen TV but there was no HDMI cable available to borrow. So as for entertainment, I greatly relied on my laptop since most of the shows on TV are in Chinese. Their internet goes prepaid. You have to buy a 24 hour connection that I found a little bit of too much for the price of HK$100 each time.
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| That is the huge bed that gave us comfort for 2 days. 'Nuff said! |
The bathroom is complete with the basic amenities. The bedside table holds two pairs of disposable
slippers. Drawers contained a blowdryer and a bible. There's an iron and an iron stand for your convenience and a phone that is only restricted to local calls. I'm sure arrangement can be made for it to have an access internationally but may I suggest for you to use the internet instead if you are to avail of it anyway since charge is per minute for an international call.
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| how the bedside table looks like |
The outdoor swimming people and the kiddie pool is opened seasonally. This year, it will be open to guests daily from May 1 to October 31, from 9am to 10pm only. As Hong Kong is known for having unpredictable weather, once thunderstorm is officially hoisted, the swimming pools will automatically be closed. Nonetheless, the fitness centre and the sauna and steam room will remain at function daily from 9am to 10pm as well.
The resort encourages guests to engage in outdoor activities to take advantage of its pride, the natural ambiance it stands from. Biking, hiking, swimming are but a few of what's available. But at the time we were there, we enjoyed the dragon boat races very much because of its intensity, energy and the camaraderie between the teams.
The hotel has its own Blue Horizon Cafe that offers a great deal that goes: you choose any main course from over 10 scrumptious meals in the menu and you may be open to an eat all you can appetiser and dessert buffet. Their cakes are guaranteed home made but you may find their appetisers limited.
This is where they serve the breakfast also from 7am to 10pm. Variety is not that much. But I love how the place lights up every morning. After a sip of coffee, the surrounding neighbourhoods also instantly becomes lively.
TRANSPORTATION:
Situated in the cultural part of Mui Wo, Silvermine Beach Resort can be reached in so many ways. Being 45 minutes away from the airport (via a cab), the hotel opens up to this scenery right away that's why the hotel doesn't have a drop off area for guests coming in riding a cab. That limitation goes for uber and gogovans as well. We rode a blue cab towards the hotel and it amounted around HK$180+.
It was a little bit of a hassle since I was with my weekend luggages, a stroller, and my baby and it was raining hard that day that we were going to check in. We had to walk towards the front by foot. There was no covered walk leading to the hotel. There was no pavement to avoid the puddles nor to roll the luggages onto. It could've been a big help if those were present. Also, we had to ask from people where the hotel is as we got off the cab. I'm sure there was a sign but we could use a good big sign during a rainy day.
It was a little bit of a hassle since I was with my weekend luggages, a stroller, and my baby and it was raining hard that day that we were going to check in. We had to walk towards the front by foot. There was no covered walk leading to the hotel. There was no pavement to avoid the puddles nor to roll the luggages onto. It could've been a big help if those were present. Also, we had to ask from people where the hotel is as we got off the cab. I'm sure there was a sign but we could use a good big sign during a rainy day.
Mui Wo buses to and fro Tung Chung is available at a station located behind the hotel. This is for those who wanted to have an access to the MTR station. The schedule can be checked thru their website: www.silvermineresort.com. But the front desk has a posted schedule for everybody to see. Look for 3M as per public transport. Across the bus station is the blue taxi stand. So it's pretty accessible this way by land. You can check the fare for adults, kids, seniors and students by clicking here.
On the other hand, for a faster travel to the city, you can take the ferry. It costs HK$29/adult during the weekdays and then triple during the weekends. There's what they call the slow ferry which is a given. It usually takes longer to go to the city via this slow ferry than the other one but it's cheaper. 3 year olds and below are free. One way journey usually takes 30 minutes.
ACCOMODATION:
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| I like how tidy and well lit the halls are. |
The hotel is composed of 128 rooms and the 3 storey hotel is secured with electronic doors. The halls are also secured with a main door in a way that only key holders have an access to in addition to each electronic door locks. Apart from the big bed and complete amenities, the comfort it brought to my family was fairly good.
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| the basic toiletries provided |
The bathroom was comfortably spacious without any problems in its plumbing. It was kid friendly too with its anti-skid tiles and the sink counter is big enough to hold my make up kit and many more. I am just obsessive compulsive in terms of the toiletries I need but for a backpacker, it is truly sustaining with all the basics they provided.
There's a garden where my daughter had fun lingering in because of the swing. There are bikes that can be borrowed to go around town and a spa is available to guests starting from HK$280+ up.
Hotel policies include:
1. Check in time: 3:00 PM
2. Check out time: 12:00 PM (and then every extended hour will be charged HK$500)
3. Breakfast is from 7am - 10am.
4. Room rates are subject to 10% service charge.
5. If booking cancellation would be done 72 hours before the arrival date, no cancellation fee will be charged. But if the booking is cancelled within 72 hours (3 days) before the arrival date, one day of daily rental with the rack rate will be applied as late cancellation penalty.
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| Garden View |
6. Room reserved or charged at discounted rate cannot be cancelled nor cannot be refunded.
7. Amendment of the booking within 72 hours before the arrival date is not allowed. One day of daily rental with the rack rate will be applied as late amendment penalty.
8. The booking can only be amended at least 72 hours before the arrival date. The change is subjected to the hotel's availability and the rate may be revised.
9. Room reserved or charged at discounted rate is non-amendable.
10. VALID HKID card or passport should be presented upon guest check-in.
11. In case of no show, Silvermine will charge first night room rental as a no show penalty.
12. All payment will need to be settled upon checking in.
13. Like any hotels, a deposit will have to be made apart from the rack rate paid upon checking in. At the time we availed of their Front Beach View room, the deposit amounted to HK$500 for the entire 2 nights stay we did.
The hotel has the Seashore cuisine where breakfast is served daily from 7am to 10pm. Again, it can be accessed only by the guests with a room key so that's how they track those who are entitled to breakfast. Almost all of the accommodation fee includes breakfast anyways. So it's unlikely that safety would be compromised since I observed leniency on who comes in and out of the restaurant.
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| We just had to document my daughter's face. |
I find the selection pretty limited when the ambiance completely gives the bed and breakfast vibe. I wasn't really eager to eating what I usually see everyday at work. But it seems that that's the only thing available. The view is spectacular though and their coffee was tasty. My daughter loved every minute of breakfast because the restaurant was spacious and well lit. It elated her mood.The Seashore cuisine restaurant is open to an all-day-dining from 7am to 12midnight. They offer Afternoon Tea Set and Saturday BBQ buffet. It aims to cater to each guest's cravings by offering Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Western and fusion dishes in the menu.
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| me and my friend Joanne before she hits off to the races |
When you step out of the restaurant to the terrace, the Blue Horizon cafe awaits where we had lunch during the day of the races. Probably since it was raining the day before, we were eaten too by bugs. Because as soon as the weather became warmer, Hong Kong releases these nasty ones.
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| Yes, we're being attacked by bugs right about this time. |
Lastly, the Bayview lounge offers soothing music, relaxing ambiance and a wide selection of international beer. It has a bar for guests to enjoy and a vibe that will help you unwind.
RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES:
Swimming is the number one suggested activity of the hotel. The beach is inviting to tourists who would want to have a tan, a walk or just to get inspired. In the evening, a herd of carabaos come by to take some rest on the cool sand.
Rental bikes and maps are available for those who want to do mountain biking, trekking and hiking. Non-Motorised water sports are also available such as kayaking, canoeing, and stand up paddle surfing. At the moment we were in the area, the dragon boat races had kept everybody preoccupied.
Snorkeling, boating and scuba diving can be arranged privately but own personal equipments should be brought in.
PERSONAL CRITIC:
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| My daughter, securing a cozy space all to herself the moment we stepped inside the room. |
In general, for the location, facilities and service, I truly feel that the booking fee per night is too pricey. HK$700/night without any shuttle service privilege, no wifi, and no change of toiletries when we stayed there for 2 days.
The cleaners also took a lot of time in cleaning up the room during the morning when we had breakfast. I was expecting that by the time we get back from a good brekky and a walk (most especially if I had left the door sign that says, "Please clean up room"), the room would be cleaned up. But to my disappointment, it wasn't so I had to call downstairs for the refill on tissue, toiletries and new towels.
When we availed of the semi buffet, we were asking for help with the bugs. Unfortunately, when we asked for assistance, they didn't have any form of mosquito repellant. They just shrugged their shoulders to us and just said, you can eat inside if you're in any way uncomfortable here. We really wanted to enjoy the sunset while eating by the terrace. It didn't happen for me and my friends.
The hotel policies was a little bit too much when they tried to impose it most especially the HK$500/additional hour if you check out late but in the end, it was pretty kind of them to be flexible in consideration. A friend of ours was tied up with the races at the moment that they were supposed to check out. They understood the situation he was in when he explained so he was not charged.
For an overall rating, I give it a 6.5 out of 10. The place was nicely renovated, awarded Resort Hotel of the Year 2016 by GHM Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macau General Hotel Managers' Society and most of all, feels secure but I'm sure it still needs a lot of improvement with their guest service. Though there's a competition with the carabaos in the afternoon for some space at the beach, it is the best way to get close to nature anyway. So it's all good. Hygiene wise whether it's alright to lay down on the beach without dealing with any s#!+ on the sand, or even to swim where the carabaos swim, that I can't guarantee. The good things about this experience would be, my baby felt great about our stay, my husband got enough rest and we're altogether in experiencing Silvermine Beach Resort.
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| Dinner at La Pizzeria, Mui Wo |
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