Last February I went to Bandung again. But this time I went there for 4 days (3 nights) with my younger sister. After some searching, I booked and stayed in these 2 places while in Bandung: Rumah Ebo Guesthouse and Dago Highland Resort. I am going to review both places here.
Rumah Ebo
Jl. Imam Bonjol no.27 Dago
Bandung – INDONESIA
Phone: +62-22-2533773
From outside, there was no information or name “Rumah Ebo” written. I needed to recheck the house number once again and asked directly to one of the staff there, “is it Rumah Ebo?” It’s like a normal house, except that there was one small receptionist table near the main door.
There were about 7 guest rooms including Family Room (for 5 people), Standard Room (double bed for 2 people) with bathroom inside, and Standard Room (bunk bed for 2 people) with shared bathroom outside. The Standard Room was really small, old, equipped with only wardrobe and mirror. I guess the other rooms were not that different either. The wifi signal was not stable inside the room. Well, with only $15 per night for 2 people, what do you expect?
What I like was the small garden with dining tables in the backyard. It was green, peaceful and relaxing. Actually I decided to book this guesthouse because of that garden. They served the breakfast there. The breakfast included: lontong sayur (a traditional Indonesian breakfast), breads with jams, coffee and tea, and fruits. It was good!
Another thing to like was its location. It was just walking distance to Dago main street where many fashion outlets located. Yet the area was not crowded at all, and was filled with many big trees. There are many public transportations passing this area, and taking a cab was so easy. This guesthouse is also close to 2 big universities: Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) and Universitas Padjajaran (Unpad).
In a nutshell, this guesthouse has poor condition, but very good location. It is cheap and suitable for backpackers or budget travelers.
Dago Highland Resort & Spa
Jl. Bukit Pakar Timur IV No. 88
Bandung – INDONESIA
Phone. +62 (22) 2508080 / 2515499
I put a high hope in this hotel. For 2 nights, I wanted to relax, contemplate, isolate and be far from the city, enjoy the hill view and air. But first impression during check-in was already bad. One of the card readers that accepted payment for all debit and credit cards did not work. The other card reader only accepted BCA card, which I didn’t have. The price for staying 2 nights was around $90, and I didn’t bring it in cash. So I paid half first, and the next day I would visit ATM to withdraw some money. Which means I should go back to the city, which was not in my isolation plan.
I was offered 2 rooms. One room was near the lounge, main gate, wifi access, receptionist, swimming pool… basically near everything, but there’s no terrace and view in the window. The other room was located faraway from the main lounge, passing so many stairs, but having terrace and nice hill view. In the end I chose the one near everything. One of the reasons was because of the wifi access (in isolation mode but I still need wifi, please), but after unpacking all my stuff I then found out there’s no wifi signal inside the room *sigh*. The standard room was equipped with TV, fridge, and bath tub. The furniture was kinda old and smelly. This hotel was really spacious with many guest rooms, which reflected its heyday few years ago. Now, without reconstruction, this hotel will definitely not survive.
The next day, I checked the spa facility of this hotel. They said it was opened at 10am, but it’s still closed til 12 noon. Isn’t this place called “Resort & Spa“? Spa should be its main specialty for guests, yet it’s not managed well! Now there’s another reason to go to the city: to find a spa/massage place.
Have I told you that this hotel was far from the city? It was located in the middle of nowhere, and I didn’t bring personal car. If I knew I would go around the city (again), I would not stay in this isolated place.
The good thing was this hotel DID have nice nature view and air. Who doesn’t love the swimming pool located on the edge of the hill? The view from the restaurant and lounge were also nice. I could spend hours sitting in the swimming pool, restaurant and lounge while reading book and eating. It was so peaceful, even though sometimes vehicles sound was still heard from across the hill. Except the nice view, the restaurant also had nice breakfast foods.
In a nutshell, the further the hotel is, the nicer view it has. The price is still reasonable, not too expensive and not too cheap. It is not suitable for travelers without their own car.