Xinyi Shopping District ! A stylish urban hotel "Sparkle" right opposite Taipei 101

Photos & Text /miss kitB

Staying in Xinyi District just feels different—everything here is always so fashionable and sleek, everything is so professional and well done. Take the newly opened Tamsui-Xinyi Line (red line), and as soon as you exit from Exit 3 of “Taipei 101/World Trade Center Station,” you’ll see the iconic Taipei 101 building on your left and the underground entrance to Sparkle on your right. It feels amazing to see Taipei 101 every time you step out. From the hotel, you can easily walk to Xinyi Eslite, ATT, the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi mall complex, and even to Taipei City Hall Station. As someone who loves cycling around Taipei, I just have to walk a few steps to the street corner to find a YouBike station. It’s truly a very well-connected place.

The hotel is located underground, and you have to go down a few steps to get there—so what about the luggage? Don’t worry, this is a hotel right opposite Taipei 101, so of course they’ve thoughtfully provided an elevator. In the photo, the section divided into three parts with Christmas decorations is the elevator. It’s a small box that can only fit two people and a few suitcases, moves a bit slowly, but it’s just enough and works perfectly fine.

The Taipei 101 building across the way—you can see it when you leave home, come back, or even have breakfast.

The hotel has two Italian restaurants: B-Cape Steakhouse and Patio No. 3 Italian Bistro. The all-you-can-eat steak meals and dessert courses are very popular. Even if you’re not staying here, if you love steak, you should definitely give them a try.

The restaurant has a corridor-style design and is also where breakfast is served. At the end, there’s a more private space—that’s the other restaurant.

A small shop set up in a corner of the lobby sells some specialty goods. In the photo above, you can see a Taiwanese handmade soap brand and the brand of toiletries provided in the rooms, as well as European-designed tea sets—it’s quite interesting.

The chefs at Sparkle have also launched a pineapple cake made with real pineapples (not winter melon paste), with packaging in a bright and cheerful color scheme, designed in a fun and lovely style. The square-shaped pineapple cakes have a touch of gold on the surface, making them look very appealing. With the buttery aroma of the cookie crust and the tangy taste of the local pineapple filling, the flavor is really good too.

Even in the small lobby space, they haven’t forgotten to add artwork for decoration. The artworks selected by the designer are fun and a bit contrasting—there are mechanical-looking monstrous sculptures as well as cute and peaceful animal sculptures. And my favorite is the paper-cut sculpture of a fictional creature created by a Japanese artist, hanging on the wall by the check-in counter—strange and super cool.

To enter the room, you use your room card to感应 open the electronic door—security is good.

I really like this doorplate design—the light projection on the door is so beautiful.

I got to the room a bit late, it was already dark~ The biggest surprise at first was that the room has big windows. I always thought hotels underground wouldn’t have windows or natural light. Of course, there isn’t much of a view outside the window (though the few potted plants are actually nice), but having daylight and a sense of the outside environment makes the room feel completely different. The color scheme is mature and steady with dark gray, and the striped carpet and fiery red armchair add a bit of personality to the room. Both the desk and the bedside are positioned facing the TV, which is great for guests who want to watch cartoons morning and night (haha).

Space-saving semi-open bathroom design. (That is, there isn’t a completely separate bathroom, just two small sections divided for the shower and toilet, while the sink and countertop are outside.) The shower area has a bathtub, a rain showerhead, and a regular showerhead—taking a shower is super comfortable. The toilet has a Japanese-style electric bidet, and in winter, there’s a warm toilet seat.

A set of four Italian bath products is provided.

Matching the hotel’s name “Sparkle,” there are also floating champagne bubbles on the wall.

The stylish, high-tech-looking table lamp is from a Taiwanese brand. I think the switch is really cute.

The late-night dessert snack the hotel treated me to—small bites, and the presentation is very nice.

There’s a photo of Taipei 101 fireworks in black and white on the wall, and outside is a small garden—the whole stay feels really nice.

A black spider-like creature by a Korean artist—a uniquely styled piece; you might have seen his larger sculptures.

The breakfast is semi-self-service. The self-serve items include bread, fruit, cheese, cold cuts, salad, and drinks, and each person can also order one breakfast—Chinese, Western, or Japanese style.

Since Western-style breakfast is easier to make vegetarian, I usually go for that. This time I had scrambled eggs (vegetarian), with a little roasted vegetables. The outer section is self-serve—the bread here is pretty good. If you want to have breakfast nearby, you can go to Chen Gen for tea and have egg pancakes—just turn the corner and walk a little. If you sleep in too late, there’s also the American-style 1bite2go nearby.

Thank you Sparkle for giving me such a homely and pleasant stay.

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INFO
Sparkle Hotel
Address: B1, No. 16, Section 5, Xinyi Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City
Phone: +886 02 27588881
Website: http://www.sparklehotel.com.tw
Facebook: 思泊客

 miss kitB

Core member of the Not-So-Serious Association, or a “multifunctional cross-media freelance creator.” Believes boredom is the mother of creativity, and happiness is life’s greatest asset. Eats breakfast every day and travels the Earth daily.
Blog:http://kitx.mysinablog.com/index.php