Sun Moon Lake Travelogue

August 6, 2010 — Sun Moon Lake Travelogue, Part 4 of 6: Staying at Del Lago

Canon EOS 500D 18–55mm F3.5–5.6 + Speedlite YN-468

As I said in the trip overview, if a friend hadn’t recommended Del Lago, its name alone might have made me skip right past it @.@'"

The entrance and parking area outside Del Lago — Parking was limited at the entrance, but hotel staff could help late-arriving guests park elsewhere.

There was only room for a few cars out front. If you arrived late, the hotel staff would drive your car to the parking lot for you—a nice bit of service.

The exterior wasn’t particularly impressive, but the bright, spotless interior and beautiful view felt completely different ^.^

A bright and tidy public area inside Del Lago — Inside, the bright and spotless public space was a striking contrast to the exterior.

A public area at Del Lago with views through large windows — Large windows gave the hotel’s public area an open, airy feel.

The service was so attentive that a staff member even helped us unpack?!

A hotel staff member helping guests with their luggage — A staff member helped us with our luggage in the room.

The guest room at Del Lago with the travelers’ luggage — Once the luggage was settled, we took a look around the room we had booked at short notice.

This was a spur-of-the-moment trip, so we couldn’t get a lake-view room. We were lucky to find a room at all.

The interior of a non-lake-view guest room at Del Lago — It wasn’t a lake-view room, but finding any room on such short notice felt lucky enough.

Our room was on the top floor, though, so whenever we wanted the view, we could simply climb the stairs to the rooftop—and save NT$2,000 in the process... hehe~~

A view of Sun Moon Lake from the rooftop of Del Lago — The rooftop still offered a view of Sun Moon Lake without the lake-view room surcharge.

The open lake-area panorama seen from the hotel rooftop — The rooftop panorama turned into an unexpected bonus of our stay.

There was also a large terrace beyond the lobby’s floor-to-ceiling windows, and the scenery there was lovely. If you couldn’t get up early enough to see dawn from the Hanbi Trail, this was a pretty good alternative ^.^

The terrace outside the Del Lago lobby overlooking Sun Moon Lake — The terrace outside the lobby was another easy place to enjoy the lake view.

A Ten Ren Tea counter stood on the other side of the lobby. Whenever guests sat there to wait or rest, the staff would offer them tea.

The Ten Ren Tea counter inside the Del Lago lobby — The tea counter on the other side of the lobby offered guests a cup while they waited.

The next morning, we had breakfast in the first-floor restaurant. The buffet had plenty to choose from, and the food was very good.

Breakfast buffet dishes in the first-floor restaurant at Del Lago — The first-floor breakfast buffet had a generous range of dishes.

Princess training has to start young. Just look at Belle, already practicing how to cut her steak... hehe...

Belle practicing how to cut steak at the breakfast table — Belle concentrated on cutting her steak—princess training had officially begun.

Shuishe Pier was right outside the restaurant. You really couldn’t ask for a better location~~

Shuishe Pier seen from near the restaurant at Del Lago — Shuishe Pier was just outside the restaurant, putting the lakeside within easy reach after breakfast.

Step outside the hotel and you were already on the Shuishe lakeside path. I had been looking forward to an evening walk beneath the colorful lights around the pier.

The Shuishe lakeside path outside Del Lago — The Shuishe lakeside path began outside the hotel, where we hoped to see the pier lights at night.

After dinner, I even asked a restaurant staff member what time the lights outside would be switched off. He said they stayed on until quite late. We went back upstairs, settled the kids into bed, and came down at about 10:30—only to find that every light was already off @.@'"

I had been expecting a beautiful night view, but all that remained was the hotel’s own lighting. I was furious >.<'"