Accommodations Worldwide

During a 10-week trip to Asia, January to April ’05, we had the pleasure of staying in several excellent hotels.

• In Hong Kong, CHINA, Harbour Plaza Hong Kong (20 Tak Fung St., Whampoa Garden, Hunghom, Kowloon; phone 852 2621 3143 or visit www.harbour-plaza.com) had an elegant lobby with spectacular views of Victoria Harbour, especially from the rooftop infinity pool. $321 double.

• Also in Hong Kong, the Langham Hotel (8 Peking Rd., Tsimshatsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong; phone 852 2375 1133, fax 2375 6611 or visit www.langhamhotels.com) has an excellent location near the ferry...

Let me tell you about a tropical paradise my husband found on the Internet: Taman Harum Cottages (Box 3216, Ubud, Bali, INDONESIA; phone [62-361] 975567, fax 975149 or visit www.tamanharumcottages.com). The owner/manager is Ib Hariyana (Hari, for short).

Everyone had their own bungalow with an upstairs patio that overlooked miles of impressive green rice paddies. Our bathroom was like a semi-outdoor grotto, with lush plants and high boulders giving us complete privacy. During our stay in November ’05, the room rate was $45 a day.

The restaurant was charming and the food,...

We spent three days on Cheung Chau, CHINA, a small island that is a 40-minute ferry ride from Hong Kong Central, in early December ’05. We stayed at the Warwick Hotel (East Bay, Cheung Chau; phone [852] 2981 0081, fax 2981 9673 or visit www.warwick hotel.com.hk).

We were personally greeted by Maggie Ma, Director of Sales & Marketing, who bought lunch for us on our arrival and did everything she could to make us comfortable. We made our advance reservations directly with her via e-mail (maggiema@fareasthotels.com.hk) and paid HK$600 (about US$77) per night, including the service...