Manila Hotel

On a trip to the Philippines in late October 2010, my husband, John, and I stayed at the Manila Hotel for four nights. We stayed in the old hotel, opened in 1912 and full of history, and the whole experience was wonderful. A string ensemble played nightly in the lobby. It’s connected to a more modern tower hotel, but we loved the older charm, elevator, etc. Our room, with beautiful mahogany doors and woodwork, had two small balconies and faced the street and a park. It was difficult to contact the hotel directly, so I went through Hotels.com and got a deal at around $130 a night, including breakfast; they were easy to work with and answered all my questions.

During our stay, we asked to see the MacArthur living quarters, but it was occupied. We were taken to a small, locked room that was full of photos and told the history of the hotel. In this photo (above), I’m pictured in the museum room with the employee who showed us around the hotel. If you go, be sure to ask to see the museum room; it’s in the tower, with a view.

PHYLLIS MUELLER
San Jose, CA