I have just returned from a wonderful trip to Australia. As the flight is a very long one, we decided to stop over in Hong Kong for a few days on route. I wanted to stay in a hotel that was centrally located but not too expensive. I was also interested in hotels that offered a pool to cool off! I spent some time looking on trip advisor before deciding on the Metropark hotel in Kowloon.

I then set about price checking and found the cheapest deal was by booking through booking.com.We paid around £150 a night for a family room without breakfast. The room information stated that it slept 2 adults and 1 child.

The hotel.
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We arrived at the airport after an exhausting 11 hour flight. I was really impressed by how clean and efficient everything was! We had intended to take the hotel shuttle bus to the hotel, but the helpful man behind the information desk suggested a taxi would be cheaper for us. The taxi system is also very efficient and we were soon on our way to the hotel. On arrival the taxi was met by a member of staff who took care of our luggage.

We arrived at about 10 am, long before the official check in time. However we were told our room was ready. The check in process seemed to take forever! We took the lift to our room and I was dismayed to find just 2 single beds! The room was small and I really didn't think there would be room to add another bed! I left my tired and grumpy children in the room whilst I made the trip back to the reception area. There was now a long queue so I had to wait for about 20 minutes! I explained the problem and that I had paid for 3 beds! After a lot of discussion with her colleague it was agreed we would be given a bigger room with an extra single bed- result! However the check in process had been slow and not particularly friendly! Not the best start!

The new room was much bigger. The room contained a double and single bed with desk and chair. The room was airconditioned, essential in Hong Kong! The bathroom was quite spacious with a bath and shower over. There was a good selection of toiletteries and lots of large white fluffy towels. There was a mini bar and tea and coffee making facilities. I was a bit disappointed that there was no fresh milk but only sachets of powdered milk. The décor was a little tired but the room was really clean and the beds comfortable with cotton sheets. Overall I was happy with the room!

Other facilities.
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This is a large hotel with 487 rooms and 19 floors. There is a good lift to all floors. On the top floor is a small rooftop swimming pool and fitness room. On arrival at the pool area you will be asked to remove your shoes and given slippers to wear. There are also pool towels for guests to use. The pool surround has loungers and tables and chairs with sunshades. The pool itself is really clean and it was lovely to swim in the cool water after the heat of the city. The fitness room is small and has a running machine and weights from what I could see. When we were there the fitness centre was always empty.

The hotel offers a free ½ hourly shuttle bus service to Mongkok and Tsimshatsui. We went to the latter as it is close to the ferry port. A trip on the famous star ferry is not to be missed! The Mongkok area is home to the shopping district and many of the markets including the well known ladies market.

The hotel is well situated and just a 15 minute walk to one of efficient MTR stations. It is also near to restaurants and shops. However bear in mind that Hong Kong can be really hot with high humidity and walking may not be fun!

The hotel has several restaurants including the expensive house of Tang and the cheaper palm court. We ate elsewhere during our stay as I find hotel food is often overpriced! We did take the buffet breakfast on one morning and it offered a good selection of all you could eat including cooked breakfast, cereals, pastries and lots of fruit bread and toast. At a cost of 110 dollars each (about £10) it wasn't cheap! There is a cake shop next to the hotel where you can buy reasonably priced yummy pastries for a cheaper breakfast option. There is also a supermarket about 5 minutes walk from the hotel where I bought fresh milk to keep in the mini bar fridge!

The hotel offers free broadband in all rooms. There are also computers located in the reception area that are available for a small charge.

We decided to take the hotel shuttle bus back to the airport and paid 110 dollars each. The bus is fully air-conditioned and the journey was hassle free although a local taxi would have been cheaper I didn't want to wait whilst one was ordered.

During our stay the staff were really helpful and friendly with the exception of the reception staff! When we checked out I was surprised to find items had been charged from the mini bar. As I knew that no items had been taken I questioned the charge. It took a long phone call to housekeeping before the mistake was admitted and the charge reversed!

Overall we all enjoyed our stay at the Metropark although first impressions hadn't been good! The hotel offers good value for money and is conveniently situated to many of the cities attractions. The free shuttle bus is a real bonus as is the lovely roof top pool. I would definitely stay at the Metropark again and just hope they retrain the reception staff!