Day 1 Lodging: Hotel Royal Chihpen
I'm a pretty hardcore budget traveler, but my dad wanted a special trip for his 60th year AND worried that my more "demanding" brother wouldn't be able to handle anything less than four-star. One of the main draws of this East Coast tour was the chance to experience a few extra-fancy hot springs resorts. My only previous experience with hot springs were in Ecuador, where the water is brown and smells strongly of sulfur, the pools cost $1 and the facilities are minimal at best. Zhiben Laoye was a shock.
The Japanese are reknowned for their love of hot springs, and during the occupation of Taiwan, helped develop the natural resources of this volcanic island into world-class resorts. Chihpen is one of the most famous destinations in southeastern Taiwan due to the high quality of its hot springs. My grandfather even invested in an apartment in Chihpen, but long ago donated it to a church. He asked us to find it and take a photo but vague directions from an old man did not lead us to the mysterious apartment.
Japanese-style robes and slippers were in the rooms along with notes stating they are the accepted garb anywhere on hotel grounds. Comfy! The bathtub is extra deep with faucets that pour mineral water, so guests can create their own in-room spa.
Food in the Naruwan restaurant is buffet-style. The buffet was a feast for the eyes and nose, including beautifully-presented fishes, dim sum, duck, rice dishes, colorful fruits and various local delicacies. Unfortunately as most buffets go, the taste was not up to standard, especially not Taiwanese standard. This kind of food is just not meant to sit out for long periods. But I can always eat turnip cakes, and with even the most blah items I could still say I'd had worse Chinese food in America.
The aboriginal Bunong tribe lives in the area, thus traditional décor shows up throughout the hotel. The beautiful outdoor theater hosts nightly dance performances by the natives. I stopped in to watch the dances while testing out the robe-and-slipper dress code.
There are several different spa complex options. The open-air spa is all-naked, featuring individual tubs you fill at your own temperature. There's the extremely pricey spa...tempting to get a massage but not at those prices! I'm a kid at heart, so I went for the more family-style Spa Paradise, which has several pools at different temperatures, including a regular swimming pool. Bathing suits and swimcaps required here.
There were aromatherapy pools smelling like tea, roses or chamomile; there were waterfalls activitated by buttons; there were massaging loungers, plastic chairs covered with holes that bubbled hot water rhythmically; as well as whirlpools, cold pools, and a water slide. I believe the hottest pool was 45 degrees Celsius, which felt amazing. It took almost 3 hours to extricate myself from the glory of Spa Paradise...and that was only when it was closing.