Our Savoy Hotel Staycation

After more than 2 years, our family had a hotel staycation again! Praise and thanks be to God for this big blessing and opportunity.

Our family used to check in and stay in hotels regularly prior to the pandemic. We, definitely, missed doing this in the past years that COVID has been around. Our youngest child has been asking us repeatedly when we’d stay in a hotel again. I could only tell him, “In God’s time.”

True enough, in time, God paved the way for this staycation!

We stayed at Savoy Hotel in June for 3 days and 2 nights. We were all very happy that God made it possible for us to experience this again!

Good things really come to those who wait and hope in the Lord’s perfect timing!

One of the things that I loved about our staycation is that it was for free! Yes, we didn’t have to pay for our stay for 3 days and 2 nights! How? My husband’s current employer scheduled a Strategic Planning Workshop for their managers and they could bring their family along to stay in the hotel with them.

COVID-19 Considerations

At first, I thought, my husband would be given one hotel room only. So, I hesitated in agreeing to check in with the children. But, when he was able to confirm that another room would be given to our family, I agreed.

My main consideration was, of course, our safety. Even though the NCR was at Alert Level 1, our family has been very careful in our dealings with others. We still don’t eat with other households since we have to remove our masks while eating. And if my husband has meetings wherein he will eat with his officemates, we put him on quarantine and he doesn’t mingle with the kids and me. He stays in a separate room and eats on his own for a week at least to be safe.

I also checked first with the hotel on their policies in their in-house restaurants. I learned that they are already operating at full capacity. They have a cafe where breakfast is usually served but it is an enclosed area. They have an al fresco dining area by the pool also. We do not eat in enclosed restaurants yet. We prefer al fresco dining during this pandemic. Thus, we confirmed if we can order food also from other restaurants and have them delivered to our room and eat there. They said yes, so it was a go for us.

If you plan to check in at this hotel, I suggest that you call ahead and ask if you and your family would be allowed to have your free breakfast in your room if you also do not like to eat in enclosed areas with others. You just need to explain that you have young children and that you are playing it safe.

Let me also share their policy on COVID shots. They are not strict with the children’s COVID vaccine status as long as an adult companion is vaccinated. But, in case the parent/parents are not, you just need to present a negative test result 48-72 hours up to the time of check-in. Only the parent in whose name the room is reserved is required to present a negative test or a vaccination card.

On the day that we arrived at the hotel, my husband requested that adjoining rooms be given to us. They accommodated our request. Sadly, it took a while before we were given our rooms. It was a good thing that we brought our current favorite board game with us (Scrabble) and we found a place in the hotel where we could play comfortably while waiting. We stayed at the upper level by the pool. It was shaded and it has a nice ambiance. But it can get hot during lunchtime or right after lunch. Nevertheless, we enjoyed playing Scrabble and Monopoly Deal together while waiting.

After more than an hour of playing and taking pictures in the area, we, finally, got to check into our rooms.

What we liked

One of the things that I really liked at Savoy Hotel even before we checked in was their pool and pool area. I checked out their Facebook page photos and I inquired about their pool before we made the decision to stay there. I learned that their swimming pool is not too deep and is manageable enough for my 2 older kids. This was one of the main considerations for me because I will be the only one watching over the kids while they are swimming during the most part of our stay at the hotel. My husband would be in their Strategic Planning Workshop. I have 3 kids to supervise. I also discovered that they have a shallow portion for the smaller kids. My youngest wanted to be assured of that since he does not know how to swim yet.

The kids and I went swimming starting from Day 1 of our stay up to the last hour before our check out. They really missed swimming! I was glad that they/we were able to enjoy this activity throughout our stay. I was also grateful that we stayed there during weekdays and that only our last day at the hotel was a weekend. That meant, there were fewer people using the pool. We also used the pool after lunch, usually, because there were fewer people during this time. We wanted to minimize our exposure to others.

In the past, before Alert Level 1, the hotel was stricter and they only allowed a limited number of guests per hour to be in the pool. But, during Alert Level 1, they allow guests to just walk in and use the pool without prior reservation.

There are more people in the late afternoons. That is our cue to leave and to go back to our room.

Most of the time, it was just my kids and me who were using the pool during our stay. There were a few kids who swam with us but they didn’t stay long. There were more families using the pool on the morning of our last day at the hotel. Some of these families were of my husband’s officemates.

There were many lounge chairs, tables, and benches by the poolside. This is one of the things that we liked. That’s why we loved hanging out there. We liked the ambiance and that we can eat there al fresco. the pool area or poolside also looks good at night.

The second thing that we liked are their beds and linens. The kids and I slept right away, slept well, and enjoyed long sleeping times while staying at the hotel.

The third thing that we liked is that they provided toiletries, grooming kits, and slippers. Even if you normally bring your own when staying in a hotel, it’s nice to be provided with these things, especially if you forget to bring something. Their grooming kits included toothbrushes, toothpaste, cotton buds, and a razor on top of the usual soaps, shampoo, conditioner, and lotion. Since we have 3 kids, they gave us enough kits for everyone in the room.

The fourth thing that we liked is that they have adjoining rooms and we stayed in an adjoining room beside my husband’s room. I only stayed in the bigger room before my husband shared a meal with his officemates. After that, I stayed with the kids already.

One of my sons standing near the adjoining door.

The fifth thing that we liked is that the staff are nice and helpful. When I found out that the hair dryer in our room was not working and I called to report this, it was replaced right away. When I asked for additional glasses and borrowed some plates and utensils, they sent these to our rooms immediately as well.

The sixth thing that I liked is that you can have food delivered from their restaurant or from other restaurants and eat in your room if you want to. They also provide bottled water daily.

Now, if you are traveling and not based in Manila, one advantage of staying here is that it is near the airport. You can actually see the airport from some of their rooms. My kids, especially the youngest liked watching the airplanes take off from our hotel window.

What we didn’t like

There are only a few things that we didn’t like at Savoy Hotel.

First is that the tables in the twin or double room are small. It was a challenge eating meals there. There was a bigger table in the rooms with queen-sized beds.

The second one is that the shower area is a bit cramped. It’s not as spacious as the other shower areas or bathrooms of the other hotels that we tried in the past. But, that is a small inconvenience.

Our stay was, generally, pleasant. I recommend this hotel to families, especially those with young children who loved to swim.

They have a gym also. But we didn’t get to check it out anymore.

I loved our stay here very much! The kids and I had plenty of time bonding by playing card games and swimming. We also watched a movie and ate popcorn and cookies during our stay. It was like a vacation for me and the kids after finishing the school year. My two younger kids finished their official school year in May.