Commitment to hospitality

THERE’s a hotel that always catches one’s eye as he passes by Gorordo Ave. That’s Harolds Hotel, a Cebuano enterprise committed to first class hospitality.

This is a three-star hotel with what management calls “five-star” rooms. All have a memory foam bed, 32-inch LCD TV with international cable channels, a phone in the bathroom, bidet, free wired or a wireless internet connection, a wide working desk, electronic safe, coffee or tea set-up, fully-stocked mini-bar, flat iron and pressing board, hair dryer, rainfall shower, iHome speaker system and an alarm clock.

There’s really nothing much more needed in these rooms—90 of them (36 superior, 45 deluxe and nine executive suites). Except, of course, to enjoy their comforts after travel, after conferences, after a hard business day, or to prepare for next day’s business agenda.

For the comfort of its guests, the hotel has a lobby level café, the H Café, which serves international cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Also at the lobby is Bread & Co. for assorted breads and pastries where one can also use a computer for internet services at P100 per hour, with free brewed coffee. At its roof deck, there’s Highlights for sundown before dinner drinks or for the Asian fusion dishes it offers. It also offers a spectacular 360-degree view of the city at night. One thing one realizes about this city view is the realization that Cebu City, for all its burgeoning high rises, has actually a lot of green, with most rooftops of the low level houses competing for space with varying shades of treetop green.

The hotel also has function rooms, a board room and the Emerald Ballroom which can accommodate a total of 180 persons. Wireless internet connection is free of charge in these function rooms and audio-visual equipment is available on request.

This being a business hotel, it does not have a swimming pool but it does have a fitness center for those who want or need to flex their muscles to de-stress or for exercise’s sake. Neither does it have a spa but according to general manager Hembler Mendoza, the hotel can make arrangements for a massage (the executive suites actually have massage tables ready) as well as for babysitting services and for secretarial services.

The aim of the hotel, says Mendoza, is to give “unrivaled service and world-class hospitality” to its clientele; to give five-star comfort in a three-star hotel setting.