Hotel Fun is an interesting place to hang your hat for your stay in Taipei. It’s a bit of a fusion of a traditional hotel and a hostel. 

I personally stayed here for seven consecutive nights during the summer, so I had the opportunity to get a solid feel for it. Also, it should be taken into account that this review is coming from the perspective of a solo traveler, so if you are headed to Taipei with friends or family, you might have a different experience here. 

Facilities

One of the core reasons I decided to spend a week at Hotel Fun instead of some of the other options was that it advertised having all of the basic facilities I was looking for. I was actually on the road for about 6 weeks and I also wanted my own room and bathroom, so I needed a place that fulfilled some basic needs.

Some of those needs that were high on my list were:

  • Private rooms
  • Private bathrooms
  • Strong and free Internet in the room
  • Laundry facilites
  • Close to public transportation

Hotel Fun fit the bill as they have all of these. And, I liked the fact they have a couple common areas to hang out in if you want to get out of your room, but you don’t want to go exploring. 

I mentioned earlier that it’s a bit of a hybrid between a hotel and a hostel, and that’s because although they have some nice private rooms, they also offer rooms for families of four or six people as well as dorm style rooms typical of what you would expect in a hostel. 

Aside from all of the above, you will find a breakfast buffet, free coffee and tea in one of the common areas, a pool table, massage chairs, and a community computer in case you want to check your email and you don’t have your own laptop or smartphone. 

Ambiance

The facilities that a hotel has is one important factor when making your choice of where to stay. But, you can usually find out most of that information, though often exaggerated, from the big hotel booking sites. 

What you don’t often get a feel for from those sites is the general ambiance of. As I was traveling alone and for a good amount of time, I was looking for something with a bit of a travelers’ hostel feel even though I wanted my own room. 

This place was not at all what I expected. 

When you first walk in you will notice that it is very clean and well kept. In fact, the lobby and common areas  were cleaner than many higher end hotels I have stayed in. My room was no different as it was immaculately maintained. 

As I had my own bathroom I did not need to use the community showers, but I did peek in and they too appeared to be spic and span. Even the laundry facilities were in great shape minus the fact that the single serving detergent in the vending machine was out of stock when I needed it. 

What was missing though was any kind of social atmosphere. Over the entire week I saw many people come and go. Almost all of the patrons were Taiwanese. There were a few Japanese guests, a small group of Filipino guests that appeared to be traveling with a church group, and a European couple. 

I am sure I didn’t see everyone, but I made a conscious effort to try and get a feel for their clientele and i can say for certain it was not similar to what you might experience in a hostel in Barcelona or Chiang Mai. 

I have to assume mostly to that being the fact that Taipei is not a major destination for backpacker types, and not that there is anything wrong with Hotel Fun.

Getting There

Hotel Fun is pretty easy to find. It’s located down an alley off of Linsen North Road in Taipei’s Zhongshan District. It’s about a 3-5 minute walk from the Zhongshan Elementary School MRT Station (also referred to as the  O 10 stop), making it very convenient to both get to and to use as a home base for exploring the rest of the city. 

If you are heading right to the hotel from the Taoyuan International Airport, you can jump on the Airport MRT line and head into the city. You will need to get off the Airport MRT at Sanchong Station (A2), and connect to the orange line which will take you the rest of the way. 

Alternatively you could take a Taxi or an Uber, but the MRT is the most economical and it’s just as fast if not faster since you won’t have to deal with Taipei traffic. 

Overall Experience

My overall experience at Hotel Fun was a positive one. It’s a very reasonably priced option right in the middle of the city. The fact that it’s only a few minutes walk to the MRT makes it extremely convenient.

The rooms were spotless and comfortable. They were generally quiet too, so if you’re a light sleeper you should be OK. 

While the breakfast buffet was included, it was nothing special. I personally preferred headed out in the morning and grabbing some tasty from a local breakfast shop. But, if you are on a tight budget a free buffet breakfast can really help stretch your funds. 

I didn’t find the vibe I was looking for in terms of being able to meet and mingle with other travelers even though I speak some basic Mandarin, but I don’t put the blame of this on the accommodation. It’s more of the overall culture in Taiwan added to a general lack of Taipei’s backpacker-type tourism draw. 

But, the real question is would I consider staying here again?

I would have to say that YES I would as the convenience, quality of accommodation, and overall value were all positive. 

If you have had the pleasure of staying at Hotel Fun in Linsen, we’d love to hear about your experience. Please share a few sentences in the comment section below.

Happy travels!