Hotel Name: Sapa Galaxy Hotel
Address: 45 Le Van Tam, Sapa, Vietnam
I stayed at the Sapa Galaxy Hotel in Sapa, Vietnam. I booked online at the rate of 323,100 VND ($14 USD) per night, and I booked it for its price and location in Sapa.
This was my first trip to Sapa so I wasn’t familiar with where to stay. I figured I should stay in the town first to get oriented, and the town lake looked like a central location. Le Van Tam Street is one street behind the main street that runs along the lake, and it turned out to be a good spot. I was dropped off here by the minivan that I took from Hanoi.
Sapa is famous for being a popular tourist spot in Vietnam, but at the moment during the great pandemic of 2020, there aren’t many people travelling. I arrived to find no one at the hotel, so I waited around for about 10 minutes until a cleaner arrived, who then called the manager.
This has happened a few times this year at other hotels, so at this point in history a bit of patience and understanding is required for hotel operators in this regard. It looked like they hadn’t seen a guest for a while, and I was just happy they were still open. I have turned up at some hotels to find them closed down. Yeah, 2020 sucks for travel.
My booking was for a “Standard King Room”, and it looks like a got a twin room with double-size beds. The room had a big window facing the street, so maybe I was upgraded to a bigger room.
The room had an air conditioner, though it wasn’t needed at this time of year in Sapa.
The mattresses were like sleeping on planks of wood covered in a sheet. I couldn’t believe that a mattress could be so hard and uncomfortable. Fortunately being in Sapa where it gets cold at night, the doonas (or duvets as the rest of the world calls them) were extra thick. Living in the tropics in HCMC it had been a while since I’ve slept with such thick bedding. I used the doona from one bed as an under-blanket by folding it in half and sleeping on top of it.
The bathroom was also spacious and was in good condition. It had its own hot water system which you need to turn the power on first, and it produced scalding-hot water. Having a shower cubicle in such a big space seemed pointless, considering that most bathrooms in Southeast Asia go with the wetroom approach. It feels cleaner to have the shower in the open instead of being enclosed in a small glass box.
You could see the lake from my room, though you wouldn’t sell it as a room with a lake view. There is free wifi at the hotel, and I had no problem with the connection.
There is no breakfast service here, so I went out for food. There are plenty of Vietnamese and western food options nearby.
Overall the price and location were great, and the rooms would have been ideal if the mattress was comfortable.
Book the Sapa Galaxy Hotel online, or search for more hotels in Sapa.
