Gran Prix Lets You Experience Being on Top of the Podium of Econotels
Nearly a month ago, bloggers were invited to try out the accommodation of Gran Prix Cebu and luckily, I was one of them. Each of us were given an overnight stay and would you care to ask how my experience went? Let me answer you one by one.
Gran Prix Location, Accessibility, and Convenience
As we all know, Cebu City is slowly becoming a bustling city although she has managed to retain its signature laid back feel. Since Cebu City has a total population of 866,171 according to the 2010 census, expect it to be filled with many buildings, businesses, entertainment and leisure facilities.
Perhaps the highlight of this city are the festivities and the celebration is marked by people in colorful costumes dancing in the streets. This celebration is none other than the Sinulog Festival.
Sinulog is the one time of the year when all hotels, inns, pension houses, and apartelles in Cebu City are fully-booked. If you can manage to book your stay on the day of Sinulog itself, you better make the sign of the cross if you are a Catholic. I tell you, it’s not that easy. Trust me! I’ve experienced it myself!
Gran Prix is located right at the heart of downtown Cebu, specifically at the 3rd Floor of Coast Pacific Building, corner F. Ramos Street and Gen. Maxilom Avenue.
Aside from the fact that it is located at the center of anywhere, Gran Prix is very accessible to major malls, schools, churches, hospital, business establishments, and government offices. In fact, Grand Prix is just a walking distance from these landmarks:
- Malls – Coco Mall, Raintree Mall, Robinson’s Cybergate
- Schools – Cebu Institute of Medicine, Velez College
- Hospitals – Chong Hua Hospital, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, Visayas Community Medical Center, Cebu Doctors Hospital
- Government offices – Cebu Capitol
- Churches – Bradford Church, Redemptorist Church, Sacred Heart Church, Iglesia Ni Cristo
Their elevator is very efficient and it can send you to the 4th floor in just a few seconds.
As for accessibility, it’s a piece of toast! Gran Prix can be reached through local transportation vehicles like a public utility jeep and taxi and they are available 24 hours a day!
Even if you get hungry, it’s not a problem as well. Just like the transportation, Gran Prix is very near restaurants and convenience stores that are open for 24 hours too.
As for location, accessibility and convenience, I will give Gran Prix a score of 5 out of 1 to 5.
Tip: If you are planning to join the Sinulog, you should make your reservations before August! It will be under first come first served basis. A minimum of 3 nights is required for you to make a reservation for Sinulog and you need to pay for your reservation before the end of December. All the major hotels in Cebu normally charge double their rates during this time of the year.
Another great tip: The street where Gran Prix is situated is the same street where the Sinulog Grand Parade 2013 started! So when you get out of Gran Prix and on to the street, the party is already there! You can view the very first performer up to last just by staying a few feet away from Grand Prix. Isn’t that awesome?
Gran Prix Hospitality
Don’t you just hate it when the front desk ignores you or the staff just passes by you without even giving you a smile the least?
In Gran Prix, that’s not a problem. The front desk and the rest of the staff are warm and welcoming. They will greet you and give you a warm smile!
Aside from the fact that they are very accommodating, they are also keen to help you if ever you need some assistance.
For instance, when I got into my room, I forgot to ask for the WiFi password. There is a landline phone inside my room that I could use to call but I prefer to walk out the door and ask for help. When I ask the personnel, they gave the password to me with a smile.
The front desk is also very polite when it comes to phone etiquette. They certainly know how to entertain clients properly. I was able to experience it when one of my blogger friend asked the front desk to connect a call to my room because he has no idea where I was. He was just asking me if there was free breakfast but I immediately went back to sleep after he made the call.
I wasn’t able to grab my free breakfast. I was very tired because I slept at around 4 AM that day. I was too attached to my bed in Gran Prix at that time.
Gran Prix Amenities
Gran Prix has a reasonable collection of amenities that any econotel should have.
First, let’s talk about the temperature control of their econotel. They have split type air-conditioning units that are installed in every room. As for my experience with the aircon, I loved it!!!
I loved it because I placed it in the lowest temperature setting and it went very cold in a few minutes! Wohooo!
I have experienced other hotels with air-conditioning that seems to be not functioning properly or when their coldest setting does not feel too cool for you.
The bed is simple. I love it too. The foam is not too hard nor too soft. The sheets and towels are clean.
The floor and walls are clean as well. I love the color of my accent wall because its mandarin. I like it because orange is the color of creativity.
To add a spark to the wall, they added an artwork as accent. It suits well to my room.
There are flat screen TVs mounted on every room too. They have cable channels on those TVs as well if you want to satisfy your flix fix. The only problem I had with the TV is that the screen is too small for me because I am a wide screen person.
They also equipped their rooms with the electronic card key system which could almost eliminate the use of keys.
With CCTV cameras installed at the lobby and every hallway of the building, there is nothing they can’t capture on tape.
Their WiFi connection is good! The connectivity is very fast although there are instances when the connection gets cut off, but I get connected back in a few seconds anyway.
Their bathroom sink, toilet and floor is clean enough for me.
They also have a hot and cold shower which is nice. I always prefer to use the temperature setting in between the two.
A plated breakfast is also available for each booking but unfortunately for me, I only had sleep for my breakfast. It was a very refreshing experience for me because I was not able to get 8 hours of sleep for quite some time already.
They have 24 hour room service as well. If you want, you can have them do your laundry, pick you up or send you to the airport and ask for a wake-up call if you want.
As for my overall experience with their amenities, I give them a score of 3.5 from a scale of 1 to 5.
Gran Prix Rates
Tip: They have 39 awesome rooms you can choose from. As for my suggestion, go for room 417 and 418!
- Superior Room – Php 1,399.00 / night
- Deluxe Room – Php 1,699.00 / night
- Suite Room – Php 1,999.00 / night
- Family Room – Php 2,299 / night
If you have an extra guest, don’t fret. Just add Php 450.00 and you’re good to go! This is applicable to persons who are 11 years old and above.
As for their rates, I give them a score of 4 from a scale of 1-5.
Tip: You can avail the Summer Promo Package which will give you 3 days and 2 nights which is valid until the 30th of September 2013. You can also avail the Barkada Promo Package at only Php 499 per person! Contact Gran Prix for more details.
So next time you’re in Cebu, there’s one thing you need to put on your “must-try list.” Make it Gran Prix Econotel Cebu! For their latest updates and promos, feel free to visit their Facebook page and official website anytime!
- Address: Corner F. Ramos St. & General Maxilom Avenue, Cebu City (Near Robinson’s Place Cebu and Fuente Osmeña)
- Telephone Numbers: 254-1294 to 95 | 0932-330-1043
- Email: cebu.granprix@yahoo.com
- Website: www.granprixhotelcebu.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/GranPrixHotelCebu
Gran Prix rates published here are subject to change without prior notice.
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