BY SAMMY JULIAN
IF love is sweeter the second time around, shouldn’t this also be applicable when it comes to travel?
The truth is, the prospect of repeat trips to favorite destinations is oftentimes more appealing, even preferable to striking out to find new territory, sights, sounds and smells.
In his poem Lines Written a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey, William Wordsworth addresses the issue of how the memory of our lives and loved ones is often tied to a place, and how a return to that place is often more freighted with meaning, intensity and emotion than a first visit – as profound as that initial impact might be.
The first time you visit, you see the sights; on the second visit, you’re more likely to see the people, the rhythm, the true heart of the place. If it’s good enough for the most vaunted of Romantic poets, maybe it’s good enough for most of us.
This is exactly the reason why people return to Hotel del Rio time and time again.
Don Alfonso Tan has done something really wonderful to this hotel that people are keen to make a return visit.
A first-time visitor often seem inclined, after ending his visit to Hotel del Rio, to tell themselves “I’ll have to come back again soon.”
And why not? All the positives have already been said about the hotel but why not repeat them – friendly and helpful staff, excellent menu, well presented breakfast to set you up for the day, comfortable, good size rooms – nothing is too much trouble.
Don Alfonso Tan and his hotel staff are such good hosts that time spent at the hotel is like staying good, old friends. The restaurant, too, is frequented by local as well as guests. It makes for a pleasant balance and atmosphere to the hotel. Everything one could ask for.
Here is a welcome change from perfect buildings and faceless management and robotic staff.
The hotel is well-loved and its staff’s hospitality is the reason for first-timers to return. Guests all agree that the hotel is a terrific place that “under promises” but “over delivers.”
Truly, Don Alfonso has made Hotel del Rio the heart and soul of its community whilst raising the standards to a degree that makes it a great contribution to the tourism offering of Iloilo./PN
