Hotel Majapahit Surabaya^{(5 stars)}

I had the cheapest and 'basic' room booked (garden court), this turned out suitenähnliche, very atmospheric and elegant accommodation ( approximately 35 meters²). The rooms on the ground floor are because of the earlier covered terraces and the main set veranda really dark. My room had a very good cooling parquet floors, a high king -bed with perfect mattress, bedside table with telephone, couch with armchair and table, desk with internet connection and flatscreen tv, fridge with mini bar, closet with enough hangers, iron -and -board, as well as safe, efficient, controlled air conditioning and kettle with coffee-/ tea bags. Very spacious also the bathroom with large bath and several fluffy hand and beach towels, separate toilet, separate shower, sink included numerous pflegeutensilien and good hair dryer. Not to forget at the bed a insect killers, unfortunately there is (only?) in the months August/September due to the many green areas and tropical vegetation a moskitoproblem, the terrace was therefore in the evening and at night very limited to use.

The 'majapahit' has different restaurants, so on the 1st floor on the stadtbekannten chinese ' sarkies ', the nice bar 'maj pub', as well as the day and buffet restaurant 'indigo art'. In the latter I took my meal times a, this showed excellent quality and the service was just good. Excellent also the here from 6:00 A. M. morning very decoratively constructed buffet-breakfast, the many bowls and plates filled with rather small portions, but all meals were constantly fresh from of the kitchen and refilled. Unfortunately the atmosphere is the 'indigo' forced modern and didn't match at all the other style of the hotel. Next door the 'toko deli', here gives it until late back and pastries, even bread. Their drink, for example a freshly draught 'bintang' -beer, you can in the lobby lounge or in the snow-white wicker chairs of the garden, only fly in the ointment here, you in the evening ( at least in the months August/September) of countless mosquitos fast again into the interior will be expelled.

As in most parts of asia, are the staff inside also here very friendly and polite, service minded and always to a small chat-communication is an important part in the life of the indonesians dar. At services everything for the businessman and tourists, which for this may be necessary, the business center (and the internet-connections) functioning for local standards excellent. Not the exemplary servicegebahren fit, that I in bit premature prior (11:00 A. M. ) about 2 hours to my room had to wait, although the hotel hardly occupied. Surprised me the fact that itself in the garden on some evenings a no longer whole dewy lady einfindet, which their room aufsuchenden male guests especially friendly greets and 'special' services...

In the rear part of the garden there is a absolutely unreal beautiful, 25 times 10 meters big pool, surrounded by coconut trees and tropical flora. Here a few hours to spend, belongs to the most beautiful experiences here, just amazing, here all viere to stretch and on the next indonesian day there! Some, however already somewhat elderly loungers with foam pads is possible on the edge, the towels get in the adjacent spa. Here you can in romantischerm, asian- minimalistischerm ambience relatively cheap prices the various treatments, massages etc. Book. A gym with modern devices adjoins.

The 'majapahit', in the year 1910 of the famous armenian sarkies -brothers' Oranje hotel' established and today as national monument indonesia listed, is one of the few remaining authentic kolonialhotels asia. The 'raffles' in Singapore, the 'beach'in rangoon or the' eastern & oriental' on the island Penang in the last decades more or less kaputtsaniert, the 'majapahit', in spite of all the modern technical facilities and structural additions its nostalgic charm preserved. Here you can the traditional structure age tropenhotels meet: at the end of the main building spacious courtyards with accurate maintained lawn, long covered porches with revolving ceiling fans, the rooms in far broad wings with shaded terraces. The building has approximately 150 rooms and suites, the half of which on the ground floor and on the 1st floor. The entrance area is very elegantly in dutch -colonial style, the lobby puts in the open as charming small palm trees garden fort. The prices move on very favorable level, I paid with a German organizer 130.00 Euro for the single room/ breakfast, given the very special flair quite a bargain. In my opinion to is worthwhile for the 'majapahit' -in the reason the only attraction of the city - even the way/detour in the touristy right unimportant surabaya, for globe-trotters and lovers famous kolonialherbergen should these legendary hostel anyway a must his.

The hotel is located directly in the city center, about 16 kilometer and 45-60-minute drive from the juanda airport. The taxi you can in some airport offices and costs for example with airport-taxi 9 €, back I paid with a meter taxi 8 Euro. In the surroundings you will find some rather on the indonesian taste, shopping center, and other shops, also some beautiful colonial building as the palace of the governor of east Java. Altogether are stadtgänge or sightseeing on foot however a little pleasing in surabaya, also makes the never abreißende, extreme traffic straßenüberquerungen often very complicated. Recommendable in approximately 5 kilometer away is a visit to the a other world coming cigarette factory 'house of sampoerna '. ( taxi fares circa 3,00 Euro, return trip to reserve in the café of the factory). You see these factory (and the museum ) definitely at, even if you, like me, a non-smoker, you will live -pictures from operations and the story the indonesian manufacture see, the not regain one so fast not forget.