[Taichung Xinshe 台中新社 ⌂ Stay宿] Adagio Reindeer : Vanilla House 缓慢寻路：香草House @ Lynda's Taiwan-logue

< Stayed in Nov 2014 & Nov 2018 >

Eversince I learnt about a beautiful story of how two Taiwanese ladies (one of whom has passed away due to cancer) left their day jobs to fulfill a common dream of opening a lavender farm, I have diligently pursued Lavender Cottage 薰衣草森林 and its sister brands. After Apr 2013's visit to Hsinchu's Lavender Cottage Jianshi 薰衣草森林尖石店 and Jul 2014's stay at Adagio Jinguashi 缓慢金瓜石, next on my checklist was Lavender Cottage Xinshe 薰衣草森林新社's B&B Adagio Reindeer : Vanilla House 缓慢寻路 : 香草House.

Under the Adagio Reindeer 缓慢寻路 brand, there are 2 other accommodations at Hualian 花莲 and Miaoli 苗栗. This Lavender Cottage Xinshe 薰衣草森林新社 lodging has also expanded to include a new standalone wing (会馆), at a very short distance away from the park premises - though my 2 stays in Nov 2014 and Nov 2018 were at the original wing (本官) - do note the difference when you are booking your room.

Both stays, I had the company of friends, which made it more economical to book a ride here from Taichung city. Just for reference:
- we had a pre-arranged 4hr ride for NT$2000, picking us up from Hotel Mapp 希堤微旅, waited through our lunch at You Jian Yi Chui Yan 又见一炊烟, then drop-off at the lodging.
- on the lodging website's suggested transport service Tripool Taxi, a ride from Taichung train station 台中火车站 is an estimated NT$1400 (31km/approx. 1hr).

1. Surroundings & checking in
2. Lodging interior
3. Guest rooms
4. F&B

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[Taichung Xinshe 台中新社] Lavender Cottage ♦ 薰衣草森林

☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ 1. Surroundings & checking in ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷

Upon arrival at Lavender Cottage Xinshe 薰衣草森林新社's main entrance, we informed the park greeter that we were checking in at Adagio Reindeer : Vanilla House 缓慢寻路 : 香草House.

▼ The lodging proper is located in a corner of the park premises, so the housekeeper took a while to receive us at the main entrance and chaperone us to the B&B.

▼ The earlier stay issued a guest tag (for our unrestricted access in the park during non-operating hours) and a 10% discount shopping coupon.

After a short but up-slope walk (the housekeeper was kind to offer some help with luggages), we reached the lodging entrance.

The garden above is still opened to public visitors, until the gate below.

▼ There is a private exit here, leading to the lodging's private carpark. You can pre-arrange with the housekeeper for your ride to drop you off or pick you up. (The new wing is also located near this private carpark.)

☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ 2. Lodging interior ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷

Upon entering the house, guests are required to remove footwear and change into indoor slippers.

Up the stairs, a very cosy common room comes into sight ~

After showing guests around the common area, the housekeeper moves on next to check-in procedures - basically a quick check of your planned activities, whether meals are required in the park (at own expenses, except breakfast) as the park and its cafes close by 6.30pm, and preferred timing (8.30am or 9am) of breakfast the next morning (for the staff to prepare it fresh). I would suggest buying some snacks and drinks before/enroute your ride up here or while you are out and about in the day, as there is no convenience store within the park.

▼ To the left, there are chill-out areas, with a selection of books, games and music albums. If you are up to it, you can even have movies projected on the common room wall.

▼ Possibly my favourite section in the whole house. The morning sun comes through this side, making it a lovely spot to sit for a while, over coffee and a book. At night, I wrote my notes and organized my materials.

▼ To the right of the house, there is a kitchenette that guests are welcomed to use (cooking not permitted).

▼ You can make comfort tea (康福茶).

The common dining table overlooked a small outdoor garden.

▼ The housekeeper and staff stay in the room up the stairs on the left.

☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ 3. Guest rooms ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷

There are now 6 rooms in this original wing (2 more than my earlier stay in Nov 2014!) - and another 4 in the new wing, welcoming large groups to book the entire house (包栋). The premises are not air-conditioned, not that it's required in the mountains, with natural cool air and nights that can get pretty chilly (particularly during colder season!). Each room has a fan, but even for someone who perspires easily, I did not need to make use of this. Also, the rooms do not come with TVs - to encourage guests to switch off from electronics and simply focus on enjoying the lovely mountains and park.

(The rooms go through periodic changes, do refer to the official website for most updated information and visuals!)

☷ ☷ ☷ Nov 2014 ☷ ☷ ☷

The rooms are not large, a consideration for my friend and I who enjoy space and our own beds. Unfortunately, our preferred twin room (with 2 beds) or 2 double rooms were both unavailable, as it was travel peak with Xinshe Flower Fest 新社花海. We made do with a double room for our first night, followed by a double room with day bed (which ended up not serving any purpose) on the second.

While there were other guests during our stay, there was in fact very little interaction (not that it's required), and we could still make use of the common areas with much privacy. We were even comfy enough to keep our room door open.

The guest rooms were named after herbs and flowers.

▼ View from our room window

▼ While there was no TV, you can still pick a CD from the common area to play in-room.

▼ More comfort tea in-room, though we still needed hot water from the kitchenette.

The rooms came with Lavender Cottage's sister brand ForestMosa 森林岛屿 products - body lotion, shower gel and shampoo (note: no conditioner) - sold in the park's retail shops.

This room had a ceiling panel that let light in from the common area, which could be a tad bright if you sleep early + need to sleep in total darkness.

Our room for the second night was slightly bigger with more space for us to pack our shopping from two days. Only grouse was that the double bed was small for both of us ladies, the side day bed even smaller and left un-touched.

☷ ☷ ☷ Nov 2018 ☷ ☷ ☷

This stay with 2 other friends did not quite start well as I had a sudden bout of mild food poisoning the night before. The good thing was, I had a double room to myself (while my 2 friends shared a twin room), and upon checking in, I stayed in-room and slept till much later that night - didn't get to join my friends for any stroll or activity. Perhaps not so surprisingly, I felt a lot better the next morning to make time for an early walk in the premises (a privilege for B&B guests, before opening hours!). Struck me that this is actually a great place for recuperation.

☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ 4. F&B ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷ ☷

Mentioned earlier, lunch and dinner were not part of the room rate, though in the earlier stay, the lodging availed a discounted dinner set for guests, which my friend and I took one night. Breakfast was presented differently over the 2 stays, both sumptuous and palatable.

☷ ☷ ☷ Nov 2014 ☷ ☷ ☷

Breakfast was served at the common diner, a quiet affair as 3 pairs of guests spoke in hushed tones (and only to our companions) - I reckon the amount of interaction really depends on how friendly your housemates are. Despite so, it was nice enough that everyone was polite and considerate, passing round the shared (homemade!) jams and tea.

The bread was made inhouse too. Such balanced and healthy meals - with food in their original form and not processed - were probably infrequent, with time and mood to enjoy them only on vacays.

Over our 2-night stay, we had gone out to other attractions in the area, settling our lunch and dinner outside, with the exception of the first night. For this in-park dinner, the housekeeper furnished a menu sheet for us to pre-select our set dinners during check-in, so all we had to do was to turn up at the cafe - opened to all visitors - and state our room name.

Seafood pasta and grilled pork chop to go with a set of bread and soup, salad and beverage each.

☷ ☷ ☷ Nov 2018 ☷ ☷ ☷

After an unusually early morning walk, I came back to the housekeepers preparing our picnic basket for 3. I relished the chance to experience a picnic, that we could bring out anywhere in the park to enjoy.

During check-in, the housekeepers did due diligence to ask about food allergy, and gave us a choice of beverage (between coffee and floral/fruity tea).