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markmd
Walnut Creek, California

Funky, definitely worth the visit

5.0 of 5 bubblesReviewed Nov 30, 2016
This is likely one of the most unique place in which one can stay. If you are in need of the comforts of a modern hotel, don't come here for the beds are comfortable, but quite basic. The shower is in the same space as the toilet. The chairs are log stumps without backs. The entire site is as quaint as one could wish for, a visual fairyland. Thus, giving it five stars is doing it on a totally different premise than for a "conventional" guest house. For example, because they are so "green", one must bring towels; none are provided. Notwithstanding all of the above, it was one of the highlights of our tour.
Date of stay: November 2016
Room Tip: If you need wifi, close to the office
Trip type: Traveled with family
4.0 of 5 bubblesLocation
5.0 of 5 bubblesService
4.0 of 5 bubblesSleep Quality
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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      2 - 7 of 93 reviews
      Reviewed October 24, 2016 via mobile

      Flexibility:
      We were initially booked into a separate building away from the main building with dinning hall. When we arrived Mr Choo exercise flexibilty to locate us in rooms within the latter building so that it is more convenient for our aged parents.

      Dinning :
      The meals served were appetising and nutritious. We like the breakfast buffet style and consciously replenished with fresh serving. We enjoyed their organic salad best with their homemade dressing. The dinner serving is sumptuous.

      Local Tours:
      Mr Choo brought us to tour the suspension bridge, the riverside, vineyard, vegetable and mushroom farms.
      He also brought us for a night walk to show us the eco life that is abundantly present.
      Mr Choo is knowledgeable and entertaining in all these tours, he injected so much fun during our stay.
      There is another nice gentleman Ah Zhen, who drove us to the town centre for lunch and entertain us with tea when we were back at minsu. Mr Choo and Ah Zhen were great strategist at card games.
      Mr Choo sister led us for yoga stretches in the nearby stream , it was really rejuvenating.

      QuaQua and Lala the dogs:
      They were very adorable and they accompanied us for our walks around the neighbourhood.

      Room facilities :
      The room has a cypress scent, it is spacious, clean and adequate for our stay. We especially liked their organic hair samphoo and shower gel provided in the bathroom.

      Last and not the least:
      We will definitely recommend our friends to stay at Old Five minsu.

      Chew family

      Date of stay: October 2016
      Trip type: Traveled with family
      3  Thank Cheng Hong C
      This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
      Reviewed July 1, 2016

      If you'd like to find some peace and quiet while immersing yourself in the great nature and the most authentic Taiwanese hospitality, this is definitely the place to be. The bedroom was clean with a wooden fragrance to it. The dinner and breakfast were made from tasty local ingredients. Free nighttime and daytime sightseeing tours were offered with an interesting tour guide. You can also get to taste some great local tea and homemade vinegar while chatting with the staff and other tourists. Relaxing and educational, the experience here is definitely something for you to remember for life.

      Date of stay: June 2016
      • Trip type: Traveled with family
        • Value
        • Rooms
        • Service
      Thank JoeH4002
      This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
      振旭 盧, 業者 at Old Five Guesthouse, responded to this reviewResponded July 21, 2016

      Your recommendation is greatly appreciated. We are look forward to your next visit.

      Report response as inappropriate
      This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
      Reviewed April 18, 2016 via mobile

      After one night the kids both spoke excitedly about going back in college to work at the farm.
      We arrived to an incredible home cooked vegetarian meal, which they timed perfectly for our arrival. After settling into our cozy room, we went for a night stroll with the owner, for whom Aza, our 13 year old, developed a great affinity. He showed the many subtle night phenomena around the house before a most memorable night of conversation, tea and vinegar tasting ( apparently good for the digestion). We just smiled in awe as our boys chatted away in Chinese. It was like an international living room.
      The next morning we visited their farm tasting exotic fruits and picking the most amazing organization grapes. The while experience will stay with us forever.

      Date of stay: April 2016
      Trip type: Traveled with family
      Thank Wolfwood4
      This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
      老五民宿, 業者 at Old Five Guesthouse, responded to this reviewResponded May 28, 2016

      Thank you like here. Welcome once again to visit.

      Report response as inappropriate
      This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
      Reviewed April 7, 2016

      Stayed here for 1 night, and I regret not staying here longer! Place is quiet... and comfortable... I was at a room with the mountain and river view... the sound of the water was so comfortable and relaxing! Staff there is very friendly! Food is awesome! At night, the staff took us around the pond for a eco tour... if you get lucky, you will even see fireflies. The morning, the staff took us to the organic farm that they own; I learn quite a lot from the friendly staffs! Highly recommended!

      Room tip: enjoy and relax :)
      Date of stay: March 2016
      • Trip type: Traveled as a couple
        • Sleep Quality
        • Rooms
        • Service
      Thank ng_douglas
      This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
      老五民宿, 業者 at Old Five Guesthouse, responded to this reviewResponded May 28, 2016

      We are committed to promoting the goal of friendly land. So appreciated
      your highly recommend and welcome once again to visit.

      Report response as inappropriate
      This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
      Reviewed December 24, 2015

      The owner from my previous minsu very kindly drove us here (40 mins journey). Fortunately there was an intern (Amanda) from Hong Kong who was around and she could speak English. She brought us around the neighbouring farms for a walk as we arrived early. Lala, the dog with the sad looking face, went along with us. It was funny to see a neighbouring cat running up the tree to hide from Lala when she saw Lala approaching. No welcome tea or drink was offered to us.
      Da Siong helped us arrange for a driver the next day to bring us to Sun Link Sea and Xitou and then back to Taichung HSR. Cost is NT$3200 for 6 hours (11 am to 5 pm). In my earlier email to Old Five, we were discouraged from going to Sun Link Sea in the afternoon because of fog which commonly appeared in the afternoon. However, the driver was very experienced and friendly and our trip there was very enjoyable. The fog miraculously cleared up before we reached there. Anyway, the place certainly looks very lovely in the fog as it became foggy just when we were leaving Sun Link Sea.

      Room
      The setting for this guesthouse is very rustic and lovely. I only wish that there are some bedside tables ,stand or shelf where we could place our stuff. No wifi in the room, wifi is only available in the reception area. I am glad that there is a small screen to block the sink which is just next to my bed. We stayed in the triple room. There is an outer swing door which must be closed quickly to prevent flies from entering room.. Electric mosquito repellent is provided but we did not need to use it.

      Meals
      Both dinner and breakfast are very good. Dinner consists of 6 dishes and a very tasty soup which can be refilled. The mackerel fish was very well cooked. The breakfast consists of at least 7 types of mantou (their specialty). I especially like the nutty wholemeal kind. The salad section is equally great with all kinds of healthy organic dressings available. There are also a few homemade jams available. Fruits are also very delicious and fresh. The breakfast is certainly very unique to this minsu with real organic food and no processed food at all. The two types of juices (pumpkin brown rice?) offered are also tasty.

      Farm Tour
      After dinner at 7 pm, Da Siong brought us around to show us the creatures living around Old Five. Especially memorable is the very fine and delicate web spinned by the ghost spider. He informed us that the spider will keep the web in the morning and only spins it again at night. He also showed us two birds sleeping among the tree branches. We had vinegar tasting after the tour.

      In the morning after breakfast, we went to the organic farm where we saw a farmer doing plant grafting and we also tasted organic passion fruits. We also went to a grape farm where we could choose our own bunch of grapes and cut it ourselves( Da Siong taught us the correct technique). The price for our bunch of grapes is NT$70. Of course there was free grapes tasting.

      Before breakfast, I went for my morning walk. Lala went along with me and he is smart not to follow me once I made my way to town to walk the suspension bridge.
      This bridge is quite long and high. Highly recommended when staying in Old Five Guesthouse. Overall a great countryside experience.

      Date of stay: December 2015
      • Trip type: Traveled with family
        • Location
        • Service
      1  Thank kim buay p
      This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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