ILOILO: HEART of the PHILIPPINES

I alway see Goldberry Suites' signage every time I find myself traversing the Marcelo Fernan bridge in Cebu and Mactan  en route to the airport. But its too far away from my usual destination, so it's always just a longing view... But a few years back, literally rising from the ruins on a old school building in downtown Iloilo, Goldberry found itself in the City of Love through its boutique hotel format - Goldberry Lite . The 73-room boutique hotel is the second hotel of 3L Properties & Alpha Development Corporation after the Goldberry Suites in Mactan, Cebu. A classically-styled avant-garde, the boutique hotel is set in an immaculately restored vintage neoclassical Beaux-Arts structure, Ilonggos now have a cozy niche in the city's historic downtown.   A modest yet well-appointed lobby welcomes guests at Goldberry Lite Hotel Iloilo . Modern with a touch of Filipino creativity, these furnishings creates a stylish yet homey ambiance.  No surprises as

 A 10-storey  Park Inn by Radisson  Hotel is on the rise at SM City Iloilo Complex and is scheduled to open by first quarter of 2019 according to some reports. It will be the 3rd hotel by the Park Inn brand in the Philippines after Davao and Clark. The hotel chain is under the SM Hotels and Convention Centers wing which manages the conglomerate's hospitality development plans. Park Inn by Radisson Iloilo is under construction at the far end of SM Southpoint - SM City Iloilo's dining and entertainment strip which houses more than 20 restaurants, cafes and bars. The 150-200 room (?) hotel will a dining outlet, function rooms, a fitness center and a swimming pool with a pool bar. It will be seamlessly connected to SM Southpoint that goes all the way to the main mall and Northpoint as well as SM Stata via a pedestrian bridge through the main mall.