Just a short drive away from Metro Manila’s major business districts, the vibe changes from bustling to laid-back—from endless rows of skyscrapers and traffic jams to quieter neighborhoods and green spaces. Whether you’re a staycationer seeking after a change of scenery or a business traveller looking for a home in a new city, Crimson Hotel Filinvest City—located at the heart of Alabang, Muntinlupa—is an ideal choice.
Situated in the lively and green Filinvest hub, Crimson Hotel offers a respite from the maddening urban life with its laid-back atmosphere and simple elegance—all the while proving proximity to places and establishments that matter. Read on to find out more about my experience staying at the Crimson Hotel Alabang.
The Location
Although Crimson Hotel Filinvest City is hidden away in the South, it sits near the major highways and is still accessible to a lot of important landmarks, like the international airport (typically 40 minutes away), Tagaytay (1 hour away), and Bonifacio Global City (about 30 minutes away). Within the vicinity, there are lots of shopping, dining, and recreational spots to go to, like Festival Mall, Alabang Town Center, and the Filinvest Biking Trails.
The Room
I stayed at an Executive Club Room (check rates here), which features a King-size bed, an en suite bathroom, a 40” TV, a sitting area, and a workstation. With all Executive Club Rooms being corner rooms, there’s plenty of space as well as natural light from two walls with oversized windows, providing gorgeous city views.
The room boasts of a muted, earthy color palette, with shades of tan, champagne, and grey fusing with dark wood and soft whites. I love how airy and vibrant it feels—bright and welcoming in the day and very cozy come nighttime. The oversized bed and snuggly sheets are super comfortable.
The marble bathroom features a walk-in shower, a toilet with bidet, and a huge vanity counter laden with custom toiletries, bottled water, and fresh towels. There’s plenty of space to move around, although I think that the floor is a little slippery and so those staying with kids might want to be extra careful.
Staying at an Executive Club Room automatically gives you access to the Club Lounge for 2 persons. If you’re looking for the ultimate staycation where you don’t even have to leave the hotel premises to eat or drink, I highly recommend booking this room. With lounge access (which I shall go into shortly) and a lazy space, there’s no way you would want to leave this room once you’re all settled in that cozy bed.
Dining
Having stayed at the Crimson Resort and Spa in Boracay, I couldn’t help but compare the dining outlets there with the ones at Filinvest. I’m happy to report that Crimson Alabang offers amazing food in its in-house restaurants as well. I love how the Crimson brand ensures that its food offerings are top-notch! There’s nothing sadder than staying in a hotel with miserable food.
Café Eight
Open from 6:00AM to 11:00PM, Café Eight is Crimson’s Alabang main restaurant which offers international buffets as well as an all-day a la carte menu. The selection gravitates towards the Southern Europe and Middle Eastern regions, offering a Mediterranean touch on their signature dishes and drinks.
Guests who are checked in at the hotel can enjoy their complimentary breakfast here. There's quite an extensive selection of breads, pastries, viands, salads, fruits, and desserts, and it's sure to cater to diners with different preferences. Personally though, I am not a big-buffet type of person, and since I—luckily—have access to the Executive Lounge, I chose to have breakfast there. More details in the next section!
The Executive Club Lounge
If you are billeted at an Executive Club Room (and other higher room categories, such as suites), you may choose to have your breakfast at the Club Lounge instead. While there are definitely fewer selections compared to the buffet downstairs, the lounge is more quiet and intimate, plus they offer plated dishes that the chefs will freshly prepare upon order.
If you ask me, I prefer dining at the lounge instead of at the buffet. I am not an all-you-can-eat person (I used to be) and so many choices overwhelm me. I would go for a more carefully curated selection with food that gets to your table freshly made and piping hot any day.
As you can see below, the lounge has an assortment of breads, pastries, salads, fruits, and dumplings to choose from. If you are a light morning eater, I’m sure that the selection is more than enough for you. However, you must try the plated sets because they are extremely delicious!
I tried one each from the Asian and Continental selections. The Eggs Benedict has poached eggs and smoked salmon lying atop lightly toasted English muffins, and laden with delicious Hollandaise sauce. The sauce had the perfect tartness for me, and I love how the yolk oozes out when you cut through the egg, bathing everything in its yellow creaminess. If you don’t eat salmon (but why?), you can choose smoked ham instead.
The Bulgogi Kimchi Rice is a real stunner. Kimchi fried rice is always a good idea, and I don’t think I’ve ever encountered one that I didn’t like. But this one at Crimson’s Club Lounge is one of the best. The flavors just keep coming and coming with every spoonful. The heat builds up, then dies, making you want to scoop some more. The beef strips are sweet and savory and perfect with the rice. This is one unforgettable Asian rice bowl.
The lounge also offers evening cocktails and light snacks between 5:00PM to 8:00 PM. They have wines, beers, and basic cocktails, but I was craving for a good G&T so I asked the butler on duty, Adrian, if they have some herbs and fruits to add to my drink. He came back with cinnamon, star anise, and dried lime. I love it!
Kudos to the Club Lounge staff for really taking care of guests! Even during breakfast time, they gave wonderful recommendations from the plated sets, and even insisted that I try the dim sum because they were awesome—and indeed they were!
Firehouse Pizza
With an exciting array of pizzas, pastas, and salads, Firehouse Pizza is a great option for straight-up, delicious meal in Alabang. All pizzas are made from scratch, and you can even see the cooks roll, toss, and fire it up in the oven. The restaurant also has a great selection of cocktails, which are perfect accompaniments for their food. With its fresh offerings and lovely interiors (I love its huge windows and American pizza parlor vibe), Firehouse is a must-try while staying at the hotel. Moreover, if you’re feeling extra lazy, you can simply call and request for delivery to your room!
Read my full review of Firehouse Pizza here.
Lobby Lounge and Deck Bar
For small bites and drinks, the hotel has two other dining venues: the Lobby Lounge and the Deck Bar. The former is situated at the lobby level, offering pastries, cakes, and other desserts alongside coffee concoctions, teas, wines, and other libations. They have different promos every month; when I visited, it was unlimited G&T. The Deck Bar, on the other hand, is right beside the swimming pool—a perfect spot for light bites, beers, juices, and cocktails.
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Other Amenities
There's nothing like soaking up and getting refreshed in the swimming pool after a long day of work or roaming around the city, and if you're staying at Crimson Hotel, trudge up the 8th level to get your dose of the afternoon sun. There are separate pools for adults and kids, and all around the deck are cozy lounge chairs, perfect for enjoying a drink from the nearby bar.
For serious fitness buffs, you'll find that Crimson's Fitness Center has all the equipment you might need, whether you're simply looking to do some light cardio, keen on continuing your strength training, or looking for a quick HIIT session. Aside from the usual cardio equipment, there's plenty of free weights (including long bars) and resistance machines—they even have a punching bag for some quick boxing drills. It's open from 6:00AM to 9:00PM, but if you request, you can access the gym even beyond this time.
Crimson Hotel has several function rooms that range in size, suitable for 10 to 300 persons. Whether you're looking for a venue for a debut or wedding or you need a place to hold a seminar or convention, you can easily book with their events team to set up for that occasion you have in mind.
A Delicious Stay in the South
If you're looking to hide away from the increasingly busy vibe of Makati or BGC, staying at the Crimson Hotel Filinvest City is probably something you would enjoy. I especially love the fact that they have amazing food options. That alone is enough reason for me to go back.
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Crimson Hotel Filinvest City
Entrata Urban Complex, 2609 Civic Drive, Filinvest City, Alabang, Muntinlupa City
+632.8863.2222
alabangvoucher@crimsonhotel.com
Have you stayed at Crimson Hotel Filinvest City? How was your experience?
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