Hotels in Cubao for a Staycation: Novotel or ibis Styles

The two hotels in Cubao are Novotel Manila Araneta City, with 401 rooms, a pool and a spa beside the Coliseum, and ibis Styles Manila Araneta City, with 286 rooms and a rooftop pool on Level 22 above the Gateway expansion. For a couple's staycation, the choice comes down to what is under the same roof: a spa, a buffet and a pool club at the first, a rooftop bar and a French restaurant at the second.

Side by side

Novotel

• 401 rooms, on Gen. Aguinaldo Ave beside the Coliseum
• A pool and a spa
• Food Exchange Manila, an international buffet whose diners get three hours of free parking
• The 6th Manila, a pool bar that turns into a club in the evening, with music and dancing by the pool
• Gourmet Bar by Novotel, a ground-floor lobby lounge for coffee, snacks and cocktails

ibis Styles

• 286 rooms, on Gen. Roxas Ave above the Gateway expansion
• A rooftop pool on Level 22
• The Edge Skyview Bar, a rooftop pool bar on the same level, with a deck for the skyline and the sunset
• Le Bistro, a French restaurant on the ground floor

Expect ₱1,500 and up a head at either. Both sit in the Gateway cluster, so everything in Gateway Mall is a short walk from either lobby.

Rates and what to ask

Ask both hotels for tonight's room rate and what it includes: breakfast for two and pool access are the usual questions. At Novotel, also ask about spa treatments and whether its 2025 local residents' rate offer still runs.

An anniversary night at the rooftop hotel

This is the version for a couple who want a view and a quiet dinner.

1. Check in, then flowers. Farmers Garden has flower shops open 24 hours, about a 6-minute walk from the Gateway cluster. Buy the bouquet after check-in and it goes straight to the room.
2. 5:30 PM: the rooftop. The Edge Skyview Bar opens at 5:30 PM, and its deck is there for the skyline and the sunset, so be on it when the doors open. It takes reservations, so book the table with the room.
3. 7:30 PM: dinner downstairs. Le Bistro serves escargot, beef bourguignon and duck leg confit à l'orange until 10 PM, at ₱500 to ₱1,500 a head.

The rooftop is outdoors. In the rainy months, have the dinner booking as the fixed point and treat the rooftop as a bonus.

An anniversary night at the pool-and-spa hotel

This is the version for a couple who want to do less.

1. Afternoon: the spa and the pool. Both are in the hotel, so there is nowhere to be until dinner.
2. Dinner. Food Exchange Manila is the in-house buffet, at ₱1,500 and up a head. Dinner runs 6 PM to 10 PM, Monday to Thursday; it is not listed for the weekend, so ask before counting on a Friday to Sunday dinner there. Otherwise, walk to Gateway Mall 2, where Wolfgang's Steakhouse is the top-tier table and Grace Park stays open until 11 PM.
3. After dinner, a choice of volume. The Gourmet Bar in the lobby is the calm option. The 6th Manila by the pool is loud, with music and dancing.

Near both hotels

A staycation gets long if nobody leaves the building. Within the Gateway cluster, Paeng's Gateway Bowl has bowling until midnight and Wolfgang's Premiere Lounge is a dine-in cinema with recliners. Cubao Expo, with its bars and secondhand shops, is about a 12-minute walk.

For one dinner worth leaving the hotel for, MŌDAN serves a modern Japanese tasting menu in a 12-seat room, a short ride away. A reservation is required, and it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Planning the stay

The night-out planner has a "Stay the night" option that starts the evening at 5:30 PM and adds a hotel to the plan. Its approach to the occasion, a proper dinner and one thoughtful extra, is in anniversary date ideas in Manila.

For the pieces: sunset timing is in the rooftop bar guide, the hotel buffet is weighed against the mall buffets in buffets in Cubao compared, the bouquet stop is in the 24-hour flower market guide, and the dinner options are in romantic restaurants in Quezon City.