Hotels in the Philippines

[ginapeterb]

Hi everyone, can we have a topic on hotel experiences, I think this is a good one to talk about,, helps other people when they go, I will start with the intercontinental in Makati Metro Manila.

Good Tip....dont approach reception yourself to make booking....let your loved one do it..they get resident rate...international rate seems to be double, especially if you have blonde hair !!

Should be able to get for around 3000 to 3500 per night, the buffett breakfast in the morning is superb, very western, japanese, filipino, etc, the rooms are very good, everything you need, beats the pension house folks.

L Fisher - Bacalod City..Negros Occidental.

Nice look...Good service... the most expensive room is only 5000 per night, and we had a suite for that,, a dining room with diner and 6 High Chairs.....sitting area corner suite look.........seperate bedroom.........with nice bathroom........although the wc overflowed one day.....I think the plumbing their was a little suspect. the air conditiioning unit made the room have an unpleasant aroma.....had to get them to spray it.....but when I picked up the telephone.......3 concieerges descended on me with spray......the laundry service excellent...all my clotehs laundered and brought back and placed on the bed......for about the equivalent of 2.00 UK Sterling.... had 6 people over to dinner in the room for about 18.00 UK Sterling, what a joke.......prices cheap by our standards.....but no FOSTERS in the hotel...........only San Mig.........and no proper bar. for a knees up at night.........no videoke ?? but a nice place and nice lobby as well. freindly staff.....and doorman....I would recommend it.

Come on anyone stayed in Cebu and can recommned a good hotel......let me know cos I am going there in 4 weeks.

Pete

[Admin]

Sounds good value that one, and I always send the wife in first, she has a look that will kill, and must have saved me a few quid in the past. ;D

A tip I find works in Singapore (as we stay at friends in the Phil), is to get a price on the hotel, and then apologise to them saying you really wanted to stay their but another hotel had made a better offer, and included breakfast, etc, they'll knock the price down again. :D

Unlike the UK, these countries are flexible and work on the principle that more turnover = more profit, whereas in the UK the charge as high as they like to pay for the rooms that aren't taken due to the high price ??? ???

[ginapeterb]

Yeeeeees send the wife in to do the deal hahahahaha...............or in my case send in the prospective wife..........hahahah Gina will soon be the Mrs.........but she goes in and does the deal for me......gets discount...........hahahahah she has us booked in the Casino Filippino in Bacalod for 1000 per night hahahahah what a joke...........thas about tenner per night for a deluxe airconditioned double.......................ho ho ho......great........filipinas sure do save you money........tssssuuuuuuuuuuuuppp thanks giirls...........let you know how the Boracay trip goes Keith and Ping and other freinds......Pete

[ginapeterb]

CEBU Midtown Hotel Cebu City, Cebu

Well folks I stayed with Gina at this hotel which was recommended to us by a freind of a freind and we obtained corporate rate ???? which was around PHP 1600 per night.........the room was your normal large double bed with mini bar...reasonable bathroom but sadly the hotel was rennovating the upper floors and when we arrived all you could hear was drilling so that was dissapointing for us....but the drilling stopped at 5pm so that was something.

The hotel has a nice cabaret act in the evenings.....singing OPM (Original Philippines music) and a nice restaraunt...the prices are reasonable...but the menu is mainly Filipino orientated and lacks any major Western cuisine...........apart from Beefsteak Beefsteak and Grilled Squid....Octupus....Chicken Tocino.....Beefsteak Tagalog........Chicken and Pork Adobo.

The breakfast is not too bad and starts at 6am......it is a buffett style breakfast and the staff there as always with Filiipino hotels impeccably attentive.
They had scrambled egg.....American plumrose sausages and mainly catering for Filipino style food for the breakfast but it was managable for me.

The hotel has an in tour agency there and you can arrange a day out in a car with driver for around 1800 pesos...you will get a grand tour of Cebu.....but its too much for me......the tour last 8 hours and consists of visiting everything from the Taoist temple to the leisure beaches and resorts...something I couldnt be bothered to do unless I am staying there.

Overall I would say its a 3 star hotel...conveniently located right in the centre of Cebu City close to all the attractions.

[ginapeterb]

Casino Filipino Bacalod City Negros Occidental Western Visaya


The Casino Filipino has an old look to it, but it is close to the Bacalod City airport and about 5 minutes by taxi from one of the biggest malls in the city. that is the Gaisano mall...the mall is drenched everyday by filipinos wanting to take advantage of the air conditioning......they dont go in their for much else.

The hotel staff are freindly and it is a casino of sorts. but the casino is out of view when you enter the hotel but you can hear the chink chink of the slot machines as you enter the front door.

Rooms can be obtained with air conditioning from 890 pesos plus tax to 1500 pesos.....rather than paying expensive room rates this time around we tried one for 1300 pesos per night plus tax which for us is about £13.00 per Night UK ther room had a fridge in (empty) and a rather huge shower box.....built out of tiling.....it resembled a jacuzzi...but was not one....we thought it was but it was just a large shower box good if you want to get in the shower together with loved one.......very cosy....but the water took about 5 minutes to temperature regulate....so you have to get in and play around with it for a while until you get the desired temperature.

The T.V. etc was Cable and had all channels......the room looked rather old and art deco though as did the majority of the hotel furnishings.

The breakfast their was a big dissapointment though........the buffet style offering was extremely limited and did not appeal to me......nor my filipina loved one.......who thought it was poor value.....as breakfast was not included in the room rate.....we only ate their once......it was mainly filipino offerings and was not much good there either......so we went to Bobs in the mall each morning for a breakfast there.

Overall I would say its comfortable in the hotel about a 3 star rating but of course it depends what you want to spend.

[ginapeterb]

The Bacalod Pension House. Bacalod City Negros Occidental.

This one we did not stay at but we did get some information on it......its basically a budget offering if you are really stuck for cash and dont like spending money on the usual run of hotels in the city.

Rooms can be as lows as 195 pesos per night can you beleive it......but their is no lift to the rooms and some can be on the top floor.......195 rooms are for with fan assitance with the heat.......not recommnded for us.....the airconditioned rooms are from 300 pesos per night...obviously this is a budget offering so can be used when you dont want to spend bigger money on the big hitters at £13.00 per night.

[ginapeterb]

Metro Manila

West Makati Tourist Inn Makati City Metro Manila.

This tourist Inn is ideal if you dont want to stay in the Makati business distrct hotels such as Shangri La....the Intercontinental or the Mandarin Oriental and Peninsular. apart from the look of the street when you are taken their by taxi its not a bad little offering when you get there.

Rooms are about a 1000 pesos per night but they are quite well appointed inside.......basic cool floors with a large double bed......fridge (empty) nice shower area and WC with cable t.v. mounted admittedly high on a wall mouting bracket....but all the same for a 1000 a night quite liveable.......porter service for your bags and a small restaraunt and coffee shop.

Their is room service in the rooms is ok........you can have breakfast sent down......like Beef Tapa..scrambled Eggs with rice as usual and orange juice for about 150 pesos...the good thing about this offering is that it is about 15 minutes by taxi from the British Embassy in Ayala avenue and also close to the Glorietta 4 entrance to the mall.

Overall its a 1 star offering but for the cost of staying there costing us about £40.00 for 4 nights you cant argue with that.

If anyone wants to use it when they arrive in Manila here are the details.....its about 30 minutes from NAIA when you arrive at NAIA bypass all the airport taxi touts and look for a metered taxi.....the one thing is not to get caught for a minimum 500 pesos airport taxi look for a meter one its about 150 pesos if that from the airport to 1417 Vito Cruz Extension (P Ocampo sr ext) Makati City TGelephone 899-2168 or Email to west_makati@yahoo.com

They always seem to have rooms so getting in should not be a problem....and then if you dont want to spend 40 quid a night at the Intercontinental this is a great alternative. it jus does not have the look of a major player overlooking Gloriettas.

[ginapeterb]

Boracay Island - Aklan Province. Pinay Western Visaya

ok this time I will talk about Casar Pilar near Boat Station 2.


CASAR PILAR BEACH RESORT BORACAY.


Casar Pilar is great......the resort resembles cubana style cottages with verandas with a table and 2 chairs if you just want to lounge around for the afternoon. the cottages are lovely inside. nice tiled flooring cool to the feet......and large double bed with cable t.v. fridge and seperate bathroom, shower and WC we had a luxury version and in low season which is about now..from June to August you should get a cottage for about PHP 2500 per night although my filipina loved one negotitated down to 2000 pesos per night but not including a breakfast.

£20.00 UK Per night for a cottage of this type close to the beach and the boat station was excellent value and I would recommend it to anyone who goes to Boracay.

How to get there is simple.

From Manila Domestic Airport or from Cebu (Mactan Airport) take Asian Spirit preferable a 40 seater small twin engine aircraft.very comfortable and an extremely enjoyable flight experience.

The flight lands at Catcilan aiport on the northern tip of Aklan Province. you can get a van from the airport round to the jetty... word of warning......if you arrive in troussers and shoes etc......my advice is to carry a change of clothing in your backpack i.e. flip flops..shorts etc because when you arrive on Boracay you will have to wade the last few years through the water to the beach.....although the porters will take your case....bag etc try not to arrive with a suitcase....see if you can leave that in Manila... better to use a backpack or a holdall with a few basic clothes...you wont need many anyway...just a change of the usuals..your camera kit and travel wallet etc..Casar Pilar has its own water taxi so you can ask them to provvide transport for you across the water to Boracay.

And when you return after your stay you can book a water taxi to take you back to the jetty.

If you need to get to other islands afterwards you can take a 40 seater but only to either Manila or Cebu.......if you want to take a larger jet you must get a van to Kalibo airport which is about 1 and half hours by van.

To get a van suggest you let your loved one do the talking they normally get the price doiwn although in low season its better...you can get a van to Ilo Ilo City at the south of the island but be warned its a long journey and takes about 4-5 hours depending on traffic or the state of the roads. a little tip...if your knees are sore from the journey ask the driver to stop and get out for 10 minutes and stetch your legs. its does wonders.

The restaraunt at Casar Pilar is greaat...the breakfast in the morning is about 150 pesos and is good......the rest of the food is great too lots of offerings and well worth staying there......the bar is not up to much so you could head down the beach to the bar at Nigi Nigi Noos Noos or Boracay Regency where we stayed before......at Nigi Nigi Noos Noos there is a guy called shawn who is a Chelsea Supporter he is A Brit who lives on Island with his fiance Maria he will keep you entertained all night if you want a few beers at the bar.


I would say overall 4 star resort.with evening entertainment...but quite and well appointed try to avoid Holy week and the peak season as it gets well booked up......people flock their in holy week......the island is much quieter around mid July the only thing that spoils the island is the usual vendors along the beach walk that runs up and down the island...eveything from model ships to cheap sunglasses. also the massage services on the beach are good...250 pesos for a full body massage or invite them to your room its cooler and more enjoyable. best of luck. anyone who wants more detailed information about any of the listings I have made in contribution contact me at ginapeterb@the bennetts.wanadoo.co.uk

[gm47]

Thanks Ginapeterb, lots of good info and tips on hotels for when I make it to the Philippines.

Any tips on where/how to tour round to see the best of the country. I'm trying to gather as much info as poss so that I'm well prepared when I get to visit there.

Any do's and don'ts that I should be aware of ?
I am a seasoned traveller and am always aware of what's going around me especially as I always travel alone but forwarned is forearmed.

[ginapeterb]

Ok GM47 go to the new topic on do's and dont's started especially for you my freind......please drop a first name in the forum for me will you......I prefer that to GM47 Keith and I would like others to contribute to the forum.Best regards Pete

[Admin]

We should rename this "Pete's Filipino Michelin Guide" ;D

[ginapeterb]

Very Humourous Kieth........but I wish I had some pointers before I went out there.........just imagine what it would have been like if I wasnt with a Filipina or local tour guide.............the pitfalls can spoil your vacation.....................its good to give others tips on your own experiences hahahha

[ginapeterb]

The Summer Town House Hotel Ilo Ilo City, Pinay Philippines


The Summer Town House Hotel is down by the River mouth in Ilo Ilo City.

Ilo Ilo City is basically a run down city probaly comparable to Davao, although I have not seen Davao, I am basing this on others who have said its a run down city.


The Summer Town House Hotel is a budget offering, again which suprisingly has a very nice reception staff although the lift to the 2nd and 3rd floor is very small and is probably built to accomodate filipinos to their rooms, I suspect the concept of heavily built large Western boys was not a thought when this was built, hence it takes only 2 persons.

The reception staff are freindly, and their is a great restaraunt on the 2nd floor catering mainly for Chinese food, something for me which was very welcome, and the most amazing amount of staff were availablle to take care of your every whim.

The luxury rooms were great, and for about 1500 pesos per night you get a well appointed room, with superior views (overlooking the local corrugated metal roof structures) outside, p.s. dont complain.........you get what you pay for hahahahahaha

In the rooms you get a nice large massive double bed, with refridgerator,cable t.v. with videoke playing, and a very large shower room, the shower room is great if you want to take a shower with your loved one (oh come on its got to be mentioned - I know this is a family site, but its worth knowing isnt it ???)

The shower room is open plan, just switch on and hang around,,,,,, you can have a nice conversation, send your e mails browse the net and eat mangoes if you want !!!!!!

The hotel has a nice breakfast restaraunt on the 2nd floor, and coffee shop, Im not sure how to direct anyone there to it,,,,,,but suggest if you want to go there, its very close to the DFA in Ilo Ilo City, those of you who have dealings with a filipina will know what the DFA is, for any newbies to the forum, its the Department for Foreign Affairs, the place where passports are obtained.

If you ask the taxi drivers, they will know where it is if you mention the DFA

Another good thing about this hotel is its very close to the Supercat terminal in Ilo Ilo, the supercat (high speed marine vessel) will take you across to Bacalod City on Negros in about 1 hour.


All in all a good offering, and well worth staying at.

[Admin]

Any info on the race tracks in Manilla, I belive they have two. Hope they don't eat the losers (like they do in the rest of Europe apart from the UK ???)

[ginapeterb]

Well if there are 2 race tracks in Manila I didnt get to see them.......sorry old buddy can thelp you with that one.........I can tell you that there are 2 main shopping malls mate.

[Admin]

Are they the same as the one's in Davao?

Armed guards with machine guns at all the doors. You get searched on entry. When entering a shop you are not allowed to take in any baggage. And while browsing your are followed everywhere. Just glad I never went the toilet :o

You also have to pay for the items before you wander elsewhere in the shop. Bloody pain in the :P

[ginapeterb]

The Malls are more or less the same.........Gloriettas is split into 4 sections all meeting in the middle...suprise suprise you have Glorietta 1 2 3 4 hahahha the mall has security at each entrance........guys and girls entrance and you have to get in line......for the life of me I fail to see why their is a need for this type of security.

Im not sure whether I would be able to live in a society for a long period like Filipinos society although I think you would get used to it.

When you go in S AND M to buy anything you have to deposit your packages or other purchases and check them in........what a pain in the a.... as you say. then you have to collect them........it makes shopping a pain in the a..... women are not allowed to carry their bags in............Filiipinas are used to this but i bet when they come here to UK they find its a breath of fresh air to find they do not have to be searched by a gorilla at the entrance door.

[Admin]

I thought it only happened in Mindanao due to the security problem their with minority muslim groups looking for indepence. Like they can't find another one of the 7000 islands to run themselves!!

Can't understand why they have it in the North, the only problem they have their is sinking boats!

Maybe one of our Filipino readers can answer. ;D

[SteveB]

Metro Manila

Paco Park Oasis Hotel.

Excellent, stayed there with the wife on our way to Thailand for the honeymoon, you will have to check the current prices.
But 2 years ago 1200 a night, clean, excellent restaurant and bar, lovely swimming pool, charge to and from the airport was 500.

Swagman Manila

Not bad, safe, clean, good western food and bar, basically used as a stay over hotel, ( in and out ), haven't used it since I found the Paco, good travel arrangements all over the Philippines. Approx 1700 a night.

Angeles City

Phoenix Hotel

Excellent, clean, nice pool, good food, good bar, English Manager, his name is Mike Evans, better known as Piggy.
Rates start at about 1300 for a standard room.
Very quiet part of town, but not too far from Fields Ave, ( entertainment area ).

Orchid Inn

Without a doubt the best hotel in Angeles, stayed there many times, but they priced thereselves out of my business.
Excellent food, Excellent Bars, Excellent Pool, basically not a bad word to say about it, just the prices.

I've stayed in too many hotels in Angeles to write about, ( above are the best 2 ), go to Yahoo Asia, then Yahoo Philippines and look at the lodgings part for Angeles City, check out a site called balibago.com, very informative and quite up to date.

La Union ( Paringao )

Bali Hai Beach Resort

Excellent food, Good bar, Good pool, never stayed there but drink there most nights, home of the famous Chili Cook Off, ( November 26th I think ). No complaints, right on the beach.

Southern Palms

Stayed in one of the VIP rooms, jacuzzi the lot, great fun when I first met the wife, in my memories for ever, didn't like the owners, but will say nothing bad about it, good food, good pool, good bar, also has it's own nightclub, ( Stiletto's ).

Koala Lodge

Was very run down but has been bought by new owners, I know that they have great plans, also has nightclub, ( Tramps ), say hello to the manager for me, he's my brother.

Cabana

Don't know if it is still up and running, great pool, Excellent food, fantastic bar, ( main meeting place for the local ex-pats ), great owner, ( Robbie ), personal friend, say hello again.

There are many places to stay in the area of Paringao, German owned, Swiss owned, Australian Owned etc.
Right on the beach and beautiful, email me, maybe I'm there and I will show you around. ( Next visit on Nov 6th 2004 until next year some time ).

The main bar in the area is Finnegan's.
Air con, excellent food and another meeting area.

[Admin]

Very BIG thank you for the info Steve, very useful. I'll have to do one on Singapore hotels, stayed in enough of them.

[ginapeterb]

The Sugar land Hotel - Bacolod City, Negros Occidental

The Sugar land Hotel is located at:

Areneta Street, Singcang
Bacolod City, Negros Occidental 6100
Tel no: 034 455 2690
Fax no 034 435 2645
E mail: sugaring@moscom.com
Website www.sugarlandhotel.com

The Sugar land Hotel is a hotel that has been used extensively by Gina and myself therefore I can report to the members as follows:

Location: As a local landmark of Bacolod City the hotel is only 3 minutes drive from the provincial airport at Bacolod City, and 5 minutes drive from the commercial district and business sectors of the city.

Accommodation and Room features:

The hotel benefits from:-

88 Newly renovated and well appointed rooms.
Individual Air conditioned
Cable T.V. Service
All Hot & Cold facilities
Mini Bar in Executive, Jr Suite and Suite rooms.
NDD/IDD and Internet ready telephone systems
Bathtubs in Suite and Jr Suite rooms.

Restaurants: Lobby Café serves a variety of meals, good for breakfast and early morning meetings etc.

Café Hacienda is a restaurant and meeting room in one, it has a view of the fountain area, and doubles as a banqueting room.

Room rates are as follows:;

Standard Room……………..PHP 1,300.00 Net/room/night
Executive Room……………PHP 1,495.00 Net/room/night
Jr Suite……………………..PHP 1.725.00 Net/room/night
Suite………………………..PHP 1,995.00 Net/room/night

Services and Facilities offered by the Sugar land;_

Roundtrip Transfer from the Airport (very useful)
24 Hour room service
Laundry and Pressing service
Massage services
Safety deposit facility at front desk (very useful)
Business centre
Fax E Mail, Computer and Photocopy
Gift shop and Convenience Store
Currency Exchange
Standby Generators in case of brownouts


Further Information.

All room rates are inclusive of Government tax and service charges
Major Credit cards accepted

The Sugar land Hotel also has excellent Wedding Packages If you are considering holding your wedding in the Philippines.

If you are considering this option here is some helpful information on what can be achieved if you wish to have a Filipino style wedding and the associated costs.

A Typical Wedding Package

This is based on a minimum of 100 Wedding Guests including the Bride and Groom as follows:

PHP 36,500.00 at average yearly exchange rate of 97.25 to UK 1.00
The cost is as follows: £ 375.32.

3 Layered Bridal Cake with Fresh flowers
Overnight stay in Executive Matrimonial room.
Set Breakfast in bed for the Bride and Groom
Complimentary Fruit basket in the Bridge and Grooms room.
30 per cent discount on a further 2 nights extension if required
30 per cent discount on accommodation for any wedding guests.
Bridal Car with Floral Arrangement.
20 per cent discount for the Shuttle Service for wedding guests
Ice Carvings
Pair of White Doves
Floral Arrangement on each table
Complimentary Floral Centre piece at Presidential Table
Place Cards for the Bridal Entourage
Wine for Couple’s toasting
Elegant White seat covers
Guest Book
Backdrop
Standby Disc Jockey
Romantic CD Music at Reception
Programme Assistance with MC (Master of Ceremony Optional)
Torch Parade (Optional)
Welcome Lobby Sign.

[ginapeterb]

The Bacalod Regency Plaza Hotel Bacolod City Negros Occidenal.

The name of this hotel gives one the impression that it is at least a 4 star hotel, however the name is the only thing that has the 4 star persona.

Sadly this hotel barely makes it as a 1 star hotel, the name is in my view a deception as to the real quality being offered.

The Regency Plaza is more in line with a lower order pension house which is used by many local travellers requiring lower budget accomodation.

I will go so far as to say, that I wouldnt recommend this hotel to any of the Forum members, for one thing the rooms are poor, the decor unnaceptable, and the space available within a standard double room is not to the standard many of our members on the forum would accept.

A Typical room costs around PHP 1000 per night, and the most expensive room is at the rear of the hotel, in a Roman style extension, with an inbuilt Jacuzzi, garden, (which resembles somones back yard with a wall and barbed wire on top), the room has a dangerous slippery shower area, and the jacuzzi doesnt work, for PHP 2600 per night we thought it to be expensive.

The Cable Television didnt work, and their was no remote control for the t.v. the Air Conditioning was not powerful enough for the size of the room, and the towels, had holes in them, secondly the towels were not of a standard one would expect in a hotel room.

The Toilet seats were broken, and their was no toilet tissue available in the room.

With the above bad experience to hand, we consequently checked out after a quick shower and went to the Casino Filipino which has already been mentioned on the Forum.

Commentary.

This hotel was complely unnaceptable even by Filipino standards, for one thing the towels left on the bed were quite frankly disgusting, although my Gina felt a slight embarassment about the situation, it was not her fault, the standards employed by this hotel management were a disgrace to filipinos in general, and I wouldnt expect any traveller whether it be international tourist or local filpino to stay at this hotel, my advice is to avoid it.

[ginapeterb]

The Vistro Pension House - Baguio City, Cordillera Luzon Philippines.

The Vistro Pension house is located on Engineers Hill, Baguio CIty, Cordillera Philippines.

It can be found at:

Vistro Pension House
118 Villalon street, Engineer's Hill, Baguio City telephone no
(074) 442-2235

As Keith had tasked me with visiting various types of hotel accomodation in the Philippines and to report back on them during my travels, Gina and I decided to give a pension house a try to see how it compares with a standard hotel, and an Economy Hotel.

A pension house is very similar to a guest house in the Uk, although as with all guest houses, they are generally converted houses, with bed and breakfast style accomodation.

To be fair to the Pension house we visited I would have to say that on first inspection the room did not look too bad, although the cost was around 1000 pesos per night, considering that it isnt much more to stay in a 1st class hotel in Negros, this seemed to be expensive for the accomodation being offered.

The room would have actually slept 6 people, as their were 3 double beds in it, however the shower room was felt to be rather dangerous, as a rather awkward step down from the floor level of the room rendered negotiation of the shower room dangerous, one slip and you would be head first into the shower area, the shower itself, was a contraption of sorts, having to switch on the rusting fuse box to lift up the handle, once having done so, you were to expect hot water, however the 3 settings of lukewarm, hot and cold, consisted of:

Freezing cold
Lukewarm Cold
and Hot cold

Also the shower head made the water shoot out sideways so that you got a mouthful of water when you entered the shower, in truth, we laughed it off, and realized that you do always seem to get what you pay for, the towels resembled something that looked like someone had wiped their backside on, again something of which we laughed off, the cable T.V. service was non existent, and we contented ourselves with one channel in Filipino, which seemed to be ok, all in all, you get what you pay for, the room had a slight aroma of dampness and we spent the night feeling as though we were being eaten alive.

Spending the night there made us feel as though we were in the middle of a farm yard, as apart from the dogs barking well into the night, this was followed by the rooster treating us to his ensemble at 4am on each occasion we slept.

As we were only spending 2 nights in Baguio, we laughed off the whole experience, would i recommend it ??

Yes if you are on a low budget, and want to save your cash, however if you want to go up to 3000 per night, the Microtel Inn and suites is right next door, its up to you, a pension house provides low budget accomodation, the decision is yours.

[ginapeterb]

The Taal Vista Hotel, Lake Taal, Tagatay, Cavite, Philippines

The Taal Vista hotel is located about 10 minutes away from the center of Tagaytay overlooking Lake Taal and the Taal Volcano, this hotel is a 4 star hotel, and the rooms are definately, of a higher UK Standard, the rooms are eceptionally well decorated, the bathrooms have bath tubs, all ususal amenities, showers, the Extra Lagre King size bed is delightful and continental bedding is available.

However the cost of this hotel is high by Filipino standards, the standard room is 4950.00 PHP, and rooms go up to as much as PHP 19,900, this may be due to the fact that the hotel overlooks Lake Taal in the distance, and has a veranda for viewing and taking of photographs.

The dissapointing thing about the hotel is how to get to it, as most people appear to arrive by private car, their has been little thought given to how guests who travel by public transport can get to the hotel.

I will cover this point later in (places to visit in the Philippines) however all in all, this hotel is in line of what many of you would expect but it is fairly expensive by Philippine standards, the breakfast in the morning was not in line with the cost of the room, considering that the Hotel Intercontinental in Manila offfers probably the best buffet style breakfast with it standard room, this breakfast offered was a rather poor relation and a dissapointment to Gina and I, nevertheless, the hotel is nice, clean and exceptionally good in the rooms, the cable .T.V. service is 1st class, however work on the electric power lines the day we stayed their spoilt our morning viewing, and therefore no provision had been made for this by the hotel.

Verdict.

Most of you who travel to Tagaytay to see Lake Taal, will probably be able to afford this hotel, after all a standard room is about £50.00 a night, I would recommend it purely for the facilities in the rooms, but they do seem to be quite far away from the main pavilion area which is the main part of the hotel, but yes I recommend it to anyone who goes there, transport though is a problem if you are arriving by public trnasport, their are no taxi's the only way to get to it on foot is by jeepney or the dreaded trycicle.

[ginapeterb]

The Palmas Del Mar Resrot and Hotel

J.R. Torres Avenue, Bacolod City,
Tel (034) 435 3527
E Mail: palmas@bcd.i-next.net


The Palmas Del Mar hotel is in effect a local resort, frequented by filipinos and tourists alike, the resort has a public swimming pool facility for day visitors and is close to the sea, and has its own harbour and boating lake.

The resort is a conference centre, Hotel, and its amenities cater mainly for swimming and various other sports.

Resort membership can be taken out, other facilities includinga restaraunt service, Billiards, Gym, Table Tennis, Fishing,Boating, Wedding Packages.

Room rates and offerings are as follows:

Island Pool and Garden rooms are.....P995.00
Lagoon Rooms..............................P1,095.00
Family Room/Refridgerator..............P1,700.00
Villa/Cabana................................P1,995.00


Guests who stay in the above rooms have the exclusive use of the island pool, which is a private pool, this is not used by day visitors to the resort, the pool is kept fairly warm, however leaves soon start to appear in the pool, all in all the resort is very relaxing probably better to be used at weekends, the rooms are very basic though, air conditioned, with a reasonable shower room, I suspect they are in need of rennovation at some stage, the obsession with Philippine hotels in providing single beds is in force here, we had to ask for a matrimonial bed, for some reason getting a matrimonial bed seems to be a problem, but then the reason given was that "Doctors and other professional people like to share the rooms there", having said that, i enjoyed the stay, and the swimming, and the bar service.

Good for a nice relaxing weekend.

[gm47]

keith and pete,
Which part of Manila is best to stay in, I've been looking at the Pan pacific hotel malate, either of you had any experience of the hotel and area ??

What is the best area of Manila to stay in to be near the water, attractions, malls and what is the best quality hotel ??

Also the same for Cebu ?

Any help would be great.

Thanks
Gerry

[peterdavid]

Originally posted by gm47@Mar 4 2005, 11:33 AM
keith and pete,
Which part of Manila is best to stay in, I've been looking at the Pan pacific hotel malate, either of you had any experience of the hotel and area ??

What is the best area of Manila to stay in to be near the water, attractions, malls and what is the best quality hotel ??

Also the same for Cebu ?

Any help would be great.

Thanks
Gerry
Quoted post


Manila - dependinng on your budget, I would suggest Makati. Peninsula Hotel is about the best you'll get in Manila (including quiet air conditioning, as opposed to some clapped out old machine in the corner of the room sticking out the wall clattering away like an old volkswagon beetle), but it can be pricey. Shangri-La near to it isn't bad, again quite expensive.

They are, however, in an excellent location, right next to glorietta malls and, more importantly, greenbelt malls - greenbelt is an excellent example of what the philippines could have been if anybody there could actually have been bothered - first class shopping malls, cinemas, landscaped gardens, it's excellent, and within walking distance of those two hotels. Glorietta, slightly more downmarket, but still pretty good with an excellent range of bars and (if you must) US chains like Hard rock and TGI (although I would suggest ignoring those and using the far superior restaurants in Greenbelt 2 and 3.

But, downside you'll be in the premier location in the whole country and you pay for it - possibly as much as £100 a night. If your budget can stand it, definitely worth it though.

Although - if you want to holiday in the philippines, I wouldn't recommend manila at all - go to boracay or somewhere more scenic - other than the parts I just mentioned, manila is pretty much dreadful.

Never been to cebu - heard it's nicer than manila, but can't recommend anything as I don't know the area, sorry.