Palmbeach Resort and Spa Mactan

The hotel is a bit far from everything..... breakfast was included in the room rate.. Not bad.. The room was large and was given an upgrade.. Staff are friendly. Check in/out was prompt. The pool (small) was frequently used by the dive shop's customers , a bit dirty.. as the divers jump in with their wet suits and all, for their dive lessons.. I did a day dive trip with the shop, amazingly I find them very efficient and very friendly.. will dive with them again if i am in the area again. Bed was very comfortable but the aircon was really noisy, either you put up with the noise or suffer from the heat.. will I come back.. possibly

Pleasant. Convenient. Staff was very helpful and friendly.

Everything else was sold out and had to stay the first day here. It's an old hotel and room was clean, just worn out. Toilet didn't work and shower head was clogged. I took the shower head apart and got it working enough to get by and they fixed the toilet instantly. The staff was great and they work hard to make up for the run down hotel. The staff is the reason I gave three stars. The place was very quiet I only saw two other guests. They wanted to charge for each towel for the pool and we only had an hour left before checkout. We moved down the street where I paid twice as much but it is well worth the price increase. Plus free beach towels. This place is not worth the money unless you are not going to be there except to sleep. They should change the name to last resort. The taxi drive could not find the place. He stopped four times for directions. That's never a good sign.

4 of us stayed in seperate rooms for a conference trip. If you have plans to be away from your hotel, like spending the day diving or attending an event at another resort, this isn't a bad place to base your stay. The price is about half the name brand resorts, but you probably get what you pay for. The pool area was okay, but it is focused on dive tours customers mainly. Internet is adequate to stay in touch, better speeds in lobby and restaurant than in the rooms. The air conditioners are older in the wall types, so can be noisy. There is an on-site dive centre and a massage spa like most resorts in the area. Staff were generally very friendly and helpful, especially the security guys at the gates who give advice and help flag down taxis or jeepneys. Cost for taxi from the airport is about 170 peso, but my driver didn't know where "Palmbeach resort" was, so make sure you know some other landmarks, like "its out past the Moven Pick resort". Also note that the position on google maps is about 200m south of the true location.

The staff was ok but the hotel is really basic. The swimming pool is small and even dirty. Really disappointing stay compared to what is advertised. Specially after spending a few days in the Philippines, because then you know this hotel is expensive according to the standards around Cebu. Even if you want to be close to the airport, there are other places that might be a better choice.

We booked a standard room with a queen bed and wifi included. But the room was tiny and the bed was a small double. So if going here don't expect much from a standard room. We came from a very nice hotel in Cebu City and for a large deluxe room with superb buffet breakfast there, the price was more expensive at Palm Beach. The restaurant here is not good and, apart from included breakfast, nobody uses it as the prices are way too high trying to cash in on the remote location. There are 2 small swimming pools which would be ok except for the fact that there is a very busy diving school located at the hotel and there is a constant stream of scuba divers coming out of the sea and washing the seawater off themselves and their diving clothes in the pools. Thus the pools are dirty and full of sea water. Finally, although the hotel is named Palm Beach, there is no beach; only a nice sea view. This was part of our honeymoon so quite disappointing really!

very friendly staff always willing to assist you with getting around the island

Being a solo traveller I was already aware that the location is somewhat isolated. But what made the difference were the restaurant staff who realised I was alone and went out of their way to talk to me and make me feel wanted. I took a good book and had many great options where to read it. If you go to the large reception area the staff will direct a fan in your direction without hesitation. I had trouble with the Wi-Fi connection in my room so I used the lobby. When i returned to my room the receptionist who noticed me using my netbook downstairs rang me to say 2 staff were coming to help me. They provided a Lan cable which provided a 100% connection and even offered an immediate room change if i wanted. This is exceptional service that I have never received before. Suggest you take a heap of snacks and bottled water along and be prepared that you may need to get a taxi to the closest shopping area to stock up if you are staying a week or longer. I was basically the only Westerner there. The rest of the guests were mainly South Koreans who were always very quiet and extremely polite. The diving training although i did not partake in seemed from what I witnessed very professional and well handled.

no one uses the restaurant. the cooks are a bit too slow. breakfast is not the greatest but free.

The staff at this hotel are very friendly and hospitable and do their upmost to ensure guests have an enjoyable stay. The room was very large, clean and comfortable. The air conditioning unit was effective, though as often happens with wall mounted units a little noisy - however windows and a sliding door with screens provide another option for a breeze.