2nd time we are visiting Malapascua and this time decided to stay at Buena Vida due to their ties with Sea Explorers for the diving (which we also recommend...). We are very surprised on our arrival to see the overall resort layout; feels like home clearly and having been in MPascua before never thought the island has such spot to offer. It is indeed 150m away from the beach and the dive centers, but it does not matter much. At the end it's extremely calm, extremely neat, service is impeccable and Alex and her team at the front desk are always available to help. We truly enjoyed the quality of the bedding, the cleanliness of the premises. We must also indicate here the quality and variety of the breakfast buffet, along with the Italian restaurant on site which will be a separate review. Once again, in comparison to places we have been before in Malapascua, this one is clearly above the expected standards and we will come back there without thinking where we should go or how much it costs. As simple as that...…
It’s really amazing hotel with amazing staff and serves. Room look much much better when on the web site pictures. Very good healthy breakfast, yoga classes, massages. I think it’s the best place in this Island. You will enjoying this place!
The resort is just about 5 minutes walk from the beach. Everywhere inside resort allowed you to have tropical touch and feel. The room I stayed was with hammock in the balcony, I love it! <3 All the staff are super pure and nice, they are willing to help you out in any aspect! I had sea sick after diving, one of the staff walked from resort to the beach (where I was taking rest) with balm with him, trying to reduce my illness. Moreover, they leave greeting notes in the room every single day after cleaning. They are just so warmhearted! I had Spa every single day during my stay, they suggested different treatments based on my condition and my preference. The Spa rooms are very well decorated with dimmed lights, pleasant smell and relaxing music. Masseurs are very well trained too! Breakfast was good as well, love their small croissant. They do make-to-order other than buffet breakfast. Everything was so pleasant and memorable, the only minor issue was the wifi, I barely could connect, but that's a good thing on the other hand, this made me completely blended into such good environment!…
This hotel is exactly as all the other comments have said. Cute, boutique. It’s 5 minute walk from the beach. The rooms are lovely and the little details make the difference, ie mosquito spray, a torch, little hand written notes. Hand made cookies left on the door in the evening. Breakfast left for you on your porch. Honestly a really nice hotel to stay. The spa is also one of the best!! We had a massage every day! The only one small thing I would say which needs to be improved is the cleanliness. Sometimes my feet were dirtier after leaving the shower as the floor wasn’t the cleanest and the sink, but that wouldn’t stop me recommending. They just need to clean a bit better :-)
In July 2019, my stay at BUena Vida was less relaxing than in former years. There were noisy (!!!!) building sites around/ near the hotel and this noise was highly enervating - so it was certainly NOT very inviting.
We loved our stay at Buena Vida. It is a beautifully styled hotel with lots of small touches which really add impact to your stay. For example each night they left some cake and a hand written poem on our door. So lovely. The breakfast was also great with amazing hand made bread and hot food. We both got a massage which was delightful and worth every penny. The spa is one of the nicest I have ever been in and a surprising find on an island as remote as Malapascua! The only criticism I would have is on our first night there was incredibly loud music near by which kept us awake until 2am. We asked if they had any ear plugs which they didn't. If this music will happen again I would suggest guests to take ear plugs and the resort to have some for guests to use!
I have been to different places in the Philippines, but this is the place where I experienced the best massage in my entire life(so far). The breakfast(chef's choice) is amazing, its like it is the only meal you will need for the day. The food during our candlelit dinner is delizioso(mixed seafood is our main course)! The bed is comfortable, the A/C is freakin cold(we love it). The whole place is relaxing/quiet and rejuvenating, the staff are very accommodating and attentive. Check-in and check-out is fast and smooth. Ok, I will stop here. One last word, I would definitely recommend this place.
From the very beginning when we made our reservations the staff at Buena Vida answered all our questions in a very timely manner. I never had to wait more than a day for any reply. They helped to arrange all of our airport transport from Cebu to Maya Port then from Maya Port to Malapascua. There was a little confusion at the port, but that was due to the national coast guard not communicating to the passengers. When we arrived at Malapascua, the staff at Ocean Vida (Buena Vida's sister resort) welcomed us and brought our bags to Buena Vida while we checked in with the dive company Sea Explorers. We were then shown to Buena Vida and welcomed very warmly. Our room was lovely with a private outdoor sitting area. The grounds were quite beautiful with a a spa, wading pool/jacuzzi, yoga shala and exercise room. My husband and I took advantage of daily massages. Each morning we had a very delicious and filling Filipino breakfast, which we needed to power us through a full day of diving. The service was always friendly and helpful. The following staff members at Buena Vida were particularly great. Freeda always had a smile on her face and was always happy. Lorenza could solve any issue or problem and was so helpful when our bags got misplaced at the airport. Giziel went out of her way to make sure all of our airport transfers went smoothly so we didn't have to worry about anything. While Buena Vida is on a beautiful island with world class diving, amazing amenities and lovely accommodations, it's the people that make it truly worth visiting. Every night we were presented with homemade baked good hung on our door with a sweet and inspiring note attached wishing us a good night sleep and a wonderful tomorrow. If I could, I would go back tomorrow!…
We really enjoyed our stay at Buena Vida. Spacious room and terrace overlooking the garden, the most precious reception room and delicious breakfast. However, the main reason of our visit was the free yoga classes, which we were told after arrival that only one class is free and its organised if at least two guests are interested. Unfortunately, there was noone interested in yoga during our stay, so my boyfriend was forced to do yoga with me every morning, which he had enjoy in the end:) Yoga teacher was the nicest person we met at the hotel, very nice lady who invited us for a night yoga on the beach - the most memorable night of our stay in Malapascua. The resort was fully booked and I have tried to contact the resort on Facebook if theres any availibility. I was surprised by getting no answer at all and when I booked it (suddenly there was one room left on Agoda) and showed up at the hotel the girl who was showing us around said "sorry we are busy". That was like the first thing she said when we entered the place. Girl I dont care if you are busy or not, Im a client who paid more than enough to get a simple one sentence long answer. Besides this bad experience all other reception employees and staff were super super nice!!! Over all we really enjoyed our stay and hopefuly will come back.…
I had terrible experience at this resort, me n my wife went to their breakfast place at 7am but to my surprise nothing was ready,if you claim yourself as three star property then you should follow your timings. Instead of sitting their and wasting our time I thought I'll ask them how to unlock the locker as it was malfunctioning n my wallet was locked in it. So I went n asked one of the guys who had explained all resort facilities when I had arrived and had also told me that in case of any problem please come and talk to me. So I decided to go and talk to him but he started shouting on me n said sirrrrrr go and talk to girl on reception desk. It was really very insulting for me. After some time we came back for breakfast at their unhygienic dining place, as the menu was very limited we ordered an omelet with some chillies n cheese in it. I really don't understand what was so funny in it . I found their waiter n waitress making fun of me n saying he wants chillies in his omelette. They thought I do not understand the difference between chilli n cheese so the waitress again came to me n asked do u want chilli or cheese in your omelette. I again told her that I want some chillies as I like it spicy.but still they kept looking at me n laughing . I didnt want to create scene Infront of other resort guests so I went to reception n complained about waiter n waitress but I was told we will look into it but I wanted some immediate action, so I demanded to speak to the manager but guess what she was late to work n didn't reach even when I was about to leave at 9am. I also requested to speak to the resort owner but she was busy with yoga class. I was told that she will contact me through email but I didn't receive any email from her side. This proves that they are very unprofessional n I will request you guys to stay away from this property.…
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