A party of three of us (my daughter, my fiancé, and myself) visited Puerto Galera Sabang Beach arriving July 3 on a last minute trip. We found the hotel through Lilly in St. Francis Shopping Center in Pasig Manila. We had decided to go somewhere there was a beach and asked what deals we could get. She turned us onto the hotel. We booked for 2 nights 2 rooms with A/C and private bath at the rate of 1,200 per room per night.

She contacted Jhanna at the hotel and we were confirmed. What they did not tell us was the last ferry from Batangas Pier left at 3pm but we were not planning to leave Manila until 4 pm. She called us and asked us where we were, and we let her know we were still in Metro Manila. Since there was a Misunderstanding they let us change our booking to the following 2 days.

We arrived on the Ferry from Batangas (one hour ride) and were met by a greeter with a sign. We walked to the hotel along the waterfront about 150-200 Meters. There is really no beach but it is on the waterfront and does have a nice pool.

For the cost the rooms were adequate and did have A/C and hot water. Problem.. Blackout occurred both nights we were there. The first night when the generators came on our Air con was not functioning in one room but in the second room it was. The second night once the generators came on the A/C did not working either room which was disappointing.

Of all the local food choices (we looked at many places and prices) we did feel the BEST VALUE was at this resort over all the other hotels and restaurant menus we viewed. We did eat in the hotel both nights. The grilled fish was very good and reasonable.

The second night - the owner Jhanna- was nice enough to invite our partyr to have a drink and we stayed up chatting on the upper level bar for a few hours. She is a nice woman who lived in Holland for a few years and has returned to run this resort in Galera. She had left on the early ferry to Batangas so we didn’t get to say goodbye.

There are MANY dive shops on the waterfront though we did not use their services due to timing.
We did hire a boat through the hotel for a day trip of "Island Hopping/ Lunch on the Beach" and snorkeling. They took us to a beach frequented by locals and made a lunch of grilled chicken and fish, fruit, rice, and drinks. We split the cost with another party and paid 3000 peso total for the three of us. They did not provide life vests in case of emergency and when I spoke up they finally managed to find only one. I didn’t like it but the seas were calm and being a strong swimmer I agreed to move on. The "captain" also took us to a reef for snorkeling and we were approached by boats offering to take us around while we hung onto the wooden out rigging. We agreed on a price and it was definitely worth it. I can’t remember but it may have been 400 php per person. They had us hold on with our mask and snorkel while they trolled around the reef and we could see all the fish and corals. There are also some giant clams which he took us to see for an additional cost of 100.

In town all the bars and hotels are nearby. We did get foot spas and massages. We did not frequent any of the bars.

Overall the hotel was well worth the 1200 peso cost assuming the power and AC works. The bathroom was small but functional for the cost. It also included free wifi.

Our only gripe was we gave the woman who was our hotel provided greeter and arranged our boat trip the funds to purchase our return ferry ticket at her request. She returned with the tickets but never mentioned the change which was about 500 php. Once I mentioned it she acted as though she had simply forgotten but IMHO she was hoping we had forgotten. NOT!

There are a lot of people fishing or shrimping at night in from of the hotel while the tide is in.

The rooms we had were quiet with no sounds of tricycles or jeeps since there is not a road only a walkway running in front of the hotel.

Enjoy your stay if you choose this small but friendly and cozy hotel