Our family of 11 people ages 5 - 50 something stayed at Tugawe in early July 2019. Here is our take:
1. Caramoan is breathtakingly beautiful. If you can visit the area, do it. Tugawe itself is reachable only by boat, whether from Virac (Codon Port) or Naga area (Paniman and Talisay ports).
2. The friendliness of staff at Tugawe is outstanding. If you had any problems or requests, they are very attentive and try their best to remedy any issues. They are also very accommodating in helping you work out your best options in terms of food plans. We initially thought we would be able to eat elsewhere but the location of Tugawe is remote, so the hotel is the only place you can really eat.
3. We liked the food. It's local, delicious and plentiful.
4. The layout of the rooms is great -- each room is basically it's own little cabana. We stayed in the Hillside cabanas. If you have anyone with mobility issues, this is not the place for you. As other reviews mention, there is a lot of walking up and down the hillside to get to cabanas, restaurant, pool and beach.
5. The beach is very pretty and there were plenty of lounge chairs available; however, I am not sure what it is like during the high season. The water was clear and warm with plenty of beautiful fish and coral to explore, which we did on a daily basis. We even spotted sea turtles!
6. The rooms themselves were adequate. The a/c worked well. The biggest negative is that they all are in need of repair and updating -- i.e., some showers did not work well, doors were broken, sinks and showers had slow drains, the doors going into and out of rooms were tricky, if not outright broken. In short, the accommodations were ok lang. Not what we were expecting of a resort that far outprices itself from any other hotel/resort in the area.
7. Rough seas outside the cove prevented us from going on the offered snorkeling excursion, so we were particularly happy that the cove itself had plenty of sea life around for us to enjoy.
8. We enjoyed the evening boat ride to view the bioluminescence. We saw stars below and shooting stars in the evening sky. When we returned to shore, we were met by trees lit by sparkling lightening bugs. Magical.
We enjoyed our stay at the resort. It does need some updating and repair, which is why I gave it an average rating. In terms of value, it was ok. Sometimes the staff at the beach weren't so very helpful, but our butler was outstanding. People were so very friendly and the area itself is beautiful and worth the time and effort to visit.
