The Pearl Farm Hotel (Philippines) was selected from many others based on location, house reef, quality of service and food, distance from populated areas and price. The hotel is located on the island of Samal - Davao (travel time from October 18 to November 3.2011). When choosing a hotel, we were guided by reviews on the Internet and came to the conclusion that this should be a luxury resort, but everything is in order .
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The Pearl Farm Hotel (Philippines) was selected from many others based on location, house reef, quality of service and food, distance from populated areas and price. The hotel is located on the island of Samal - Davao (travel time from October 18 to November 3.2011). When choosing a hotel, we were guided by reviews on the Internet and came to the conclusion that this should be a luxury resort, but everything is in order ...
Flight. We flew Moscow-Hong Kong-Manila with the CATHAY PACIFIC airline - no complaints, everything was at the highest level (food, service, etc. ), which can not be said about the local airline "airphilexpress". Get from the international terminal No. 1 in Manila to the terminal No. 3 of local airlines on a free shuttle bus, travel time is approximately 25 minutes. While waiting for our flight to Davao, we accidentally met divers from Russia, who also flew there with the Cebu Pacific airline.
They explained to us that they constantly fly only with this airline, planes fly to Davao regularly about every two hours, and most importantly, there are no delays. They know firsthand about the airline "airphilexpress" (constant delays and cancellations of flights), so they never use it. In general, due to a 4-hour flight delay, we missed the ferry (the last one leaves at 18.00 local time) and spent the night in Davao at a hotel located on the pier, which also belongs to Perl Farm (the day of our vacation was lost forever). True, the hotel staff “kindly” offered us to get to the place by boat for $ 200, but we refused (the time is late, we are very tired, and what difference does it make where to spend the night?! ). Refusing dinner, we immediately fell asleep, and at 7.00 we were woken up for breakfast. At 8.00 we boarded the ferry (it is a traditional Philippine bank) and after 55 minutes we reached the hotel.
Looking ahead, I’ll say that two days before departure, a Russian girl Sasha (a tour operator from Manila) arrived at the hotel, who was also surprised when she found out that “our” tour operator had chosen the airline “airphilexpress” for us. According to her, this airline has problems, so there are frequent delays, flight cancellations in case of a strike. To be honest, we got a little nervous from such information and tried to find out from the travel agent in Moscow what we should do if, due to a flight delay, we are late for a connecting flight, but we did not receive an intelligible answer (except for advice to solve this problem at our own expense). I had to contact the hotel staff. They repeatedly called the airport to find out if there would be a delay in our flight, after which they assured us that there would be no delay.
As a result, the plane was still 40 minutes late, and taking into account the fact that we got to the airport for another 50 minutes, since we got into a real “traffic jam” - similar to Moscow at rush hour, we managed to land at the very last moment, with difficulty "breaking" through the diplomatic corridor ...Do not forget to pay airport taxes: 750 Philippine pesos (about $ 13) for a passenger departing on an international flight, 100 pesos (about $ 2.5) for a passenger on a local flight (payment only in Philippine pesos).
Hotel. Well, the ferry has landed, we are met with music, drums and soft drinks. Settled quickly without red tape. From the reviews, we knew that the hotel was built in 1992, it was a little worn out (the rooms need repair, and the furniture needs to be replaced), but we liked our room (Balay No. 5) - it is located in a one-story building on the mountain, which offers a very beautiful view of the coast. We were absolutely delighted!
Yes, of course, the furniture is not new, but it is made of natural material (bamboo), the TV is small (there is no Russian channel), the safe, the air conditioner worked properly and silently. In general, a spacious room (approximately 50 square meters) with a large balcony (there was another floor under the right side of the building, so we had a balcony, not a terrace). Of course, the room is without extra glamor, but with everything you need: a mini-bar, an electric kettle (tea, sugar, coffee ... ), shampoos, a hairdryer, toothbrushes, slippers, etc. The hotel area is wonderful, it is cleaned very carefully (also like the room, bed linen changed daily), surrounded by tropical forest, nature is the richest. Two swimming pools, an artificial waterfall, a spa (unfortunately, my wife did not like the types of face and body massage she tried), tennis cord, billiards, several fish ponds and three cages with parrots. One of them is called Charlie, a sociable white cockatoo.
He will dance and talk to you, though he knows only one word "hello". It is very beautiful on the small island of Milipano (belongs to the hotel), where 3-storey villas are located. Renovations are underway on the island, but they do not interfere with admiring the magnificent palm grove, well-groomed white sand beach, peacocks pacing the lawns. Our repeated attempts to persuade them to show their magnificent plumage led to the fact that they simply lay down peacefully at our feet. From island to island you can get on demand on a free boat. There is not much entertainment in the hotel, only in the evening in the restaurant there is “live” music - a flute, guitar, saxophone or national dances, this suited us quite well. There is Wi-Fi in the restaurant, near the pool and on the beach, but the connection is not stable. In the evening, forest dwellers wake up - cicadas, fireflies (a flashlight pulses under their tummy, very interesting), night birds, bats.
One of them flew under the canopy where we were (talking with relatives on Skype) and looked at us with curiosity while we photographed her. Giant frogs are jumping along the paths, probably twice as many as Russian ones, we have never seen such ones anywhere before. The hotel staff is very friendly and helpful. Of the guests, they are mostly Japanese and Koreans, and now we are also Russians (there were two families of us, and when we left, the same number arrived). Now about the main thing that may interest readers when choosing a hotel. Every day, about a hundred Filipinos came to the hotel, who rested during the day (walked around the hotel, took pictures, swam, sunbathed ... ), and left in the evening. This was an unexpected surprise for us, since no one wrote about this in the reviews (as it turned out later, this had never happened before). Apparently in this way the hotel management solves its financial problems in the off-season.
We quickly orientated ourselves and began to take sunbeds when we came for breakfast, otherwise all places were occupied by the local population. It did not bother us, the people are friendly and cheerful, many were with children. On the penultimate days before departure, on October 31, there was a Halloween holiday and the hotel staff, dressed in costumes of vampires, zombies and other wickedness, entertained us until late in the evening. We didn’t go out of the territory, we just rested.
Sea. Surprisingly, the sea near the hotel was always calm, the water was warm and clear. Even at low tide you can swim - the sea does not go far! True, once a large amount of household and vegetable debris washed ashore, which was removed very quickly, and fortunately this was the only time. It is necessary to swim with a mask along the 2-storey houses located on the shore, there is a coral reef. Every morning (before breakfast) I swam there, the impressions are unforgettable.
It rained only twice during the day (once light, it drizzled for about 2 hours, the second time was heavy - short-term) and twice at night. The temperature of water and air is the same - 30-32 degrees, very comfortable. The advice read in the reviews - to buy products with more sun protection and a fumigator for a trip, was not useful to us. The remedy was used for the first one or two days, and no insects were seen at all.
Pearls: For those who want to travel and see something, there are excursions, but we only went to Davao for pearls (by the way, on the coast near the city limits, garbage is lying around and floating everywhere, and the city itself did not make an impression). The hotel advised us to the Aldevinco shopping center, it takes 20 minutes by taxi from the pier (according to the meter 3 dollars). The course in the shopping center was 1 dollar. -42.80 pesos, 1 euro -48 pesos (the lowest rate was at the international airport: 1 dollar - 42.70 pesos, at the local airport 1 dollar - 42.90 pesos).
The average price of a thread with a bracelet of the 2nd category cost about 7000-9000 pesos there, and it does not matter at what price the sellers start bargaining. It is almost impossible to distinguish a necklace for 100 or 300 dollars (outwardly they are exactly the same). Initially, the prices offered are too high. Need to haggle!! ! The price goes down almost 2 times (freshwater pearls are of course cheaper). From the reviews, we knew that it was undesirable to buy pearls from hands, but returning to the pier with purchases, my wife saw pearl merchants and bought from them a thread with a bracelet of very good quality.
In general, we had a great rest, two weeks flew by unnoticed. We personally liked everything about this hotel, and its location, and food, and nature, and the sea, and the beach, and the friendly attitude towards us from the staff and the local population. In parting, we were presented with T-shirts with the hotel logo.
Flight. We flew Moscow-Hong Kong-Manila with the CATHAY PACIFIC airline - no complaints, everything was at the highest level (food, service, etc. ), which can not be said about the local airline "airphilexpress". Get from the international terminal No. 1 in Manila to the terminal No. 3 of local airlines on a free shuttle bus, travel time is approximately 25 minutes. While waiting for our flight to Davao, we accidentally met divers from Russia, who also flew there with the Cebu Pacific airline.
They explained to us that they constantly fly only with this airline, planes fly to Davao regularly about every two hours, and most importantly, there are no delays. They know firsthand about the airline "airphilexpress" (constant delays and cancellations of flights), so they never use it. In general, due to a 4-hour flight delay, we missed the ferry (the last one leaves at 18.00 local time) and spent the night in Davao at a hotel located on the pier, which also belongs to Perl Farm (the day of our vacation was lost forever). True, the hotel staff “kindly” offered us to get to the place by boat for $ 200, but we refused (the time is late, we are very tired, and what difference does it make where to spend the night?! ). Refusing dinner, we immediately fell asleep, and at 7.00 we were woken up for breakfast. At 8.00 we boarded the ferry (it is a traditional Philippine bank) and after 55 minutes we reached the hotel.
Looking ahead, I’ll say that two days before departure, a Russian girl Sasha (a tour operator from Manila) arrived at the hotel, who was also surprised when she found out that “our” tour operator had chosen the airline “airphilexpress” for us. According to her, this airline has problems, so there are frequent delays, flight cancellations in case of a strike. To be honest, we got a little nervous from such information and tried to find out from the travel agent in Moscow what we should do if, due to a flight delay, we are late for a connecting flight, but we did not receive an intelligible answer (except for advice to solve this problem at our own expense). I had to contact the hotel staff. They repeatedly called the airport to find out if there would be a delay in our flight, after which they assured us that there would be no delay.
As a result, the plane was still 40 minutes late, and taking into account the fact that we got to the airport for another 50 minutes, since we got into a real “traffic jam” - similar to Moscow at rush hour, we managed to land at the very last moment, with difficulty "breaking" through the diplomatic corridor ...Do not forget to pay airport taxes: 750 Philippine pesos (about $ 13) for a passenger departing on an international flight, 100 pesos (about $ 2.5) for a passenger on a local flight (payment only in Philippine pesos).
Hotel. Well, the ferry has landed, we are met with music, drums and soft drinks. Settled quickly without red tape. From the reviews, we knew that the hotel was built in 1992, it was a little worn out (the rooms need repair, and the furniture needs to be replaced), but we liked our room (Balay No. 5) - it is located in a one-story building on the mountain, which offers a very beautiful view of the coast. We were absolutely delighted!
Yes, of course, the furniture is not new, but it is made of natural material (bamboo), the TV is small (there is no Russian channel), the safe, the air conditioner worked properly and silently. In general, a spacious room (approximately 50 square meters) with a large balcony (there was another floor under the right side of the building, so we had a balcony, not a terrace). Of course, the room is without extra glamor, but with everything you need: a mini-bar, an electric kettle (tea, sugar, coffee ... ), shampoos, a hairdryer, toothbrushes, slippers, etc. The hotel area is wonderful, it is cleaned very carefully (also like the room, bed linen changed daily), surrounded by tropical forest, nature is the richest. Two swimming pools, an artificial waterfall, a spa (unfortunately, my wife did not like the types of face and body massage she tried), tennis cord, billiards, several fish ponds and three cages with parrots. One of them is called Charlie, a sociable white cockatoo.
He will dance and talk to you, though he knows only one word "hello". It is very beautiful on the small island of Milipano (belongs to the hotel), where 3-storey villas are located. Renovations are underway on the island, but they do not interfere with admiring the magnificent palm grove, well-groomed white sand beach, peacocks pacing the lawns. Our repeated attempts to persuade them to show their magnificent plumage led to the fact that they simply lay down peacefully at our feet. From island to island you can get on demand on a free boat. There is not much entertainment in the hotel, only in the evening in the restaurant there is “live” music - a flute, guitar, saxophone or national dances, this suited us quite well. There is Wi-Fi in the restaurant, near the pool and on the beach, but the connection is not stable. In the evening, forest dwellers wake up - cicadas, fireflies (a flashlight pulses under their tummy, very interesting), night birds, bats.
One of them flew under the canopy where we were (talking with relatives on Skype) and looked at us with curiosity while we photographed her. Giant frogs are jumping along the paths, probably twice as many as Russian ones, we have never seen such ones anywhere before. The hotel staff is very friendly and helpful. Of the guests, they are mostly Japanese and Koreans, and now we are also Russians (there were two families of us, and when we left, the same number arrived). Now about the main thing that may interest readers when choosing a hotel. Every day, about a hundred Filipinos came to the hotel, who rested during the day (walked around the hotel, took pictures, swam, sunbathed ... ), and left in the evening. This was an unexpected surprise for us, since no one wrote about this in the reviews (as it turned out later, this had never happened before). Apparently in this way the hotel management solves its financial problems in the off-season.
We quickly orientated ourselves and began to take sunbeds when we came for breakfast, otherwise all places were occupied by the local population. It did not bother us, the people are friendly and cheerful, many were with children. On the penultimate days before departure, on October 31, there was a Halloween holiday and the hotel staff, dressed in costumes of vampires, zombies and other wickedness, entertained us until late in the evening. We didn’t go out of the territory, we just rested.
Sea. Surprisingly, the sea near the hotel was always calm, the water was warm and clear. Even at low tide you can swim - the sea does not go far! True, once a large amount of household and vegetable debris washed ashore, which was removed very quickly, and fortunately this was the only time. It is necessary to swim with a mask along the 2-storey houses located on the shore, there is a coral reef. Every morning (before breakfast) I swam there, the impressions are unforgettable.
It rained only twice during the day (once light, it drizzled for about 2 hours, the second time was heavy - short-term) and twice at night. The temperature of water and air is the same - 30-32 degrees, very comfortable. The advice read in the reviews - to buy products with more sun protection and a fumigator for a trip, was not useful to us. The remedy was used for the first one or two days, and no insects were seen at all.
Pearls: For those who want to travel and see something, there are excursions, but we only went to Davao for pearls (by the way, on the coast near the city limits, garbage is lying around and floating everywhere, and the city itself did not make an impression). The hotel advised us to the Aldevinco shopping center, it takes 20 minutes by taxi from the pier (according to the meter 3 dollars). The course in the shopping center was 1 dollar. -42.80 pesos, 1 euro -48 pesos (the lowest rate was at the international airport: 1 dollar - 42.70 pesos, at the local airport 1 dollar - 42.90 pesos).
The average price of a thread with a bracelet of the 2nd category cost about 7000-9000 pesos there, and it does not matter at what price the sellers start bargaining. It is almost impossible to distinguish a necklace for 100 or 300 dollars (outwardly they are exactly the same). Initially, the prices offered are too high. Need to haggle!! ! The price goes down almost 2 times (freshwater pearls are of course cheaper). From the reviews, we knew that it was undesirable to buy pearls from hands, but returning to the pier with purchases, my wife saw pearl merchants and bought from them a thread with a bracelet of very good quality.
In general, we had a great rest, two weeks flew by unnoticed. We personally liked everything about this hotel, and its location, and food, and nature, and the sea, and the beach, and the friendly attitude towards us from the staff and the local population. In parting, we were presented with T-shirts with the hotel logo.
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