Panorama Backpackers — Hotel in Manado

A place to feel good!

We stayed three nights at Panorama Backpackers and would have loved to stay longer. The accommodation is very relaxed and we immediately felt very comfortable.

The double room with garden view has everything you need. The bed has a mosquito net and there are towels and a fan. In front of the rooms there is a sitting area and hammocks to relax. The three meals are served in the common area. We especially liked that there is fresh fruit, water, tea and coffee all day included. The food is very tasty and there is a very good and tasty selection of food for vegetarians as well. There is a lot of fruit served. We eat together with the other guests at large tables. So you get to talk well and the other guests were all super nice and very relaxed.

Panorama Backpackers offers various tours (snorkeling and dolphin tours and also hiking). The best option for snorkelers, in our opinion, is to go on the boat for divers. Next door there is the diving school of Sven (German), who offers two tours every day. Every evening (usually after dinner) he comes by and asks who would like to go on the boat the following day. He explains where the tour is going and what there is to see. He is insanely nice and answers all questions. We booked a discovery dive with him and were super satisfied. All the divers also had high praise for him and his equipment. As well as the diving and snorkeling area at the Bunaken. One morning we also went snorkeling with the dive boat. We went to two stops, both were super cool.

All you have to do is walk down a flight of stairs and you are immediately on the beach. There is also a beach bar. The reef right in front of the accommodation is totally great and there is a lot to discover. We also went snorkeling there every day.

We especially liked the atmosphere at Panorama Backpackers. The staff is super nice, always in a good mood and very accommodating. We really wanted to stay longer and would have liked to get our diving license from Sven. Unfortunately, we did not have so much time.

We arrived by public boat. Arrived at the port, the backpackers can either organize a pickup by boat (free) or by motorcycle plus trailer. Since the boat was not available that day, we were picked up by motorcycle. There is a fee for this. Under certain circumstances it is cheaper to organize an indrive yourself. The public boat back to Manado doesn't operate on sundays. As we had to leave on a sunday, the Panorama organized transportation for us for a fair price. It would have been a good information that this boat doesn't drop us in Manado but a 30 minute drive northern from Manado. It took us a while to get an InDrive there, but worked out...

Honestly the worst expeirence I had in Indonesia. The most rude people I met in this country. I cut my stay short, leaving after the first night - first time in a year of traveling!! I have No idea where are all the positive reviews coming from. First of all, the rooms are absolutely not worth the price. The rooms are damp, moist and moldy. My room was supposed to be the most premium and it really was quite nasty. Rat poop in the room. Dirty dogs are roaming around the whole property getting in the room as well, biting my stuff (and I have a strong allergy). The beach by the place is FULL of trash. I’ve never seen anything like this not in Sulawesi, not in the rest of SE Asia. At the check out turns out I need to pay 150 fee on top of the room to keep that beach clean :o so that brought me to 610k for a night :o There was no communication about the fee on booking nor through WhatsApp when asking about the price and clearly they’re not cleaning the beach. When I told this to the manager along with showing him the photo of the beach he got EXTREMELY RUDE. He kept on going for 15mins even though I asked him to stop talking to me like that. His arguments were that they clean every morning and I’m lying (even though I was only showing him the photo taken right on that beach). I was actually awake from 6 and saw noone cleaning the beach and it was still dirty. Honestly I wanted to leave right then and there but it was too late. The guy from the village (highly recommend Frangky homestay!) saved me picking me the next day even though initially I was planning to stay two nights.

On top of that they were very not flexible with the checkout after morning diving even though I spent 940 on diving with them. What’s more, I arrived after lunch and since they’re not flexible with the food times either I didn’t get any but assumed I can get one the day after since I paid for 3 meals. Turned out also not xd and I would need to pay 50k extra. For a few blocks of tofu with rice - food was also...

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