Saboga Lodge : Private retreat for adventurous & Nature lovers — Hotel in Saboga

Yes - No - Maybe!?! We were greeting at the Saboga pier by the hotel boat driver who later transported us to the lodge. Nice ride. Be ready to climb over 3 stories of stairs with your luggage from the beach to the reception desk with no assistance. The beach was full of trash and debris. Right away we were told there is a shortage of water and therefore no running water. We had a few drinks and then we were able to check in to our room early. The room and balcony were nice, a few spider webs and bugs but that is expected near a jungle. Apart for the pillows outside covered in mold, we set those aside the accommodations were not bad. Now… from using the toilet to washing our hands - we were unable to do any of this on our first day. Glad we had hand sanitizer and wipes because the hotel did not have these available for guest. We had a wonderful lunch. We went on a long hike to the town and got some drinks and water for our room. Not going to pay 5$ a beer when I can buy a 12 pack from the town market for 4$. When we returned we had dinner, again the food was great. The water Finally started flowing at 930 pm but only for an hour. But, we also noticed the large amount of BLACK MOLD all over the bathroom wall. It was gross and very negligible and also concerning. I got some vinegar and sprayed it as a temp solution during our stay. Over night the power went out due to a storm and so on our second day - no running water, no internet or electricity. The beach amenities were also lacking as there are only two beach chairs and umbrellas for all the guest, one of the chairs had a broken arm rest.

For 215$ a night - it’s a little expensive for no running water, electricity or WiFi which you would expect a lodge, hotel, resort or motel to have. Perhaps a plan in place for guest to have running water or electricity is a good practice. We had 5 gallon tanks of water in the room but it was empty. So when we had running water the night before we filled that tank, and the two trash bins with water to at least wash our hands during our stay. We are staying only because our return arrangements (lights) are fully booked until our day of departure.

On the third day I’m guessing the staff received word that we explained our situation to Expedia customer service and the Owner sent us an email asking how our stay was because we were offered a extra night for free for the basic amenities issues of no water, no electricity or internet the first couple of days. We kindly decline staying longer than planned. We received a complementary bottle of wine with our dinner. Does not fully make up for the problems but im guessing from the previous review problems have not been fixed so tells me management does not care to change the on going issues. Although there is a meal menu almost 1/2 the items are not available. Most of the cocktails, no juices to make any of the tropical drinks. None of the salads listed, no pasta, no guacamole, no dipping sauces.

We will say Titi, Naomi and Elizabeth are fantastic - they went above and beyond to make things comfortable. We know they had no control of the managements lack of effort on basic needs for the guest. Still we had no constant running water and were the only guest at the place at one point. Day four and five were the same regarding the water. We stopped asking because it was pointless. When the water was on we filled our tank and buckets instead of relying on the running water or asking when if they have water because most times the answer was No. Because of the rain Crabs tons of blue claw crab running around at night. We saw hundreds of them all over - pretty amazing.

I hope before the manager replies to this post she thinks carefully about excuses. If you run a hotel business basic necessities for guests are clean rooms, water, food, electricity and internet. Take one of these away and you have uncomfortable and unhappy guest. Take all of these away at some point then you should rethink having this...

-Pictures are not representative of the real location. I was provided with a picture of what the beach will look like, clear water and white sand. Not for what is in front of the lodge, therefore I was lied to, it was a complete opposite. ||-My room was to be a Deluxe Suite with a deck overlooking the trees. The word Deluxe and Suite does not fit the bill at this location, neither of it was deluxe. Rather a basic room, with unfinished cement walls, sliding doors to deck that will not open. I had to call an employee to open door which it was forced open, once I stepped outside of the DELUXE SUITE and onto deck, it was a big disappointment, chair cushions were nasty dirty and ripped. ||-Employee told me there will be no mosquitoes which I knew was not true being that there were lots of trees and bushes. Sure enough, there were lots of mosquitoes in the room by the time I decided to go to bed and had to spend an hour or more trying to kill all of them. It was a nightmare. ||-On the last day of our two-night stay, we were told that only pizza was going to be given, NO CHOICE for anyone. Upon employee's choice they brought a box of pizza per person, charging $20 a piece and $5 each for delivery. We felt taken advantage off and overcharge. Dinner is scheduled each day for 6pm, but we did not have the pizza delivered until 8:30pm. Pizza was cold and not good at all; we picked on the cheese and threw it all. My husband and I like to eat before 6pm. We also learned that employees walked to the town pizza joint which is on the other end of the island to pick up pizza and who knows help make them. ||-Also, they do not have a Potable Water Reserve Tank and there's a big issue with water at the lodge, therefore, there were times when wanting to shower and there was not water, neither to flush the toilet. ||-They offer tours to other islands (3) for $50 a person, we decided to go since the beach at lodge water is dirty and not suitable for swimming. The lodge do not allow people to take cooler or food. But, on the tour no food or water was offered for the price, it was really like being on survivor. Also, no life vests were on the small boat, the response of employee to a passenger asking for it, was that the ride was short. It was not short and regardless of it, safety Must have been observed for the sake of Lifes, many things could have gone wrong, and indeed the boat hit a log on the ocean. This could have stalled the boat engine and us passenger would have been stranded, looks like business is putting profits before safety and doing the right thing.|| -Business is not complying with the Law of the country for retirees' people (Jubilados) where they MUST give a 30% discount on weekend from lodging price and 25% on cooked food. The government reimburses businesses with proper documentation of discount given. However, this business chooses not to give us the discount and is a NO compliance with the law of the country, is not the business choice. I have stayed at the two 5-star hotels, and they gave me the discount because is the Law. BEWARE if you are a citizen or a legal resident you are entitled to the discount, and 50% lodging discount during the week.||_I will NOT RECOMMEND this lodging to anyone, unless they fix all that...

-Pictures are not representative of the real location. I was provided with a picture of what the beach will look like, clear water and white sand. Not for what is in front of the lodge, therefore I was lied to, it was a complete opposite. ||-My room was to be a Deluxe Suite with a deck overlooking the trees. The word Deluxe and Suite does not fit the bill at this location, neither of it was deluxe. Rather a basic room, with unfinished cement walls, sliding doors to deck that will not open. I had to call an employee to open door which it was forced open, once I stepped outside of the DELUXE SUITE and onto deck, it was a big disappointment, chair cushions were nasty dirty and ripped. ||-Employee told me there will be no mosquitoes which I knew was not true being that there were lots of trees and bushes. Sure enough, there were lots of mosquitoes in the room by the time I decided to go to bed and had to spend an hour or more trying to kill all of them. It was a nightmare. ||-On the last day of our two-night stay, we were told that only pizza was going to be given, NO CHOICE for anyone. Upon employee's choice they brought a box of pizza per person, charging $20 a piece and $5 each for delivery. We felt taken advantage off and overcharge. Dinner is scheduled each day for 6pm, but we did not have the pizza delivered until 8:30pm. Pizza was cold and not good at all; we picked on the cheese and threw it all. My husband and I like to eat before 6pm. We also learned that employees walked to the town pizza joint which is on the other end of the island to pick up pizza and who knows help make them. ||-Also, they do not have a Potable Water Reserve Tank and there's a big issue with water at the lodge, therefore, there were times when wanting to shower and there was not water, neither to flush the toilet. ||-They offer tours to other islands (3) for $50 a person, we decided to go since the beach at lodge water is dirty and not suitable for swimming. The lodge do not allow people to take cooler or food. But, on the tour no food or water was offered for the price, it was really like being on survivor. Also, no life vests were on the small boat, the response of employee to a passenger asking for it, was that the ride was short. It was not short and regardless of it, safety Must have been observed for the sake of Lifes, many things could have gone wrong, and indeed the boat hit a log on the ocean. This could have stalled the boat engine and us passenger would have been stranded, looks like business is putting profits before safety and doing the right thing.|| -Business is not complying with the Law of the country for retirees' people (Jubilados) where they MUST give a 30% discount on weekend from lodging price and 25% on cooked food. The government reimburses businesses with proper documentation of discount given. However, this business chooses not to give us the discount and is a NO compliance with the law of the country, is not the business choice. I have stayed at the two 5-star hotels, and they gave me the discount because is the Law. BEWARE if you are a citizen or a legal resident you are entitled to the discount, and 50% lodging discount during the week.||_I will NOT RECOMMEND this lodging to anyone, unless they fix all that...