Filipiniana Hotel Calapan — Hotel in Calapan

My wife and I went to Calapan for a business trip. I booked this place because of its strategic location. It's also close to Naujan where some of our trips will be. The location is excellent because everything you'll need is nearby (malls, restaurants, department stores and so much more). You don't even have to take your car out to get to these places. The room we had was also good (at first). It was clean and complete. There was hot & cold water in the bathroom (we asked help from their staff to get it to work). The breakfasts that were included were also delicious, they had some not-so-typical offerings (I especially like their version of a dried fish). And what I love about their breakfast is they had different choices on our 2nd day so you won't have to endure the breakfast monotony that other hotels offer. I do have some things that I didn't like:

It seems there isn't an exclusive parking area for guests and you will have to share parking with the public (I said public because it looks like anyone can enter and park their cars). There were no security guards or parking attendants on the ground. That said, you might experience having no more slots or you would have to park at the farthest spot especially when you go out at day time for some business meetings and come back.

This may be an isolated case so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, but when we arrived, no one assisted us with our luggage and stuff. Nobody even assisted us on where we could park. There were 2 guys at the podium next to the door, talking to each other but they seemed uninterested in offering assistance, didn't even greet us or ask us where we were going. I had to go and get the trolley from inside the hotel myself so we can carry all our belongings inside.

Loud doors slamming can be heard from inside our room so after a tiring day, when all you wanted to do was sleep without interruption, we were awakened several times in the middle of the night by occasional door slamming (I think this is the staff door or exit door).

There was construction going on inside the room beside us and the noise could be heard inside ours. It's extremely unbearable. I was in a Zoom call in the morning when they started working. I called the front desk to complain, it stopped momentarily but returned after 30 minutes. We were in a room at ground floor. I called the front desk again to ask that we be relocated but they said the hotel was full. They shouldn't have placed a guest in our room in the first place knowing that there would be construction going on.

If not for the strategic location of this hotel, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone. This was supposed to be my hotel of choice because now it seems I'll need to go to Calapan more often. But I guess I'll have to look for...

Filipiniana Hotel is the only hotel there is in Calapan. The lobby is beautifully decorated, they have a pool area (for adults and kids), a breakfast nook that is equally decorated. The first time that I walked in the room, there is a slight old smell, but one gets used to it over time. They serve the guests bottled water every day as long as you drink it, otherwise, they won't be giving you any. They also provide 3in1 coffee. They have an electric kettle as well. Extra tissue has to be requested if you need it since they place 1 roll only. The cabinet has a musty smell, so one must leave it open to prevent clothes from smelling. The bed is ok, my roommates were sleeping like logs...all personnel were respectful and helpful. If there's more than 2 persons staying in the room, prepare to shell out P500/night for 1 person. You won't get any extra bed, since the beds are queen sizes, allowing up to 4 persons to sleep in 1 room. Breakfast is included even for that extra person once, he pays the P500. Do try the pork tapa and the biya (some kind of dried fish without the saltiness at all). Sunny side is cooked perfectly, you get 2 eggs even if its complimentary breakfast, it is so nice to look at the egg yolk oozing out to your garlic (or plain rice), but you may opt for scrambled egg as well...drinks choices for complimentary are juice (orange but powdered kind), tea, or coffee (not 3in1). Food varies everyday. By the way, if you need a hair dryer, do ask the front desk, but pls. return the same upon checkout. They offer free shuttle service to and from the port. Just let them know your date of arrival, and check the schedule of departure at the front desk. By the way, the location of Filipiniana is perfect! You are just walking distance from, Uni Top, Xentro Mall (with Robinson's Supermarket and Department Store), Auntie Lola's, and a souvenir shop owned by Merl's with it's own coffee and bar on the 3rd floor. If you need to go out of the area, there are tricycles even just outside the hotel, or you may cross the street to Xentro Mall and get a ride (usually at P10/person, check their distance rate). If you don't want to walk too far, there are resto and cafe within the walls of the hotel, you have DC and Dutch Cafe, a 24hrs mini store named JaLo where you can get drinks (water, softdrinks and liquor), cup noodles, snacks & biscuits, even makeup and face roller, you may also buy tube ice 2kg, &...

Stayed here as a group, on a medical outreach program to Mindoro. 6 night stay. Very comfortable hotel for the price with friendly and efficient staff. The hotel is set back from the road a little, with gated entry and just opposite a large mall. Only about 10 mi it’s or so from the port, via which we arrived from Batangas City on the ferry.||Airy reception with, as I say, friendly and efficient staff. This is old school so one is presented with an old fashioned key on a chain of which there is only one per room. So, as we were sharing on this trip, it is essential to put your key behind reception when you leave to avoid locking your roommate out of the room inadvertently. ||The rooms are pretty typical of hotel rooms worldwide. Comfortable beds and a bathroom with over the tub shower. Whilst I am on that subject, we were unable to coax anything more than tepid water from it during our stay and I’m not really a fan of cool showers!||Housekeeping also seems hit and miss. There are small signs one pits on the bed to have it made up but these went unheeded a couple of times. Also the bathroom supplies are sparse and weren’t replaced regularly during our stay. I am sure one can make representations to reception to have these things done but we didn’t.||Sleeping on the reception side of the hotel meant it was very quiet. However, be aware that those that overlook the pool are also close to the bar which can be quite noisy apparently, according to some of my colleagues. There is a weird thing if you choose, as I did, to use the stairs rather than the elevator to access your room. The bottom step of the second flight is several centimeters taller than all the others. This may not seem a big deal but I tripped twice going upstairs and a member of our party turned her ankle there so be warned.||We were served breakfast every day, and ate one dinner at the pleasant dining space. The food was simple but well presented and tasty. Overall a very comfortable stay and I’d stay here again without hesitation. They will also provide a laundry service for next to no cost which proved very...