Bacau Bay Resort Coron — Hotel in Coron

I was generally disappointed in my stay in Bacău Bay. I chose to stay in the Premiere Suite with my boyfriend for 4 nights which ended up being about $490 USD with the promo. The general theme of the stay was lots of communication issues and requests getting forgotten, which added up and makes it hard to recommend this resort. —————————— Pros: —————————— The room was lovely. The room was split into two medium sized areas, a bedroom and a living space with an eating space (has a mini fridge and microwave), and then a decently sized bathroom. Both areas featured its own air conditioning unit, also a big plus. The bed itself was very comfy, probably the best bed I’ve ever slept on in a hotel. Location was good as well. A short tricycle ride away from town (under 100 PHP) and it included a pier, which we ended up using for a transfer to a different island. It’s also walking distance from Lobster King which is a fairly popular seafood restaurant. Breakfast was included. After cleaning your room, they would occasionally leave sweet treats in the room, which were tasty. If you’re a fan of cats, there’s a sweet mother cat and her kittens that wander the grounds. —————————— Cons: —————————— The wi-fi is downright atrocious. Using the wi-fi at this hotel was like trying to pour oatmeal through a small funnel. The pool is cloudy. We never used it. The breakfast was 6/10. The food wasn’t really warm, there was a small selection, we once had a pancake that was raw in the middle, and it was just underwhelming. -The ordered food from the restaurant twice. Once in the morning, the day we arrived (breakfast was not included since we had not yet checked in) and for dinner that same day. It was difficult to order breakfast. The first two items we tried to order were unavailable, and in the end, we were informed that only two items were available, fried fish (the only filipino breakfast item available) and the continental breakfast. It tasted fine, but the whole ordeal left a bad taste in my mouth. SE To keep it short, ordering room service for dinner was a bit of a hassle and ended up with a sorry excuse for fish and chips, and chicken inasal that was fine. I cannot emphasize enough how disappointing the fish and chips were. The fish pieces were small, dense, and very fried, while the chips were actual american chips/crisps, not fries. On the third day, house keeping took away our hand soap without replacement. After calling to request some and fielding calls for clarification, we never received hand soap. We received numerous calls from the front desk periodically (at 6am one time) just to ask how we are. We did not appreciate having to constantly field these clingy-natured calls on the off chance they were calling about something important. The staff themselves were typically friendly, however there were times where it felt like we were imposing and it was uncomfortable. The day before checkout, we arranged to have transportation to the airport for the next morning. An hour before the shuttle was supposed to be here, we called to cancel and got confirmation. Despite this, we received a call that our transport was here on schedule, ready to pick us up.

Lastly, on a more personal note, I had a bra go missing after the first night. After catching up on some sleep the night before, we went on a boat tour. When we returned, the room had been cleaned. While I was prepping a bag for the next day, I noticed that the only bra I brought was missing (I wore a swimsuit for the tour, so I didn’t need the bra). I cannot confirm whether it was accidentally taken by staff while they were cleaning or perhaps I somehow threw it in the trash and failed to notice—I don’t know, but it created numerous problems for me and it’s not something that I can let...

This review begins with what is least impressive of Bacau Bay Resort and goes to the things that make this hotel outstanding; so, please do read it to the end because, despite the slight need for improvement, you should seriously consider this establishment if you want the best experience of modernity, comfort and tranquility while in Coron!

Let us begin with the restaurant. Amihan Restaurant is clean and cozy and has an outdoor section that overlooks the garden and pool. The buffet breakfast has a limited selection compared to other hotels within this price range but generous enough to provide energy for island hopping.

The food is not exceptional, and I don't mean that in a bad way. It is good but not that good to make it one of the memorable experiences of Bacau Bay. If not for the very attentive and kind staff, the restaurant could have been a rather mediocre experience. All Amihan needs is a good chef and this restaurant could make it to the top five restaurants of Coron (at the moment it is not even mentioned in any list last I checked).

Despite the restaurant, Bacau Bay Resort is, I believe, the best place to stay in while vacationing in Coron. One gets the comforts of modern living (there is a strong internet connection, patchy at times, but more than average considering that you are on an island in the West Philippine Sea) while immersed in a serene island life away from all your worries. The rooms are clean and modern. The beds are so comfortable that dozing off back to sleep after you wake up is very likely. Bacau's house keeping staff is also effecient and prompt to respond to any need that needs their attention, at least most of the time. To top it all is the staff who make you feel like royalty on a visit to the islands, from the time you arrive, during your stay and up to the moment you leave the premises. They do get a bit overwhelmed when there are numerous guests at the establishment but nevertheless still maintain the same courtesy and attentiveness when you do call their attention.

We toured the sights of Coron for three days booking them at Bacau Bay. The first was the town tour of Coron. Nothing out of the ordinary and could be skipped if you do not have the luxury of time. The two days of touring the lakes and islands were the most memorable. Jie, Bacau's staff who accompanied us on those two days, was just amazing. To say that we were properly taken care of by Jie would be an understatement. She made us feel at home; we felt safe and at home at the same time. That is priceless. I should mention that the island tours was made more convenient by the hotels own jetty. We no longer had to get on a van to get to the seaport in town; we just had to walk to the boat, which was just a few minutes walk from our room. It was that convenient.

I highly recommend staying in Bacau Bay Resort when you...

Unfortunately Bacau Bay clearly isn't what it used to be. The photos make it look glamorous and modern, but the resort has aged and everything is a little faded and no longer well maintained.

Starting with the rooms, the gloss paint gave a dated feel to the room, and the bathroom in particular showed its age with mould all around the shower. We also noted lots of very small ants, and returned one evening to find a congo line of ants that has smelt out our empty welcome drinks left on the bathroom side, snaking around the shower and out via the small window.

Outside the rooms, we noticed a handful of cockroaches, both alive and dead and we were constantly checking above our heads when walking around in case something was going to drop onto us.

The pool area was ok and nice and quiet. Staff came round sweeping leaves etc, but did a poor job of cleaning out the pool which seemed to lack decent filtration (lots of long hairs floating); thankfully there was a shower to clean off after getting out. Again we found lots of ants around the pool, and upon moving one of the parasoles to accommodate the sun we upset a large ants nest which made them worse. There were some nice looking beds out on the grass, although they were dated with rust and lots of squeeking, and I woke up to being bit by more ants so avoided these onwards.

Onto service, the team at the reception were friendly and welcoming, accomodating our every request and even packing us a leaving breakfast given we were checking out before breakfast, but many of the other staff just didn't seem as friendly and welcoming. We asked for some ant/bug spray for the ants in the parasol and the lady who helped didn't seem impressed to have to do the job. (I'd have happily sprayed them myself) Getting water in the morning for breakfast was also more difficult than it needed to be, and whilst there was a good choice of food, the dining area needed a good clean. We avoided eating there in the evenings.

Given the funny lion and Zuri resort are located either side of the Bacau bay and are similarly priced, we wish we'd have stayed in either of those. Given the price we paid, we definitely expected more. Had the hotel been cheaper, I may have given three stars but for the price we definitely don't feel as though we got anywhere near the value for the price paid. I get the impression Bacau Bay was once beautiful and clean but has since been abandoned a little. I hope management is able to pick things up and restore...