Henann Resort Alona Beach, Bohol — Hotel in Panglao

A Disastrous Stay at Henann Resort, Panglao/Bohol – Seek Alternatives! Our stay at what we were assured was a premier resort in Panglao/Bohol began uneventfully. Check-in on the first evening was smooth, followed by a satisfactory meal from a nearby Jollibee. The following morning, the breakfast buffet offered a pleasant start to the day, with particular commendation for the enjoyable dumplings. Regrettably, this was the high point and the premature end of our positive experience. The tranquility was shattered on our second evening when, around 8:00 or 9:00 PM, as we were settling down for the night, we discovered a significant ceiling leak that had soaked the foot of our bed. Upon reporting this critical issue, we were assured of a swift response. Instead, nearly an hour elapsed before management informed us of the necessity to change rooms. A manager touted the replacement as "a VERY NICE room." This assertion proved to be a gross misrepresentation. The new room was oppressively hot due to an inactive air conditioning unit, offered a demonstrably inferior view, and featured several non-functional or inaccessible electrical outlets. Compounding our frustration, the in-room telephone was also broken, preventing us from contacting the front desk. After a disconnected call, no staff member bothered to investigate, forcing me to make a late-night trek to the reception to reiterate our complaints. My account was met with apparent skepticism, as the front desk manager, Marj, insisted on personally verifying the issues. Upon confirming the validity of each of my grievances, Marj informed us that this substandard room was the only one available. Thus, through no fault of our own, we were relocated late at night from a comfortable room to one with a sweltering atmosphere and defective amenities. The "compensation" offered for this significant inconvenience? A paltry voucher for a single buffet dinner – an insulting gesture, considering we were a couple. To be clear, we sought not an upgrade, but merely a room of equivalent standard to our original, which was apparently an impossibility for this establishment. Given the cascade of failures in service and facilities, I informed the front desk of our intention to curtail our stay, checking out a day early, with the reasonable expectation of not being charged for the unused night. Manager Marj flatly refused this request. So, not only were we subjected to a downgraded room and significant inconvenience, but the management also demonstrated a complete lack of flexibility or understanding. Thankfully, with the intervention of American Express and Agoda, we were eventually refunded for the night we did not stay, ensuring we only paid for the duration of our actual, deeply unsatisfactory, occupancy. The final insult came during our early departure at 5:00 AM – an escape we eagerly anticipated. We were instructed to wait for a room inspection, only to be told after a delay that this could not be completed due to understaffing, and that we should wait further. We declined, promptly departed, and have no intention of ever returning to this poorly managed resort, particularly in light of the inadequate compensation and dismissive attitude exemplified by Marj. The sole positive outcome of this debacle was our early departure, which enabled us to discover the truly delightful Coco Grove Beach Resort on Siquijor, a mere 45-minute ferry ride away. For fellow travelers planning a trip to the region, I wholeheartedly recommend bypassing the Henann Resort in Panglao/Bohol and instead experiencing the superior hospitality and quality of Coco Grove. Finally, I urge readers to consult my review history, which will attest to the rarity of such a condemnatory assessment from my part. I am typically inclined to award five-star ratings. However, the abysmal condition of our "replacement" room, coupled with what I can only describe as the incompetence and disingenuousness of the front desk staff and management, particularly Marj, has compelled me to assign this resort the lowest possible...

I was a little unsure about staying at this resort, as I knew nothing about it other than it being a home-grown Filipino chain. Turns out there was no need to worry; we've stayed in mega resorts throughout southeast Asia, and Henann Alona Beach is every bit as good as any of the international chains (Accor, Marriott, etc). We booked a Pool Villa for 4 nights, which was frankly a little pricey even for a luxe resort in this part of the world, but there was actually a lot of included value and in some ways, surpassing many other villas we've stayed; it starts with priority check in, done with the manager in the comfortable lobby without need to queue; there is the Henann Lounge providing refreshments and soft drinks daily 1030a to 7p, plus complimentary cocktails and wine/beer from 5p to 7p - I must commend Frances working the lounge, who is absolutely sweet and incredibly attentive; the mini bar in the room is free and replenished daily (including juice, sparkling water, coke, and San Miguel beer), along with a Nespresso machine, bottled still water, and kettle/tea; a Henann Bohol branded tote, flip flops, sunscreen and insect repellent lotion were provided as gifts in the villa (I later discovered these same items were offered for sale in their own gift shop); nightly turndown service included their own selection of chocolates. The villa itself is large and comfortable, clean, with good AC, tastefully decorated and well maintained despite not being brand new - the bedroom is studio-styled, with a king sized bed, work desk, makeup table, sofa, wardrobe, and TV; the ensuite bathroom includes double sinks, another makeup table, and a wet area enclosing the large soaking tub and shower. Connected to the bedroom is the covered outdoor living space, with rattan chairs and table, as well as a sectional sofa. The private pool is of a good size with 2 lounge chairs; though it does not offer much views, it does provide good privacy with its surrounding walls. I do have 2 gripes with the villa though; First, the roof of the villa overhangs and covers half of the pool (making the water colder and also limiting access to the sun), and second, it would have made more sense for the pool and patio area to be connected, instead of 2 separate exterior areas (requiring a walk through the villa to reach). I did get the sense that the resort and staff prioritize guests in the villas, by their courteousness and extra service; most impressively, housekeeping consistently came through while we were at breakfast between 8a-9a when we hung the clean-up sign outside, which maximized our time and enjoyment of the villa. Be aware that the 12 villas are arranged in 2 rows, one closer to the main hotel building, the other row closer to the beach; we stayed in the latter, which I found superior because you do get a glimpse of the ocean from the window. Breakfast was large and varied, not the best or the worst, but certainly with plenty of savory and sweet options, and consistent with that of a mega resort in Asia; breakfast was served at both Seabreeze Cafe and Coral Cafe every morning - having tried both sites, i can say the food is exactly the same, the only difference being Coral opens an hour earlier at 6am. I was able to book the Bohol Countryside Tour through the concierge, which surprisingly turned out to be cheaper than viator/klook; the hotel contracts with a travel agency and will provide a private car and driver for just 3100 pesos (up to 3 passengers) for the day - even paying for each attraction separately, it still came out cheaper (and we were able to skip attractions that didn't seem so interesting). There are 3 very large pool complexes on the property, 1 designated as an adult-only pool. There is also a generous happy hour special at 2 different pool bars, effectively covering 3pm to 7pm daily. I would highly recommend Henann Alona Beach, and would definitely visit another one of their properties if...

We visited as a big group of 22 and booked 8 rooms. We arrived in 3 separate groups and the one who made all the bookings, called person A, was arriving with the 2nd group. While person B was the one who used her card to pay in full for all rooms, arrived in the last group the next day.

Despite having pre-paid the rooms in full, the first group to arrive, even though they held the proof of payment for her room, was told that she had to pay an additional ₱9,800 for one night which will be held as deposit until person A arrives a few hours later. We’ve never heard of such a rule before in any other hotel both local and abroad as the rooms have already been paid in full but we were still asked for an additional payment that had to be made in cash. This was separate from the incidentals fee where her credit card was given. On top of this, even though they paid the additional ₱9,800 for the supposed “deposit until person A arrives,” there was no room available at the time because check in was at 3pm. If there wasn’t any room available anyway, why did they have to ask an additional ₱9,800?

When person A arrived a few hours later, after refunding the pointless ₱9,800, they were again surprised then because front desk was asking for person B to be present to validate that she was actually the one who used her card for the payment. This, despite person B emailing the hotel that she will be arriving a day later than the first 2 groups.

On top of these, we were also told that each person was required to dine at the resort for at least ₱500. This was another surprise as this wasn’t specified when we read the booking confirmation. It wouldn’t really be a problem had they told us beforehand or just included it in the room rate.

During our stay also, what surprised us again was that servce water was not freely served in the restaurants or bars (except during breakfast buffet and the dinner buffet). You had to pay for bottled water there, I mean what kind of resort doesn’t give out service water? Though we found out later that you could freely ask for more bottled waters in your room. If its freely given without additional payment in the rooms but charged per bottle in the restaurants, it feels as if they’re taking advantage of their guests because even those who had water jugs weren’t given water.

Also on our second day when we arrived at one of the pools, a lifeguard approached us and were asked if we were even checked in as the pool was exclusive to guests checked in at the resort - I do understand that they are just trying to keep the exclusivity of the place but doing things like this will really come off as offensive especially if you’re actual guests of the resort. They should find another way to easily identify their guests like with a bracelet given during check-in and to be worn during their entire stay rather than being approached and questioned.

Overall the service is simply not at par with what you pay for. They try to come off as this affordable luxury resort but don’t expect too much. This was our first and most likely the last time at Henann Resort...