La Carmela de Boracay resort hotel's facade and the pool
establishing shot at the lobby
La Carmela de Boracay in Station 2 fits all these bills for our 3 nights/4 days stay in the number 1 tropical beach destination in the country. Our air-conditioned room has a queen sized bed fitted with crisp white linens, a spotless albeit tiny ensuite bath with hot and cold shower, a closet, cable tv, a safety deposit box, phone service, a mini refrigerator, a little wooden table with 2 stools that can double as dining area for those room service and midnight hunger pangs or as a working space. Hot and cold water dispensers are stationed at the hallway of every floor and we find it to be a really thoughtful touch. They also boast of a pool near the beach but we did not get to try it as the ocean was more inviting.
our deluxe room with queen sized bed, cable tv, mini-refrigerator
and mini table littered with our stuff
the closet and the door leading to our teeny-tiny bathroom
the sink with view of the shower room
We’ve also lucked in on a good deal upon booking with agoda.com. If we have booked directly with the hotel, we should have shelled out Php 3,200 (USD 72.72) for a night for 2 people, but through agoda it was just Php2,600 (USD 59.09) breakfast included. That’s a savings of Php 600 (USD 13.63) per night or a total of Php1,800 (USD 40.90) for the whole duration of our stay and there are infinite amount of better uses for that money. Like funneling it on our cocktail fund!
the courtyard leading to the beach
Not bad at all for a beach front accommodation centrally located at Station 2, near the tourist center. It’s still a bit of a walk to D’Mall but who minds sinking your toes in the powdery white sand and wandering in this gorgeous place.
The complimentary breakfast buffet is just OK, nothing to be excited about. There isn’t much variety and the coffee is weak. Bread toaster takes too long to heat up too. We're not much of a breakfast person so we don’t sweat it plus there are a lot eating options in the area just a few steps from the hotel.
the limited "buffet" spread
butter and toast, scrambled eggs, a slice of ham
the dining area that gets packed in the morning,
this is already off peak at 9 AM
La Carmela has around 300 rooms and fully booked during our stay so it can get crazy and crowded at the dining area though we had no problem in the other areas of the hotel.
The beach chairs and umbrellas on their 25 meter beach line are limited but I just ask the courteous staff and they always find extras to set up.
at the 25 meter beach line of the resort
rows of daughters and sons of beaches
All in all, it’s a decent hotel. Nothing extra ordinary but for the price, cleanliness and location, it’s a pretty good trade.
LOCATION: Station 2, Balabag, Boracay
TEL. NO.: (036) 288-5423 / (036) 288-5921 / 0918-9376573 / 0922-8444521 / 0917-7199970
WEBSITE: www.lacarmeladeboracay.com
written by mj
since it's famous, that's where I also spent my 1st time in Boracay, back in 2007. i appreciated it.
ReplyDeletelater on i found out, there are lots of better and cheaper resorts, nasa Station1 pa. =)
Our experience was good too but I totally get what you mean!:-)
ReplyDeleteI-experience din namin ibang resort naman next time. We have our heart set on Zuzuni next visit since it's just a 4 bedroom boutique hotel at Station 2.
'One of the most important aspects of having a great time is having somewhere restful and really safe to lay your head on. ' --- but i actually believe being lost in place without proper food and bed is more of an adventure on small doses, though. heheh interesting place you got here.
ReplyDeleteBeing lost in a foreign destination becomes part of the adventure, we agree. Food on the other hand is always a big part of our travel experience that with out it, we'd be absolutely cranky;-p
ReplyDeleteis booking with agoda.com safe? you only paid php2600 per room on a peak season rate of php3200?
ReplyDeletewhat do it reflect in the credit card bill?
btw. nice blog.. very informative for me who is going to the island this june.
Hi! We've booked with agoda more than a couple of times already, even for trips abroad and we haven't encountered any problem so far. You have an option to pay the dollar rate or the peso equivalent, agoda london will reflect on your billing statement.
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping by, our pleasure to share these information. Have fun on your trip!
la carmela de boracay sucks...grabe ang hotel na to...imagine they charge us 7k for henna stains daw on our linens and bedsheets daw...but all of us doubt kung henna yun kasi kung stain dapat malaki yung mark kaso yung nandun spots na maliliit and nandun sila sa gilid ng mga bedsheets na malapit sa fold...mukhang pera hindi na kami babalik ulit sa hotel nyo...
ReplyDeleteHi anonymous! We're not affiliated in anyway at La Carmela De Boracay, we just wrote about our recent stay with them. Sorry about your your experience, ours was just fine.
ReplyDeleteThe resort looks very nice. Perfect for a vacation to have a relaxation.
ReplyDeleteWow! Nice place! I should go there, thanks for the info!
ReplyDelete