White Shamrock Beach Hotel

Pretty average. The room had no air conditioning and was noisy, the power went out several times, and the bathroom was dirty. Enjoy!

We stayed at Shamrock for 10 nights. It was a three-star kind of stay, nothing special, and I wouldn't return now that I know there are better deals. Sharing facilities is my last choice after this experience. I wish them well. The good parts were the location near the beach and shops, kind staff, and free hot and cold drinking water. It was handy to have cold water for the beach and hot water for morning coffee. Our room was cleaned every three days, with fresh sheets and towels and the sand swept up. The bed was average, with three pillows, though four would have been ideal. The free beach towels were good quality, and I liked having a shared TV area to myself. The shared bathrooms were my biggest issue. I didn't feel sure they were being sanitized, if at all. I never smelled bleach or other disinfectant, and seeing the same dirt and hair for days made the cleaning frequency questionable. I mentioned it to staff but saw no change. Since the bathrooms and sinks are shared and used often, germs and things like foot fungus can spread in a warm, wet space. I suggested disinfecting the common areas with bleach two or three times daily, or leaving guests a spray bottle with something that kills bacteria. Staff seemed to have plenty of time, but sanitation didn't seem to be on their list. Our room was small, and it could use more hooks on the doors and walls, including in the bathroom, to get clothes and things off the floor. Tiny insects crawled on the night table. I mostly ignored them. There was a small safe bolted to the night table but not the floor, with no instructions on how to use it. It didn't feel secure or useful. The room door had only a basic handle lock, no deadbolt, and old damage made it look as if it had been forced open before. I wouldn't trust it with valuables. The AC was low quality and loud, and hard to adjust. It was either cold and damp or, with the manual knob turned up, warm, stuffy, and damp. I asked for a fan but got a confused look, and no fan ever came. We paid close to 1600P per night. With so many rentals competing around here, it's possible to find better amenities for the same money. We found a cheaper place at station 3, which I think is a better stretch of beach, quieter and with fewer hawkers bothering you. It had a private bathroom, TV in the room, kitchen facilities, and modern AC, all for less.

This wasn't really as advertised as beachfront. To reach White Beach, we had to choose between cutting through the tallipapa fish markets or walking through brown, smelly floodwater. We paid the full amount for three nights when we arrived, but moved out after just one, and got no refund. I wonder if people often leave early, which is why they require full payment up front. The AC was unusable, sounding like a jet taking off, and it made the unusable window vibrate constantly.

We booked and fully prepaid three months ahead for a private bathroom, but the staff could only give us that room for four of our five nights. They wanted us to move to a smaller room with a shared bathroom for the last night, even though we had paid for the private one, and they didn't refund the price difference. That was the part that really disappointed me. The listing calls the place beachfront, but it's actually about three minutes from the beach, reached by walking through the talipapa/market. The Wi-Fi wasn't working during our stay. There was no daily housekeeping, and our bin got very full. The booking also listed a bathtub, but there wasn't one. The private bathroom itself was small. I could understand the Wi-Fi being under repair when we booked, but not being moved to a shared bathroom without a refund.