St. John Island View Pensionne

We spent five nights here. The staff were really, really nice and welcoming, and the owner helped us with everything. We booked tours, buses, a motorcycle, and laundry through reception. There are lots of places to sit and relax, with tables and armchairs, and the pool is nice and deliberately kept cold, which felt great on hot days. Breakfast timing was a bit frustrating: they asked when we wanted it, but when we arrived at that time, they only then started making it, so we still had to wait. The Wi-Fi sometimes didn’t work, supposedly because of the weather, and I often had to sit in the hall to work. The owner really tried to help, even offering a Wi-Fi repeater to improve the connection in the room.

The staff were polite and helpful, which was the only positive part of our stay. The room was so small that two people couldn’t comfortably move around at once, and a strong, unpleasant smell made it extremely uncomfortable and nauseating. We had no running water for two days and had to wash with buckets. The Wi-Fi didn’t work in the room either. We also got food poisoning. I can’t formally prove it came from the hotel, but another couple staying there was seriously ill as well. The staff’s kindness didn’t make up for all the problems.

It’s a fair deal for the money, though the rooms are very old and the Wi-Fi in them is a struggle. The staff are super friendly. If you need to work online, don’t stay here. If you’re going on boat trips and only need somewhere to sleep, it works.

We had a great experience here. The staff were really nice and did their best to accommodate us, including gracefully allowing us to check in early after our early flight. They also arranged a boat trip for us at the last minute, and breakfast was nice. It’s a nice little hotel with good value rooms, especially somewhere like El Nido where accommodation is expensive.