Tambayan Rooms & Cottages by SMS Hospitality

Really appreciate this fantastic homestay. I’d happily recommend it.

For the price, the room itself was decent and comfortable. The location was another matter: it’s quite far from the center, and the beach area wasn’t peaceful. The water is very shallow, so swimming is difficult. There’s a bar next door with karaoke all day, and until 10 or 11 pm on weekends. Public showers and toilets at the hotel bring people through to use the facilities or reach the public beach. Villagers also regularly pass by the room terraces, despite those being meant to be private, so there isn’t much peace or privacy. We’d paid an extra 600 pesos for a Deluxe room with air conditioning and a sea view. The room we were given had neither, which didn’t match the booking at all. Since the reserved room was apparently unavailable, we agreed to take a lower category room and asked only for the price difference back. The hotel refused to take responsibility and told us to sort it out with Agoda. Booking through a platform doesn’t change who provided the service on-site, and that response was really disappointing. We understand mistakes happen, but they offered no solution or goodwill gesture. A very disappointing experience.

The room had a lovely, native feel, and the space and visuals were fantastic. It was clean and comfortable, though the shower only had cold water. We arrived without warning, but they accommodated us, and when my child couldn’t sleep, they had another room available and moved us. Thanks very much. Locals party late on holidays. If you want things quieter, choose an air-conditioned room.

We paid extra for a room with a sea view, air conditioning, and a double bed. Instead, we got a lovely courtyard view, no AC, and no double room. Free karaoke was included, at least. The hotel manager is refusing to refund the difference for the extras we never got.