The Little Surfmaid Resort

The staff are fantastic, and the rooms facing the beach give you a view that's hard to beat. Sure, some rooms don't have hot water and the rooms are a little dated, but if you're here to surf, who cares? You're right on Mona Liza point. What a sweet spot. I love it.

The TV and Wi-Fi worked perfectly, and the rooms at Little Surfmaid were generally clean and roomy. But older, tired facilities dragged the stay down. The bathroom felt neglected, and with the shower completely out of order, we had to wash using a pail and bucket. At the price of a two-star hotel, missing basic amenities was disappointing. There's nowhere set aside or any clothesline for wet things. Someone suggested hanging them on the shower rod, which didn't feel clean. A water dispenser would be useful in the heat, especially with the nearest store so far away. We ended up getting free water at Great Northwest instead. The stay was okay, but we extended our trip in La Union at a different hotel that offered much better value.

The people were nice, and the AC worked. We had two clean towels and two bars of soap, and the place was convenient for shops and the beach. But honestly, the hotel wasn't nice, and the website photos seemed misleading. The exterior pictures looked like they were from years ago, maybe when it first opened. The place is run-down and falling apart, with repairs needed everywhere. There were no umbrellas or chairs by the ocean, and the lights along the walk back were broken, so it was dark at night. The front room bar was closed off. In Room 3, the room photos were fairly accurate but left out the moldy bathroom, dirty toilet, and tiles. My wife told me not to put anything on the sink and to keep everything in our bags. The sheets were clean but didn't fit the bed and kept slipping off the dirty mattress. The room smelled musty, and both of us started sneezing and felt congested. The safe was broken, the TV kept shutting off, and the bathroom water actually stank. Lesson learned.

It did the job. The room looked old and a bit creepy, but it had the basics: a bed of our own, private bathrooms, and working AC. The spacious parking lot was a big plus too. It's easy to get around from here, right on the beach and within walking distance of many popular bars, cafes, and restaurants in La Union.