La Playa Estrella Beach Resort

The beach is right there, and we could swim whenever we wanted. It was quiet and uncrowded compared with other beaches and resorts nearby, which made it a good choice for a private vacation. There are plenty of restaurants within walking distance, and the property also has a restaurant and bar with decent, affordable meals. We all loved our stay. The staff were kind and accommodating, especially Marsha, who looked after us so well. It was a superb visit, and we’d definitely book again.

We slept really well. The beds were comfortable, the air conditioning was quiet and worked great, and the spacious room had good light. There was a cute fridge too, and the bathroom was large enough. The serene spot has white sand, a beautiful beach, and a lovely sunrise view. We had an awesome stay and thought it was good value. Check-in went smoothly, the free shuttle was quick, and the staff were attentive and friendly. Outside food wasn’t allowed, but they kindly let us have our mangoes at breakfast in the restaurant, where we also ordered food. I loved the garden by the sea, with birds humming and waves in the background.

The manager says the rules have changed, but after a reply to my concerns I want to explain what happened. We were asked to pay php1,000 per couple for one hour on two loungers, about an hour before sunset, even though nearly every chair and the whole beachfront were empty. I may have been wrong to think that was excessive, but the reply claimed it was only php250 per person, which simply wasn’t true. It also didn’t explain why my 23-year-old daughter and her Filipina friend from Cebu City, who weren’t staying at the motel, could sit on loungers sharing one bottle of water without any minimum spend. My daughter had arrived earlier and wasn’t sitting with us. I can think of a couple of distasteful reasons for the difference, but would be glad to hear an explanation. I’m also not the only one unhappy with management. A quick look at reviews on Google, trip.com, Tripadvisor, and elsewhere shows other people feel the same. A service score of 4.0 out of 5 or lower isn’t perfect, though maybe the team is being unfairly maligned. We’ve rented a house six minutes away and used to stop here for lunch or dinner because it was nearby when we didn’t want to ride into town. The food was already pretty bad, but we’d sometimes get coffee during a morning walk or an afternoon smoothie and sit on an empty lounger for an hour. We visited twice, once for lunch and once for dinner, so I don’t think that means we kept coming back. The second time was a “everybody deserves a second chance” visit. The so-called fish and chips were more like fish fingers, and I’m not sure there was any fish in them. I couldn’t finish the chocolate cake from the display fridge, and my wife thought it looked like it had been there for weeks. The manager was right that there are plenty of other options on the island, and we won’t repeat that mistake. Now we go to Jellys, like the other expats. It’s right on the beach, with comfortable loungers, large red umbrellas, very nice staff, more smoothie options, better food, and a great gym that visitors can use. Go to Jellys instead. P.S. Thanks for taking the time to address my concerns in your reply and giving me the chance to expand on them.

I first stayed with my family on Dec 16-17, 2025, then came back with friends for a joint birthday trip on Feb. 25-28, 2026. I fell for the beachfront on that first visit, and the beach is still the highlight. The sand is very soft and white, not rocky, so you can walk into the ocean barefoot. My family loved the loaded nachos at the restaurant, and I enjoyed the virgin margarita at the bar. Service was superb too. We arranged tricycle rentals through the front desk whenever we wanted to go out, and when I called before our trip, they checked which places on our itinerary would be closed for maintenance.