Classified as an Inn, Kawayanan Resort makes you feel like you are comfortably at home instead of being miles away from your actual home.
As the name implies, it takes on Kawayan, or bamboo, as its theme. The walls of and ceilings of the place are woven out of Kawayan. Even the swimming pool has a bamboo inspired design, complete with two water slides.
Table of Contents
First Steps
Every journey begins with a first step. In our case, the first step was to secure inexpensive tickets to Puerto Princesa in Palawan. After going through the internet, we booked our tickets about a year in advance to maximize our savings.
Gate Inside
The second step was to find a good place at a reasonable rate. And after going through the various reviews, blogs, and other sites on the internet, we settled on Kawayanan Resort because of several reasons.
The first, of course, was the price. At PhP 1,800 per day, it was one of the cheapest places we could find at that rate.
The second were the reviews. While we do want to keep things within budget, we didn’t want to go to a place that was dirt cheap in terms of facilities and service.
And getting the balance right brought us to the gate of Kawayanan Resort.
Location
Kawayanan Resort is located on a road that is perpendicular to the main highway. The road is a bit bumpy so I’d avoid placing your camera on your lap when taking a tricycle because of the vibration.
If you are in one of the vans used for touring, leaving it on your lap or on a seat is not a problem because the vehicle’s suspension is a bit more forgiving.
Since the resort isn’t far from the main road, it is very easy to just walk and grab a tricycle on the highway. This is what my wife and I would do as it takes less than five minutes to walk and we get to choose the most colorful tricycles to ride in.
Rooms
The most distinctive thing about the rooms in Kawayanan Resort is that the walls and ceilings are made of woven bamboo. The last time I saw something like this was when I was a kid visiting the province of Laguna ages ago.
Rooms
So, it was good to see it here again. Not only was it visually appealing, the wood actually helps keep the rooms cool during the day.
Each room came equipped with a flat screen television, cable television, a mini refrigerator, and an air conditioner.
I noticed that it took a while for our room to cool down so we made it a habit of turning on the air conditioner upon arrival. Not that the room what hot, because even at high noon, the interior didn’t have us dripping with perspiration. But once it got going, the lower temperature did help to sooth our sunburns from the Honda Bay island hopping tour.
Rooms
You may want to turn down the thermostat during the night, though. I found myself waking up to a cold room a couple of times in the wee hours of the morning. And while the blanket was enough to stay warm, breathing in cold air can contribute to the morning sniffles.
Since we got a Double Room, we had a queen-sized bed pushed to the back of our room. It was under the air conditioner so we didn’t get hit by the draft when we had the vents swing back and forth. The bed was solid and didn’t creak at all so our nights were quiet.
Room
As far as the pillows were concerned, I found them to be just right. They were hard enough to support my head when watching television, but soft enough to block out the light when placed over my eyes. Our room only had two pillows so you may want to request for more if you sleep with one under and another over your head.
There was a dark wooden cabinet, complete with hangers for your clothes. It also doubled as a dresser as it had a mirror and several small shelves for any grooming products.
There were two sets of windows in our room. One was by the rood in front and other was above the bed at the back.
Each window had two sets of curtains, the sheer and unlined sets. Once closed, the sheer and unlined curtains did a good job of blocking out the harshest part of the light.
Room
When the unlined ones were drawn and the sheer ones left, just the right amount of the softer light entered during the day. This also provided the rooms with some privacy while allowing guests inside to have a translucent view of the outside.
There are three lights in the room. The first is one the ceiling, the second is in the lamp by the night table, and the third is above the mirror on the dresser.
The single light was a bit weak, but this was easily corrected by drawing all the curtains during the day. In the evenings, the lights were just right as they did not have to compete with the shade cast by the sun. Not only that, but you can turn on the lamp on the night table and the one on the dresser if
Bathroom
The bathroom is composed white anti-slip tiles on the floor. The color scheme is continued with white tiles stretching from the floor to about head level on the walls.
Bathroom
The toilet had an average sized seat but the water container seemed small. Interestingly, this did not pose any problem when flushing as everything went down completely.
The shower is composed of one of those nozzles attached to a stainless-steel hose. This means that you can detach the shower head while taking a bath. The water heater did a good job and the water never ran out during showers.
Unlike showers along the shoreline, there was no problem with clogging so bath water went down immediately. Since there weren’t any pools of water left, we didn’t have to deal with any slippery soap residue on the floor.
A couple of small bars of soap were available in the shower area and they were sealed in their protective plastic pouches. If you plan on using them, I suggest opening them before turning on the shower as they are impossible to open when your hands are slippery with water.
The shower area is just slightly recessed so some water may splash out. To avoid getting the floor muddied up, I suggest leaving any shoes or slippers outside the door.
There are two glasses by the sink which can be used for gargling. There isn’t any tabo, or dipper, so you’ll need to bring your own. But if you are saving luggage space, you should be able to make do with the glasses as the toilet is right beside the sink.
Food
One of the biggest income generators of hotels are their food and beverage. This is the reason why hotel food is way out there even if they sometimes taste the same.
Dining Area
The nice thing about this resort is that they have a choice of value meals. It’s actually one of the few places I know that offers meals at around PhP 100.
Being famished after our flight, we opted to eat lunch by ordering the Grilled Pork Chop and Lechon Manok. Between the two, it was the Pork Chop that the tastier meal.
Our stay came with a free breakfast and we had a choice of Tapa, Tocino, Longganisa, Danggit, Ham, and Spam. We had a choice of Garlic Fried or Plain Rice. We had a choice of coffee, hot chocolate, iced tea, or juices, like Mango or Orange.
For breakfast, try out the Danggit. It may not look appetizing because it is kind of puffy, but after biting it, it is quite tasty. The Tocino is also a good choice. The meals aren’t big so those of you with big appetites may want to double up.
Food
Incidentally, don’t worry about dessert as fruits are served at the end of your meal. We had Pineapple, Watermelon, and melon on different days.
In the case of water, there was a five-gallon cooler and bottle in the center of the dining area. This made it easier to just walk over and refill our glasses myself as I was always assured it would be cold.
You can check your preferred breakfast from on the order slip with the front desk before turning in at night. I suggest specifying the hour when you want it served. This should allow you enough leeway to enjoy breakfast before heading out on another full day of activities.
Amenities
There is a Kawayan inspired pool at the end of the property. There is a water fountain at the center and a set of stairs right in front of it which you can climb for pictures.
Swimming Pool
There are also two water slides on each side of the fountain. If you are facing them, the right side is located on the shallower end of the pool, making is best for kids so they can stand up easily.
Adults who are kids at heart would be better off using the slide on the right as it ends on the deeper end of the pool. Being a little deeper means your bottom won’t be bumping the floor of the pool. It may not be very long, but I haven’t had that much fun in a looooong time.
There are also various umbrella huts for guests to use. There are even small cabañas for small groups to conduct clandestine meetings involving the widespread extermination of the mosquito race.
Guests also get to use the billiard table for free. They can even exercise their vocal cords on the karaoke machine. Thankfully, no one was belting out “My Way” when we were there as it would have been a shame to ruin the perfect weather with a torrential downpour.
Staff
The staff is very professional without exhibiting the cold efficiency of robots. Every smile was genuine and they went out of their way to help us.
Everything from setting up our tour in advance to calling for a ride to pointing us to the best places was be available to us just by talking to the people here. And if they didn’t know the answer to our question, they tried their best to find someone who did know so we weren’t left hanging.
One of the things I appreciated from the staff was that they lighted one of those mosquito coils for my wife when I was enjoying the pool on our last night. And they did this without us having to ask them for it.
Price
There are three types of rooms to choose from, with the cheapest being a Double Room at PhP 1,800. This is equivalent to PhP 900 per person for a night’s stay.
Swimming Pool
The next level is the Triple Sharing Room at PhP 2,400. With three people, each person share is PhP 800 for a night’s stay.
The biggest room is the Quad Sharing Room and can be rented for PhP 3,000. A group of four people will only be paying only PhP 750 per night for this.
They do take credit cards, but an extra 6% is tacked on to cover other charges. It’s really not much, considering the rooms are quite cheap already.
Kids who are two years old and below get to stay for free, while kids between the age of three and eight only pay half the price charged to adults.
The prices above also include round trip airport transfers and a Filipino or American Breakfast. It also includes a welcome drink, which happened to be Mango Juice on our visit.
Life
Having a City in a Forest means that you’ll be surrounded by a lot of greens that help keep temperatures at a reasonable level.
Frog
One downside to this is the mosquito since it feeds off the sap of plants. But where there are mosquitoes and trees, you will also find predators that feed on them.
If you have the time and the patience, you will be able to catch a glimpse of dragonflies dive bombing from the sky or of praying mantises darting between branches on the ground.
If you walk around at night, you will find very colorful frogs in the fountains, trees, and even on the tiled floors outside your room. These are not the drab frogs dressed in pale brown. Nope, you’ll find colorful frogs patiently waiting for bugs to come within a tongue’s length before quickly grabbing them for a snack.
According to one of the people in Kawayanan Resort, a group of scientists who were booked there spent their nights searching for life. In the resort alone, they found several species of frogs and insects. Not satisfied with that, they walked to the vacant lot across the street with flashlights and sticks where they found a small spotted Bayawak, or Monitor Lizard, and even more frogs and insects.
Final Thoughts
Kawayanan Resort is not for everyone. If you are the sort of person who prefers hotel-like amenities this will not be the place for you.
But if you are the sort of person who has come to Palawan for the natural wonders it has to offer, Kawayanan Resort won’t make you feel too far removed from nature.
With its Kawayan-woven walls and ceilings, you’ll be in a place that is made up of more natural materials than the steel-and-stone hotels in the city. In addition to this, the exterior has a lot of plants and life crammed in every square inch of its property than most modern homes have today.
The result is a place that is much like home that is cool and has lots of shade.
However, the small price to pay for all of this is a few more mosquitoes. But then they are easily controlled with insect repellant that can be bought from stores nearby.
Speaking of city, Kawayanan Resort is located within the city of Puerto Princesa and near the national highway. This makes it easy to travel to the various restaurants around the area.
Unfortunately, with all the things you can do in Palawan, I doubt if you’ll be in your room long enough to fully appreciate the place. The only solution to that is to extend your stay because at PhP 900 per person for a night, it’s a great bargain.
Till the next time, keep your camera batteries fully charged and your memory free because you may need them for the next place you visit!
Must Do’s
- Order the Danggit for breakfast.
- Set the hour when you want breakfast served so you have enough time to enjoy it before your tour.
- Try out the water slide in the swimming pool.
- Try taking pictures of the colorful frogs that come out at night.
- Keep insect repellent on hand.
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