Did you have fun on my last post at Cebu Ocean Park? Well, I gotchu fam! On this post, you will definitely fall in love with the place. Let me start by asking you a question. Have you ever been to a new place lately where you haven’t seen a lot of pictures of the place or didn’t have any idea about the updates? Well I did!
For the last three nights and four days, I went to Tambuli Seaside Resort and Spa located at Buyong Road, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, which is more or less 30 minutes away from Mactan Cebu International Airport. It is really quite far. Good thing, the traffic was not that bad.
Just to give you a little background, when I wast still a kid around 8 to 10 years old, we used to go here, before it was called Tambuli West Hotel and Restaurant. I can vividly remember, how my cousins would bring us here if we have relatives outside the country. Also, this was my family’s favorite place where we would celebrate our steady Sundays, we go to the resort to avail the day use and swim for the day or night. Since the entrance fee is consumable, we would just have our family lunch or dinner at the resort. Sadly, on April 2012 they officially discontinued their business due to modernization and the rise of new competitors. (I guess since it is quite updated compared to others) They also mentioned that the establishment can’t cope up with cost they are paying since they didn’t have enough guest to compensate it. So after 2012, I really did not know what happened to the property.
After seven long years, they officially opened and launched the newly improved, Tambuli Seaside Resort and Spa. I heard about the re-opening but did not visit until 2022. I also did not research about its design and features not until my family’s partner invited me for a four-day staycation. I searched a little bit of the place to know what clothes and things I should prepare. I did not expect much but the place is very much different now. Check out the video for a quick tour of the place, you will definitely fall in love with architectural design and layout!
I got really amazed how they preserved the natural landscape of the place. You can observe on the video that there are places where they have towering trees, since they claimed that not even a single tree was cut while constructing the new place.
They also have a lot of Café’s and Pools! I got carried away, so here’s a blurry picture of the resorts operational hours:
Let me just highlight the Caverna, it is a Mediterranean restaurant where in the design is very aesthetic, the food is very delicious, and the price was very very way too much for me. Hahaha! I got shocked looking at the menu but I’m very lucky to experience this for free because of the family of my partner. Here’s a picture of menu and parts of the restaurant:
Lastly, here’s a quick review of our overall experience:
Arrival Experience – 8/10
It was fast but they can improve on having a bellman that can assist from getting the bags from the car especially if it’s raining but appreciate the management for the big and spacious van during your transfer from the check-in counter to the condo building.
**Tambuli Team / Employees – 8/10 **
Everyone is very courteous and pleasing to the eye. They just didn’t have a system if something goes wrong or if it is very busy. The management should look into this.
Room – 5/10
The bed offered to us was one double bed but initially we requested two single beds, also the double bed is quite small and I can see some linens are spotted. Also, when we asked to clean our room – it was not totally cleaned at all but they have complete facilities for like cooking, washing clothes, and binge watching on your favorite Netflix show or favorite youtuber.
Restaurant Ambiance at Café Hojas – 4/10
We experienced waiting for our food for more than an hour and a lot more problems since they didn’t have a good system yet. The management should look into this since they are claiming that they are a luxurious hotel but the service is not showing.
Facilities – 6/10
They have a lot of pools but sometimes doesn’t open at the right time mentioned during check-in. I heard one of the staff saying because they didn’t have a lifeguard on duty yet. The reason is quite shallow knowing they are a luxurious hotel. Also, we wanted to order ice cream by the bar but they told us it would take one hour or more since the kitchen is busy. I explained to the waiter that it is just – one scoop but he insisted. That was still a big turn-off for me. Also, they have a lot of out of stock items on their bar. My partner had to change his order numerous times since the waiter did not know that it is unavailable already.
Overall, I would rate it a 5/10 – if the service would be so much better, I’d go back and would be very willing to pay for the price. Of course, we have left a guest comment card for them so that they would know where to improve. It is just sad for me since the price and service did not match well. The place is really good already but they just need to improve their service.
If you visit Tambuli or have visited Tambuli but experienced so much better, please let me know so that I can change my heart! These are just my personal experiences. I’m very open to hear you guuys! Till my next post. See you 😘
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