Do not jeopardize your family’s happiness and your dream vacation by choosing the wrong resort that will offer you nothing but poor service and management full of lapses!
Our family getaway has longed been planned, we had so many choices in mind where the whole family could have fun, relax and create that experience worth reminiscing. Camiguin, Bukidnon, Davao and Surigao del Sur were on the top of our list. After considering so many aspects of our travel we decided to go back to Surigao del Sur for the 3rd time but this time, to a different part of the province where we haven’t been to, The Bogak Cold Spring and The Turtle Island.
9:00pm on April 18, 2019 all our bags were packed and everything was set. We departed from our hometown, Cagayan de Oro City with everyone sporting huge smiles and enthusiastic spirits. Everybody in the flock already imagined how beautiful the experience would be since we saw these two beautiful places featured in a television magazine show. We were all exhilarated because we knew that we were going to experience a once in a lifetime awesome getaway. Most of the members of the family were all awake during the travel out of excitement.
We arrived at our first stop at around 6:30 in the morning at Bogak Cold Spring. We were so delighted and mesmerized with the beauty of the place. The crystal clear water seemed like unreal, the place was enveloped with greens but the water remained so clean. Everyone in the family soaked our bushed bodies in the cold spring and we felt that calming and therapeutic effect of the cold water to our bodies. We all enjoyed swimming especially the kids, and even refused to stop from dipping into the water after hours of swimming.
Few minutes before 12:00 noon, the whole family decided to head to our 2nd and main destination, The Turtle Island. We booked our room reservation for 2 nights in Turtle Island Tourist Inn and Beach Resort 3 days before the travel. We arrived in the resort past 12:00pm. The staff welcomed us and directed us to our reserved room. Everything was okay, the staff and some of our family members even exchanged jokes and laughed. The resort staff also told us that we can cook our food in the resort if we want to because they have dirty kitchens available, so we did and had our lunch at around 2:00pm.
The fun started for the whole family, we even used their Karaoke Facility at the function room that charged 250 pesos per hour. We truly enjoyed the moment with some other guests who were also having fun. The staff who accommodated us (Shemale) even sang 4 songs as requested by other guests, we even applauded him/her after singing The Prayer with two different voices (male and female). My sister talked to the resort staff that afternoon if they have available boat for an Island hopping, they confirmed to us at around 8:00pm that we can have our island hopping in as early as 6:00 am on Saturday, April 20, 2019. Everyone got so excited especially the kids. We then told the kids to sleep early so they could wake up early.
As early as 4:30am the following morning, the kids were already awake and prepared their things for the island hopping. Everyone took turns in the bathroom but unfortunately there was no water coming out from the faucet and shower so we looked if there were other bathrooms outside. We found 4 other bathrooms outside our room and yes! there was water coming out from the faucet with a very low pressure but the water was very salty.
It’s time for us to board on the boat, we cannot contain out excitement, the kids ran quickly and settle themselves. After everyone was set on the boat, the manager of the resort (I think he is the son of the owner) named Mark approached us and told us that the boat will bring us to Cabgan Island first and asked a favor if it’s okay with us if the boat will pick us up at 11:00am to bring us to vanishing and Turtle Islands because of the limited number of boats, and we said it’s very fine. Upon reaching to Cabgan Island we were all in awed with its magnificent beauty with the enchanting white sand and blue water.
Indeed we enjoyed a lot, few minutes before 10:00am, Mark texted us asking if we were okay and we said yes. There came 11:00am, no boat came to pick us up. We called Mark to ask if the boat is coming, he asked a favor again if it’s okay if the boat will arrive at 12:00 noon because it’s not yet available and we said again it’s fine. So we waited again until 12:00 noon, the Sun was already very high and the place was already very hot. The kids were all exhausted and disappointed waiting for the boat that will transfer us to Vanishing and Turtle Islands. It’s past 12:00 noon, no boat arrived, our 2 month old baby was already crying and some of the kids were already crying and complaining too. We started to get disappointed with the situation, we called Mark again to ask if the boat is now coming and he said it’s not yet available and asked us if we could wait until 2:00pm. We were all in dismayed, knowing that we could no longer go to Vanishing and Turtle Islands. All of us were very tired and what we all wanted that time was to go back to the resort so the kids can rest. Time check, it’s 2:00pm, the boat hadn’t arrived yet but we patiently waited. 2:15pm, there! The boat that brought us to Cabgan Island arrived with a group of people on board fetched from other Island. We thought that those people will be unloaded in Cabgan island but sadly they did not disembark, they were there thinking that they can accommodate us with the other group. How could a boat with a maximum capacity of 30 persons could accommodate 2 groups of people with more than 20 and 30 members respectively? Are you kidding us? My brother in-law approached the operator of the boat and asked if why were there people on board to be brought back to the resort when we were the first group boarded on the boat that early morning and we were supposed to be picked up earlier. One of the members of the group on board the boat interrupted and said, “ unsa may labot nimu kung kami giuna?” (Who are you to care and questioned why we are boarded and picked up first?). That ignited a word war. One member of the group took video of my brother in-law who was so upset of the situation and accused us of threatening them after saying “remove your sunglasses so I can remember you”.
Out of frustration, we contracted a small pump boat to bring us to the resort, risking our lives especially the kids’. We were divided into 3 batches because the small boat cannot accommodate the 30 of us. When the first batch arrived at the resort the group of guest that we had word fight with were staring at them and one member of their group named Donna who claimed she is a teacher took pictures of our vehicles, my sister asked her why she is taking pictures of our vehicles and she responded “Because we will sue you for threatening us and we already called the Police”. My sister then decided to talk to the owner of the resort and the owner reasoned out for what had happened. We the second batch arrived the resort and still the group stared at us like we owe them something, my niece gravitated towards us and told my sister who was carrying her 2 month old baby that the other group called the police and accused us of threatening them. I supposed not to buy the situation but out of frustration of knowing that the Resort management who was supposed to be the mediator did not even do anything to pacify the situation and tolerated the other group to blow the situation out of proportion by calling the police when in fact the chaos was caused by their irresponsibility.
I vented out my frustration, I looked for their manager but the manager and the resort owner did not immediately face me. The Police arrived and we started talking. The resort owner told us that the boat was actually exclusively booked for the other group, WHAT?! Are you serious?! Nobody told us, even your son, Mark did not tell us that the boat was exclusively booked. Second, the resort owner told us that the boat operator told her that my brother in-law was trying to drown him, seriously?! There wasn’t even physical contact and I dare you to show a video. Also, why did the boat go back to the island with the same operator to pick us up (but too late) if indeed there was a threat to their safety? Could you please pick up the debris of your logic from the ground? Third, the resort owner told us that her staff confessed that we were so rude and shouting at them? Really? You’re staff even joined and laugh with us. Are we talking to a resort owner who is supposed to be the arbitrator or are we arguing with the lawyer of the other guests? (Maybe there was a personal interest behind this that we do not know or perhaps they know each other personally) Fourth and the worst, the resort already knew that we were booking the room until Sunday but the resort owner told us that we need to vacate the room because she reserved it for her relatives, are you kidding us!? We told them that based on our itinerary we will leave the resort on Sunday morning and we booked for that. But because she was told by the other group that they will be the one to leave if we will stay so the resort owner reasoned out again and said that she doesn’t want drunk people in her resort, Oh! Really?! and why were you selling alcoholic beverages? And what about the other guests who are also drunk? What a lame, funny and pathetic excuses. Well, it was maybe because the other group rented a bigger room and the function room on the first floor and she was threatened with the thought of losing a bigger income, so she opted to make unbelievable reasons and fabricated stories.
Because we saw that the resort owner was clearly on the side of the other group, we decided to leave the area and drove away to far Bayugan City to look for hotel to sleep overnight risking our lives with our exhausted and not so sober drivers due to the alcohol they ingested (Luckily nothing bad happened to us on the road).
Our supposed to be blissful day and beautiful experience for the whole family were ruined by the IRRESPONSIBLE MANAGEMENT AND POOR SERVICE OF THE RESORT CALLED TURTLE ISLAND TOURIST INN AND BEACH RESORT in Barobo, Surigao Del Sur.
Just a piece of advice, if you want to realize your family vacation the way you painted it in your dreams, never ever stay in this rubbish resort.