I was so happy to find this Trip Advisor review on my old external hard drive. I wrote it in 2014 after my first stay at El Nido Cove Resort and Spa on Palawan. It was read by 11,799 people! I have it framed on my wall as a reminder of one of my best ever vacations. I hope you like it. I have added some pictures from the same hard drive, taken at the hotel back in 2014. Sadly Ayala, the owners of El Nido Cove , closed it in January 2020. By chance I was there on the last day and had a chance to say goodbye to old friends Ritchelle and John, and meet new pretty boy Harvy, for he first time!
This Blog is dedicated to the one and only Sir Marco Martinez who hand picked the pre opening team and led them to success. From Cove many of his original team went on to run their own businesses like Marz in Sibaltan ( Massage x 2, Karaoke, Hairdressers, Shop, restaurant, Motorbike rental etc.) , Adam ( Dam Dam's restaurant - and now accommodation- in Port Barton) and Joey at Amos in El Nido. Sir Ran , Marnel, Jayson and Rodel moved to a new hotel in Nacpan and the others dispersed at Lio and other businesses in Town. Most are still my Facebook friends some 7 years later and I look forward to seeing them all again when I move to Palawan in 2022.
So this is what I wrote back in 2014....for you Drew ( Mr. Norman!) and your sick mum.
13.8.14 El Nido Cove Resort and Spa, Palawan, Philippines
Having read the excellent Travel blog , “ I Dreamed of this” by Nathan Allen I decided to spend my vacation this year in El Nido, Palawan. A search of the internet revealed a mix of small cheap guest houses crammed in the busy town, or ridiculously expensive resorts. I persevered in my search and the result more than matched my expectations. We checked in at the ITI terminal in Manila where we had free coffee, juices and sandwiches as we waited for the bus to the small plane in the private terminal. No one could do too much to ensure our comfort.
The flight itself ( 1 hour 10 mins in a 50 seater plane) was luxurious with incredible views as we came into land spot on time. The El Nido resorts Jeepney collected us and took us to a red carpet welcome where we were serenaded by local singers and given more refreshments as our bags were processed.
If only all airports were the same. While our fellow passengers were whisked off to their luxury resorts we squeezed into the trike for the complimentary ride to El Nido Cove , which is situated down a track behind a security gate ( on some days there were more security staff than guests!). The lobby is simply beautiful- high ceilings , open windows, and beyond the sea and the islands.
When I worked in the hotel industry I remember a guest telling me that all hotels are similar ( 4 walls, a bed, shower and toilet) and that the key differentiator were the staff. That is certainly a Mantra that Marco and his young team have perfected at El Nido Cove. The saying “Nothing is too much trouble” is often a cliché on Trip Advisor but here it really was true.
Over our two week stay we were offered a massage by the sea, laundry done by the staff, the staff to take us by Kayak to a nearby island or through the nearby mangroves, advice on trips , arranging transport, help finding a friends relatives and so on. The meals became a highlight of our day, not because of the haute cuisine or fancy napkin folds, but because they offered a simple menu of freshly prepared Filipino food with a different set menu each day. How they managed this with no electricity from 6 am to 2pm daily is beyond me. Back home in Bahrain I would be lost without my kettle and microwave oven!
The hotel has a large lawn down to the beach and they utilised all the space over the two week stay with a bar under a tree, small tents surrounded by candles for sunset dinners, and breakfast (English, American, Filipino or Continental) either in the shade of the hotel canopy or beside the sea as we chose.
So what do you do in a perfect hotel in a perfect location? I indulged in all the things I do not get time for at work- writing, reading, swimming, kayaking, walking, photography and sunbathing, watching volleyball games and of course sleeping and a fabulous massage. The hotel staff tried to persuade me to leave, politely, on several occasions but why would you leave paradise once you have found it?
Sadly my partner had to leave to visit his sick mother in the south of the island and of course he was given a picnic breakfast for the 6 hour journey and over the next two days the devoted hotel staff kept tracking me down in the shower, on the beach, relaxing in the sun or typing in the shade of the bar with his phone calls on the hotel’s mobile phone. Now that is what I call going above and beyond the usual standard of customer care.
The best part of the whole vacation was when Drew returned and the last two guests departed and for a whole 24 hours we had the whole hotel and grounds to ourselves. The staff kept themselves busy spring cleaning the rooms for the next group of guests flying in the next day, and then relaxed in the evening with a game of volleyball.
Watching them play with a cool beer I realised the key to the success of this beautiful hotel- teamwork! Due to the building of a new swimming pool in the grounds they had to relocate the volleyball net so they had a meeting to decide where to put it and then everyone contributed- to move the net, mark out the pitch and so on. Finally the game took place with everyone cheering each other on. Towards the end I retired to my room but damaged the key in the lock. The game was stopped and I was let in and they showed me (and another member of staff) how to prevent that occurring again.
On the beach in El Nido town, 6 years ago when it was clean and deserted
On our final night the whole team conspired to set up the most romantic dinner ever with music, candles, wine, beautiful food and a special dessert – it really was a night to remember. On the last morning even a shoal of fish jumped out of the sea 3 times as if waving goodbye. As we flew back to Manila in the comfort of the ITI plane I shed a tear as we flew over El Nido Cove for one last time.
You can rest assured, we will be back. Special thanks to Marco, Ran, Sheila, Mars, Paul, Alex and the others . They all worked together to keep the lawns raked and the beach outside the hotel clean. The rooms and the windows were always sparkling and spotless and fresh smelling.
What a great loss! I was so sad when they closed the hotel in 2020 and I still see many Facebook posts of the happy team there as they look back on their lives at "Cove"
Mahal Kita
Ingat Palagi
Kita Kits
So that was back in 2014 and I got 11,000 readers! My blog has over 11,000 readers now, my old Blog on El Nido back in 2020 got 5,000 readers and I just heard from Google that my photos of my new apartment in Bahrain have just received 1000 views! It seems I have a new career as a social media influencer!
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Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
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