REVIEW; Palo Alto Bed and Breakfast Puerto Princesa

This post (probably) contains affiliate links, including Amazon Associates links, and I may receive a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking through one. This is at no extra cost to you and allows the site to keep running! Thanks for understanding.

On my previous trip to the Philippines I had been greatly looking forward to my trip to Palawan. Flights had been booked and accommodation had been arranged for the first few nights. I was almost more excited about where I would be staying than anything else. Palo Alto bed and breakfast Puerto Princesa looked like a dream. However, on that occasion it was not meant to be.

Bad weather ended up causing our flights to be cancelled as is often the way in the Philippines. Devastated is an understatement. We flew to Indonesia vowing that we would return to Palawan as soon as possible.

Luckily it didn’t take too long to arrange flights back, arriving in Palawan one month later, just after New Year. But there was one catch, Palo Alto Bed and Breakfast had no rooms! I was heart broken. Fortunately for me, at the last minute, the team at Palo Alto managed to find a loft room for me and the Gent. I was both simultaneously overjoyed and mildly worried as to what they meant by a loft. Honestly, I was picturing a cobweb covered attic with a mattress on the floor and I must admit that I could not have been more wrong.

WELCOME

When we arrived at the airport we were greeted by our airport pick up and his wonderful air conditioned van. He pointed out all the main roads and restaurants that we might be interested in. He was also kind enough to stop off at an ATM for us en route. When we touched down at Palo Alto bed and breakfast Puerto Princesa we were given welcome drinks and our bags were taken to our room. Perfect!

Eco-Friendly

The first thing I noticed about Palo Alto bed and breakfast was that it almost seemed to be part of the earth on which it was built. Nearly all of the buildings were made from wood sourced from sustainable plantations in Palawan. Palo Alto’s reputation for being eco friendly is not ill founded, it looked to me as if it had grown up from the ground. Also, several full grown trees were incorporated into the construction.  I love when buildings cater to pre existing flora. I was enchanted. In the restaurant a large tree grows right up through the centre of both floors and out the roof. It had the effect of making me feel like I was close to nature, but still had all the comforts of a hotel.

The Room

The room was 100% not a cobweb filled attic. It was, in fact, a luxury cottage for four people. There were two double bedrooms, one upstairs and one downstairs. There was a dressing table, TV, fridge, wardrobe and safe. Basically it had everything we needed. There was even a waterfall shower, with HOT water, which I was very impressed with. Oh and the air conditioning, God the air conditioning was amazing! I can’t function without air-con so this is very important to me. I become psychotic if I get too warm. The rooms in Palo Alto Bed and Breakfast are perfection.

Food

Breakfast was served every morning in the main restaurant area. The evening before, staff give you a form to tick which breakfast option you would like for the following morning. There are 4 options; pancakes, american, continental and traditional Philippines style breakfast.

Drinking water is provided in coolers for guests to fill up water bottles or glasses at any time. The restaurant also serves lunch and dinner.

If you would prefer to go out for your meals Palo Alto bed and breakfast Puerto Princesa provide a free shuttle service into the centre of town twice daily. They also provide a pick up service from town. If the times don’t suit you then the staff are more than happy to organise a tricylce to bring you into town. A tricycle from town to Palo Alto costs about 100 pesos. We opted to take a tricycle home most nights as we were often finished dinner long before the pick up time. If you are eating out I would recommend La Terasse. The service and the food are worth much more than the low prices they charge.

Day Trips

The staff at Palo Alto bed and breakfast can also organise any day trips you wish to go on. There’s not a whole lot to do in Puerto Princesa so we decided to avail of this facility. We went on the Honda Bay Island hopping tour and the Underground river trip. If you wish to go on the underground river trip make sure that you book it early as you need to allow one day for the permit to be processed. The wonderful staff also booked our bus from Puerto Princesa up to El Nido for us. We didn’t have to worry about anything.

Facilities

Facility wise Palo Alto bed and breakfast Peurto Princesa has excellent wifi in the restaurant area and in reception. There is also a beautiful swimming pool which is always pristine. Not a single leaf in the water. If you need to relax there is a spa offering massages and other treatments. One lovely thing I noticed was that when we arrived they had a welcome message for us as part of a slide show on a screen by the check in desk. That was a nice, personal touch. I’d never seen that before in anywhere that I had stayed.

Rooms start from about £40 per night for a standard twin room, including breakfast. All in all we had an excellent stay with Palo Alto bed and breakfast and would not hesitate to return in the future. I cannot recommend this place enough. If you have a few nights in Puerto Princesa before you head up to El Nido then it is absolutely worth splashing out on a few nights of luxury in this wonderful bed and breakfast.