Camiguin
Small, cramped waterfront spot with brightly painted rooms, each with its own porch. Warm and friendly, with a familial vibe created by the German…
Must-see hotels in Mindanao
Davao
The Malagos Garden Resort has a collection of cottages set in a beautifully landscaped property with gardens, walking paths, a bird park, a butterfly…
Cagayan de Oro
Somewhat barren rooms and mismatched furniture in need of an upgrade; however, the centrally located six-storey VIP does have professional staff and a…
Davao
Essentially, a boutique homestay on a quiet residential street attached to a pleasant cafe. Three stylish rooms (Rosemary is the nicest) with a black-and…
Davao
A centrally located large high-rise with a wide range of accommodation options, including good-value dorm rooms – many have flat-screen TVs and all have…
Northern Mindanao
Centrally located with comfortable if cramped rooms. Has a shiny, slightly kitschy lobby and no elevator – so best to request a lower-floor room.
Northern Mindanao
Nondescript, simply furnished rooms a short walk from the main pier. Professionally managed with a convenience store at street level.
Davao
If you want some breathing room, try this sprawling complex with gardens and a small private beach, 8km northeast of the city centre.
Davao
This gleaming multistorey hotel has a large lobby and a nice cafe. F Torres St restaurants are within walking distance.
Northern Mindanao
A large complex with standard-issue rooms and spacious grounds with an attractive pool area.
Davao
Large convention-style hotel in the centre of old downtown, with a nice restaurant.
Davao
Something of a refuge in the crowded city centre, this professionally managed hotel’s rooms surround an inner courtyard with a small pool; there's also a…
Cagayan de Oro
This is a professionally run operation, and the all blonde-wood rooms in the ‘business class’ wing come with modern bathrooms; the older building’s rooms…
Northern Mindanao
The mirrored-glass facade shouts Chinese office building, and the lobby's plastic ambience screams massage parlour. Bathrooms are cramped, the sort where…
Siargao
A few kilometres south of barangay Pacifico is Surf & Sail Camp Resort, a large, eclectically decorated octagonal-shaped house with a restaurant,…
Cagayan de Oro
The two four-storey Romanesque pillars on this old hotel's facade just off Divisoria make it easy to spot. Inside, it’s far from grand; most of the rooms…
Cagayan de Oro
Sharing a parking lot with Nature’s Pensionne, its sister hotel next door, Grand City has a fancier lobby and elevator, but it's poor value since other…
Northern Mindanao
Boasting an elevator (a big amenity in these parts), the sterile and efficient five-storey Hive has small and simply furnished rooms. The menu of the 2nd…
Camiguin
The simple, fan-cooled, cave-like dorms and rooms here cater to shoestring divers. It abuts the highway where the road divides about 6km southeast of…
Siargao
Just south of Cloud Nine, Solaria has ordinary private rooms in nipa-style cottages in a cramped garden setting, and one large outdoor dormitory on the…
Davao
Sporting a small comfortable lobby, a downstairs coffee shop and an elevator, this downtown hotel is not a bad base if space isn't a priority (look at…
Siargao
Effective chaos would be a good way to describe this rambling wooden complex. The budget fan rooms, which share a hammock-strewn balcony, are good value,…
Davao
The facade of this centrally located midsized hotel opposite People’s Park is fairly grand. The rooms, especially the extra-narrow studios, with wicker…
Camiguin
Several stylistically deficient rooms in a small concrete building are down a narrow alleyway in Yumbing. However, they're well kept and the sea-facing…
Cagayan de Oro
An eight-storey business-class hotel with dated furnishings halfway between Divisoria and Limketkai. Service can be spotty; make sure you get a room with…
Northern Mindanao
A clean and basic cheapie close to the market. Don't be discouraged by the 'reception' area, which looks like someone's basement storage space.
Camiguin
Each of the four light-filled, wood-floor rooms on the 3rd floor, even the dormitory with four bunk beds, has high ceilings and homey touches.
Davao
A colourfully painted high-rise with sparkling-clean floors and large, leanly furnished rooms; street-facing ones get good light.
Northern Mindanao
Centrally located, this high-rise offers good value even if rooms are minuscule.
Siargao
Sure, it has zero atmosphere and the 'office' looks like a storage closet, but rooms in this low-slung building are perfectly acceptable with hot water…
Southern Mindanao
The faux Italianate facade and Three Tenors lobby soundtrack signal San Marco's striving for sophistication. Many rooms lack natural light but all are…
Southern Mindanao
This resort offers lovely views from its restaurant (try the tilapia kinilaw, but avoid the dry and rock-hard fried chicken) and the balconies of its…
Southern Mindanao
This once denuded slope – a victim of overzealous logging – at the foot of Mt Talomo has been transformed into a lush forest with hiking trails, sports…
Paradise Island Park & Beach Resort
Southern Mindanao
This Samal stalwart is its own mini–Boracay. It’s a huge, immaculately landscaped complex with its own zoo and a sandy beachfront strip lined with shops,…
Mindanao
The upside to this stalwart of the Zamboanga City hotel scene is its waterfront location and sea-facing pool and lounge area. Downsides can be many,…
Southern Mindanao
On a beautiful beach on the eastern side of Talikud Island facing Samal, Isla Reta has basic bamboo cottages and tents for campers. Simple meals (P180)…
Southern Mindanao
This resort incorporates a handful of small cottages on concrete stilts around Lake Mirror and the mountain slope area, referred to as Hillside. Camping…
Mindanao
Gleaming tile floors, spacious bathrooms with top-of-the-line shower heads, and tastefully designed boutique-style rooms make this the best midrange…
Mindanao
Within walking distance of the airport terminal, this long-running complex is most noteworthy for its resort-style pool area and lunch and dinner buffets…
Southern Mindanao
For true world-class luxury, head to Pearl Farm, where you’ll find five-star versions of stilt houses; if these or the hilltop villas aren’t exclusive…
