Bohol Beach Club and Dao Diamond Hotel

Using our fifth and last batch of Air Phils P88 promo ticket this year, my wife, 3-year old son, and I went to Bohol ten days ago. Spending only Php 642 for all 3 round trip tickets paid last February, it would be foolish not to use the tickets, when current promo RT airfares now would set you back Php 900 each person, due to fuel surcharges and website convenience fees.

We were picked up by Dao Diamond Hotel's van for a 10-minute trip from Tagbilaran Airport to the hotel. Good thing that they allowed us to check-in at past 11:00 am without extra charge, although standard check-in time for hotels is 2:00 pm. 

Complementing the staff in front desk are the 25 deaf-mute staff assigned as bellmen, room attendant, and food attendants. In a way, guests are indirectly helping them earn a living by staying at the hotel. Below are the photos of their mini lobby and pool area.

Our standard room with double bed, and a sofa bed with pull away bed underneath. The room could easily accommodate 5 persons. However, they only have a bedsheet as blanket, no real thick blanket sandwiched between 2 bedsheets. 

The room is comfortable and clean enough, except for the noisy air conditioner. Make sure that you place the "Please Make Up Room" sign on the doorknob, if you want your room to be cleaned when you got back, since we failed to do that on our second night.

Below is their simple Chico coffee shop underneath a tree where it got its name. Breakfast set menus tastes good enough, which are inclusive at our Php 1190/night rate. Their beef tapa is the authentic dried type, but portion size is small, like the rest of the other breakfast choices.

 

After a quick washup, the hotel's tuktuk tricycle dropped us to the nearby Island City Mall to get a ride going to Bohol Beach Club (BBC). 

Tricycles have their own unique design, and they have a dedicated trunk space at the back. They are required to have a painted Bible verse on their body, to get an approved transportation franchise. Our driver Leogie agreed for a Php 200 drop off fee to BBC in Panglao island. Helpful and honest, he gave his mobile number +639394305661 if ever we need a ride back to Tagbilaran.

BBC's beach does not disappoint. It has the widest beach area of fine white sand on the whole island. Although its rainy season, the water still has that cyan blue color like in the internet photos. The southwest monsoon (habagat) brings more waves and seaweeds on the shore, but we saw BBC staff collecting and dumping them on their utility vehicle.

We paid Php 700 as day tour fee of 2 adults (kid is free), with Php 400 consumable for food and drinks. For our lunch, we ordered grilled prawns in garlic sauce and fish fillet in coconut milk. As I've read from the internet reviews, the tap water of Panglao island has that slightly off taste, so we ordered ice cold Coke in can. 

Total lunch bill is Php 678 which is expensive for budget tourists, but reasonable enough due to the resort's ambience and I would say one of the best prepared food we've sampled in Bohol.

Below is a view of the beach from the restaurant.

After lunch, Wife stayed in the beach hammock and lounge chairs, while my son and I enjoyed the sea and the pool. The sea has fine white sand up to the hip level. Water only gets waist-deep about 100m far from the beach, and only then that the seafloor become uncomfortable with stones and some corals. The swimming pool is still the old style (not infinity-type), but not crowded with guests so we still enjoyed it.

 

My son satisfying his curiosity on a hermit crab caught on the beach.

There are more foreigners than local tourists the whole time we stayed at the resort. We left before 5:00 pm through a passing tourist van who dropped us at Dauis church.