One rare evening, I chanced upon TV Patrol (a local news program) featuring the long beach of San Vicente, Palawan stretching about 14 kms, probably the longest in the Philippines. The idea immediately came to me that I shall visit the place one of these days. A few days later, deal grocer flashed a deal called Capari Survivor Getaway. Ecstatic about the listed itinerary, I sent out an invite to my travel buddies. 8 young professionals overwhelmingly responded to my invitation.
Capari Resort is located in a very remote area in San Vicente, Palawan,
accessible by private van for four hours on extremely rough road more than half of the time from
Puerto Princesa. The road condition worsen especially on a rainy day. As part of the package, we were picked up by a van at the airport. The
van wasn't a private van of the resort but one used to shuttle tourists
or available for hire.
Upon reaching Capari Resort, I was taken aback by the ambiance of the resort, it didn't appeal to me. The rooms are small, equipped with very basic ammenities.
The bed for two is a double bed (queen or king beds are not available).
Third person is charged with mattress laid out on the floor, the room
is too small that by doing so, the room can only be half opened.
Mosquito nets (except for the extra bed) is hanged overhead. Obviously, mountain
mosquitos is abundant in the area, insect repellant is a must.
Food is tasty but portions is extremely small and expensive for its serving.
 |
| chicken was tasty but 1/8 chicken part per person is definitely not filling |
Capari Resort is located on a cove on its own, with the beachfront privately accessible by its guests. The
beach sand is fairly fine and white, but sand fleas is abundant, rain
and waves can also be strong in months other than February to April.
 |
| interesting itinerary right? but none of these were delivered :( |
If you are looking for a place to stay near the long beach of San
Vicente, this is not the place.
Overall, we left Capari Resort disappointed. Half of us headed to El
Nido, savoring the remaining good vibes that was left. We could have let
it pass but subsequent events led us to believe we were deceived. We were not here for the resort, nor for the food, not even for the beach. We were here for the so called "Capari Survivor Challenge". It challenged us in a different way though... what was promised was not
delivered, not even an attempt to deliver, we had to prod them several
times even for the simpliest task to do a briefing. Looking back, there were signs that the resort wasn't actually true to their offer. They quickly respond to inquiries via email or phone however, as soon as we bought the vouchers, they hardly reply.
 |
| even this review on tripadvisor looks suspiciously bogus. ms. marinas is connected with the resort |
A week has passed, we haven't heard from Capari Resort. On the other hand, Deal Grocer in a matter of hours agreed to refund the full amount. This was the gist of our complaint as written by
my friend sunjun.
-o-
---------------------------------------
Incident
Report
Objectives:
·
To show that the deal was grossly overpriced.
·
To show that it was false advertisement.
·
To show the lack of intent from the resort to
deliver and provide what was promised.
I.
Background
·
A group of 9 individuals (4 men, 5 women) went
to Capari Resort in San Vicente, Palawan to avail of the 3D/2N Survivor Getaway
offered by Deal Grocer
·
Since there were 9 of us, we bought 2 coupons
and opted to pay 8,600 pesos, as quoted by the resort manager, for the extra
person.
·
The group stayed at Capari Resort from June 2-4,
2012.
·
The reservation was made around the last week of
March 2012.
II. Pricing
·
According to the Deal Grocer site, the whole
package was valued at 80,800 pesos but it was being sold at a 60% discount of
only 38,400 pesos.
·
Package Inclusions as stated in Deal Grocer:
·
Breakdown of prices according to our research
Item
|
Price (Pesos)
|
Source
|
2 Deluxe Rooms
|
13,000
|
3,250 x 2 x 2 = 13,000 pesos
|
Van transfers from/to Puerto Princesa
airport
|
15,000
|
|
Daily set breakfast, lunch, merienda,
and drinks for 4 persons
|
6,000
|
Estimate:
Continental Breakfast – complimentary
with the Deluxe room
Lunch and Merienda estimated at 750
pesos per pax per day.
750 x 4 x 2 = 6000 pesos.
|
Survivor Challenge / Resort Activities
|
?
|
|
TOTAL
|
34,000
|
|
·
According to our research, subtotal of the whole
package not including the Survivor Challenge and resort activities is only at
34,000 pesos. This led us to believe, by
simple arithmetic, that the remaining Survivor Challenge activity must be worth
around 46,800 pesos.
·
Further validation of this observation came
from Ms. Sharon Padua, the resort
manager, herself. In an email
correspondence dated March 27, 2012, she wrote
"The package for deal grocer is a special one of a kind deal. We even went to the extreme by having 20 performers welcome each survivor group as a kick off for the "Survivor Getaway" package. We have combined survivor challenges and island hoping in one trip. The package has really been down played in Dealgrocer."
 |
| click on the image to zoom in. |
III. Meals /
Meal Concerns
·
Estimated cost: 750 pesos for lunch and snacks,
Breakfast is complimentary with the rooms.
·
The resort sent us Set Menus for the Deal Grocer
package just a few days before our visit to the resort.
Day 1:
·
For day 1 we chose Set Menu B. Late lunch was requested due to limited
availability of flight schedules and flight delays.
·
Set Menu B as emailed to us by the resort.
·
Set Menu B as served by the resort on June 2,
2012 for 3 persons.
·
This was served together with a few slices of
Watermelon as well. And instead of
Banana Turon, we got a handful of Camote (sweet potato) covered in caramelized
sugar. I leave it up to you to decide
whether our estimate of 750 pesos is reasonable.
·
We ordered 2 bottles of Coke and were charged
for the drinks. We presumed that drinks
are not included in the set meals.
·
The second group from Cebu arrived around 5 to 6
pm and was served the same menu except the Camote was no longer available.
Day 2:
·
For breakfast we ordered a mix of Longganisa,
Lamayo, and Tocino. We have no
complains. Generous portions, tasty, and
delicious. Water, Coffee, and Juice were
available as well.
·
For
lunch, we ordered Set A and Set C. Here
are the menus as emailed to us by the resort.
·
According to Ron-ron, the resort staff who took
our order, the fish in set C would be around 250 grams. We were worried that it might not be enough
so we ordered an extra fish to go with it.
·
Here’s our lunch as prepared by the resort on
June 3, 2012.
·
The Veggie Spring Rolls in set A were
missing. Instead we got grilled
vegetables.
·
We paid for the extra fish. I leave it up to you to decide whether our
estimate of 750 pesos is reasonable enough.
·
In addition, note that this menu was prepared
for 9 people. We paid for an extra
person rate of 8,600 pesos for the same experience.
·
Also note that lunch came with 9 free soft
drinks (Coke). Makes us wonder why soft
drinks weren’t included for lunch on the first day.
·
For snacks, there were no Bananas in caramel
sauce. We instead had Camote in
caramelized sugar again. We also were
served only 4 Tuna Sandwiches. Kind of
validates our suspicion that Set C was prepared for only 4 people. What
happened to the extra person? Was he included in Set A? Why don’t you
go
back and count how many pork chops there were in the picture.
·
Discussion in the Deal Grocer site indicated a Deal Grocer representative as stating
“Some people actually find that the lunch and merienda are filling enough to
have just a v light snack for dinner.”
IV. Survivor
Challenge / Island Hopping
·
Estimated cost based on Deal Grocer site and our
research: 46,800 pesos for 4 pax.
Day 1:
·
Day 1 itinerary as indicated in Deal Grocer
·
The group from Manila arrived around 15:00 while
the group from Cebu arrived around 17:00.
·
There was no welcome note directing us to report
to a Game Master.
·
There was no Welcoming Rites.
·
We had to prod and ask for the briefing and
welcoming rites several times.
·
Any of the staff we asked didn’t seem to know of
such an activity happening for that night, strengthening our claim that the
resort had no intentions of providing such an activity.
·
In addition, we were looking for the 20
performers that were suppose to welcome each survivor group as mentioned by the
resort manager in her email. Remember
that bold line from her stating that the deal was “downplayed” by Deal Grocer?
·
Not only was it mentioned in the email, it is shamelessly
being advertised at the
resort’s
Facebook page as well.
·
The resort manager sighted several times the
rainy weather as an excuse. Apparently
there was no contingency or back up plan.
·
There are several covered areas in the resort
that could have served as the venue if the resort had real intentions to
deliver what was promised.
·
Due to our insistent prodding, a briefing of the
next day’s activities was done by the Resort Manager after we had dinner. She just stood at the edge of our table and
spoke for about 3 minutes.
·
Apparently the next day’s schedule and activities
were very flexible. Another sign that
the resort didn’t really prepare a program for the Survivor Challenge Day.
Day 2:
·
Day 2 itinerary as indicated in Deal Grocer
·
Sample itinerary starts at 08:30. On day 1, the resort manager said that their
“Island hopping” usually starts at 09:00.
·
Island hopping is quoted because that is how she
referred to the Survivor Challenge Day.
And I’ll show you later on that that was exactly what they only intented
to offer.
·
Since it was raining in the afternoons in San
Vicente, we requested for an early start of 08:00 the previous day. The request and idea came from us and not the
resort. We had the impression that the
resort manager really wanted to start 09:00 am and not 08:00 but, we were happy
that she obliged to our request.
·
We requested to pass by the Long Beach as well.
·
There was no Message in a Bottle activity. Instead, we hiked to the tribal council and
did the Maze challenge. Our concern of
heading out early so we can dodge the rain later in the afternoon was offset
because of this activity. Another sign
of a lack of planning from the resort.
·
After the Maze Challenge we boarded the boat and
headed for Long Beach.
·
We just passed by Long Beach. We didn’t swim. We didn’t dock. We just watched it from afar for about 5
minutes.
·
We headed next to Exotic Island. Just swam maybe an hour before our
boatman/game master called us for supposedly another survivor game. Our boatman/game master hid 40 eggs in
shallow water and tasked each team to look for their corresponding eggs. All in all the game took only about 5
minutes.
·
Our crew didn’t bring with them enough Snorkelling
gear. They probably only had 2 masks and
1 snorkel ready. It was a good thing most
of us brought our own gear. I guess
snorkelling gear is not part of this survivor package. I wonder how the resort expected us to
participate in the game without masks.
Due to lack of equipment, some of our team mates had to be content with
looking for eggs in areas where the water level was only knee deep.
·
There were only 2 huts in the island. The island seems to
be public. At first we occupied both huts. After a few minutes
though, another boat
arrived and we had to vacate one of the cottages to give way to the new
group. Note that we bought 2 deal grocer
coupons. If we weren’t on the same
group, would the 2 groups be forced to occupy the same hut?
·
After lunch, we were informed that “if we
wanted” to do another game we can challenge the teams to build the best shelter
out of only the raw materials in the island.
We were dismayed and bored, we opted to skip this challenge and just
head on to the next island.
·
The next island was the German island. We just swam there.
·
We inquired about “Swimming with the Turtles”
they only cited that it was difficult because of the weather. If the weather was so difficult, then we
shouldn’t have been out there in the first place.
·
There was no cook out challenge.
·
There was also no cooling down at the water
falls.
·
We were back in the resort by around 15:00.
·
Finally a hint of planning and intent from the
resort when they informed us that there will be an awarding ceremony at night.
·
Night time came, we had dinner. The resort served an extra fish dish and said
that it was complimentary. Take it as
the award for the winning team they said.
That was the whole awarding ceremony.
·
Was this all worth 46,800 pesos?
·
Note that on a separate email correspondence
dated March 27, 2012, we asked the resort manager (Sharon Padua) how much the
island hopping / snorkelling with the Turtles activity costs. She wrote that it costs “P4500/day trip.”
·
Note that in El Nido, the whole day island
hopping tours offered by
El Nido Boutique
is only at a maximum of 1,000 pesos per head (Tour C). It’s 1,400 pesos
per head for Tour A if you take the Kayak with you. These island
hopping tours come with free
lunch as well (pork barbecue, grilled fish, mixed veggies, rice).
·
Note that in El Nido, you can rent a private
boat with lunch for a whole day for only about 4,000 pesos.
·
Note that we bought 2 deal grocer coupons and
the resort saved on both manpower and boat because we only took one boat.
V. Rooms
·
Very small rooms with poor amenities. We can’t complain as we have been forewarned
by the resort manager that it’s a “modest” resort.
·
One issue we had though was the fact that the
extra person will have to sleep on a mattress that’s only laid on the
floor. Each bed in the resort is
equipped with mosquito nets for good reason.
The extra bed will not have a mosquito net. How can they oversee this need?
·
In addition, the rooms are so small that when
you lay out the extra bed on the floor it will either block the doorway or the
path going to the toilet already. It’s
not a very good situation to be in.
·
Shampoo and conditioner offered are mere L’Oreal
sachets. In most rooms, only one set was
placed even though they knew 2 people were staying in the room. We had to ask for extra.
VI. Other
Concerns
·
Insistent prodding from the resort staff
requesting that we check out early the next day. First it was Let-let, a resort staff, who
approached me after dinner the night before to inquire what time we planned to
leave the next day. When I informed her
that we didn’t plan to leave until 11am she advised that we should leave
earlier. She informed me that the vans
will be waiting as early as 8am.
·
On the day of our check out, another staff
approaches one of my companions asking her if we could leave earlier like say
around 10am. She said the staff advised
that we leave earlier so that we can drive in convoy with the other van carrying
a different group of guests. This was
supposedly for safety reasons. When in
fact, I believe it would have been safer to leave at a later time to allow the
roads to dry out a bit because it rained heavily around 6am during that day. Besides, the other guests were passing by
Long Beach. An attraction we already
have been to and are no longer interested in.
·
At around 10:30am, just about when we finished
eating breakfast, the resort’s electricity shuts down. The resort manager informed us that there was
a black out. We were beginning to feel
unwelcomed.
·
A Korean contingent was checking in that
day. Could they be the reason for all
the rush?
·
We finish packing and finally board the van that
was to take us to Puerto Princesa. It
was in the resort since 8 am. When we
boarded the van, we couldn’t understand why the driver wouldn’t still
drive. As it turned out, the air conditioning
was busted. He informed us that it was
busted and that we should open the windows on our way to Puerto Princesa. What?
There was nobody from the resort at the parking area to attend to
us.
·
This was when I had to go back inside the resort
to look for the manager and ask for a new van.
Nobody checked the air conditioning all the time the van was parked in
the resort.
·
After a
few calls, the resort manager informed us that a replacement van would be
coming in 5 to 10 minutes. At this time,
the resort manager is already passing on the blame to the van company.
·
A man arrives on board a motorcycle. I thought he was a mechanic. It turns out he has planning to hitch a ride
back to Puerto Princesa with our van.
What?
·
The replacement van doesn’t arrive until 45
minutes later.
·
But before the replacement van arrived, I make a
passing remark asking Sharon to turn the electricity back on. By some miracle, the electricity turns back
on and we were allowed to wait inside our rooms with the air conditioning
on. Could it be that there was no black
out after all? It certainly looked that way.
·
The replacement van that arrived was from a
different van company. It was from Fort
Wally, a van service known to transport passengers publicly. It was
stinky and dirty. Dried mud were present not only on the floor
but on the seat covers as well. The
windshield mirror had a crack on it.
·
Due to the delay in van arrival, we lost the
time to stop somewhere and leisurely take our lunch. We had to do everything in a rush.
·
Furthermore, upon arrival at the airport, to our
embarrassment, the van driver asked us for the payment. Apparently, they weren’t informed on who
would be paying them.
VII.
Conclusion
The lack of intent to provide what was
promised as a unique “Survivor experience” was very obvious from day one. The resort’s idea of a Survivor experience
was to organizing a few games together with an island hopping experience. Except for the tribal council structure which
we just visited, there were no banners, no set ups to contribute in providing a
Survivor ambiance.
If what we got was all that was intended
by the resort for the deal, then the deal is grossly overpriced. We could have gone on our own without buying
Deal Grocer coupons and it would have costs us less or probably just about the
same amount. We chose the resort for the
single reason to be able to experience the Survivor getaway that is currently
being offered only by Capari Resort. If
we simply wanted to go island hopping and snorkelling, we would have chosen a
different destination.
We have been to
all kinds of resorts from all over the Philippines (from Davao all the way to
Batanes). If it were only for the inconveniences,
we would have been able to get over them in just a few hours. We
encounter inconveniences on every single trip. We've learned to accept
them. It is the lies, the deceit, and the lack of intent to provide that
bothers us most.
Unless you're a big group, tourists need not worry about booking a tour ahead. As soon as you get into town, there are quite a number of stalls offering tours and these stalls offers fairly the same itinerary at the same price. Pricing is practically regulated for tourists' convenience. For us, we opted to book through the hotel, I would assume, the hotel knows the service provider better. Booking through the hotel offer pretty much the same service and rate and they will take care of logistics and the bill is usually charged to the room whether it is a private tour or not.
