From the bath tub to the bed
BY DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ

Liking a hotel or resort because the window beside the bath tub allows you to jump straight to the queen-size bed may sound strange but that’s exactly one of the things that make staying at Boracay Garden Resort unforgettable.

Those who have stayed at the resort actually reminisce about diving from that window to the bed and look forward to doing it again. The premiere rooms are huge and can accommodate an extra bed easily so they’re perfect for families.

The closet is not built-in and looks like an antique armoire. Most of the furniture is made for a big house and not really for a resort but it gives the room personality and makes it more charming.
Each room has a terrace with the premiere suites having direct access to the pools. Other amenities include the bath tub with a separate shower area, individually controlled air conditioning, direct dial phone, cable television and Wi-Fi access, in-room safe, coffee and tea-making facilities and personal refrigerator.
The 201-room hotel, acquired by Hennan Hotel Management which owns and operates Boracay Regency Group of Hotels, from its former Korean owner, has a Triple A rating, which is the highest for the resort category in the country. It is located in a two-hectare property at Station 2 with the world-famous Boracay White Beach just walking distance away as there is a private pathway that leads you directly to the beach.
If the beach is not your cup of tea, Boracay Garden Resort has a mini-Olympic size pool and a sunken pool bar. Or you could just take a walk on the grounds. This is not the typical beach resort that’s crowded and congested. In fact, even with an occupancy rate of about 80 percent, you hardly see most of the guests.
Hennan Hotel Management Henry Chusuey shares that he did not plan to buy the property but when it was offered to him, he realized it would be a good acquisition.
“There are no longer such areas available in such a prime location on the island. Every area is buildable,” he says.
Chusuey reveals that the occupancy rate since he bought the hotel has been in the high 80s or low 90s.
“We’ve had to turn down guests sometimes,” he adds.
The resort has since been through a major renovation and upgrading in stages. Construction is underway for a convention center, restaurant, koi pond and garden.
For Christmas, Boracay Garden Resort offers a promo package for P7,097 per person. Based on triple sharing, the package is inclusive of four days accommodation, daily breakfast and dinner and round-trip transfers.
Boracay Garden Resort has also prepared games and activities for families who will be holding reunions there in December.
Mario Gatmaitan, Boracay Garden’s food and beverage manager, says they have prepared a special Filipino noche Buena for guests who will be spending Christmas away from home.
Among the dishes that will be prepared by executive chef Patrick Obia are traditional holiday dishes like rellenong bangus, arroz Valenciana, chicken and pork adobo, chicken embutido, sweet ham, chicken galantina, morcon, kare-kare and lumpiang ubod.

There will also be side dishes like green mangoes and bagoong. Desserts include brazo de Mercedes, buko pandan salad, mango crepe flambé and crème brulee in ginger and cinnamon flavors.
Included in the holiday menu are popular drinks such as hot chocolate, peppermint tea, salabat, ginumis and buko pandan.
Obia, a Bicolano who worked in hotels in the Middle East and China, has also created a new menu that includes papaitan, pancit Molo, rellenong alimango, sinigang na ulo ng maya-maya, lechon kawali, chicken inasal, dinengdeng, sugpo sa aligue and many others.
Continental dishes include Obia’s take on surf and turf—grilled tiger prawns and beef tenderloin wrapped in crispy pork bacon served with a mushroom risotto, flowerets of vegetables and an emulsion of Burgundy wine jus.

There is a delicious duo of scallops and salmon served with pancakes, sour cream and Ponzu emulsion over a bed of mixed greens and cherry tomatoes.
For breakfast, the offerings include tapa, tocino, a selection of steamed and fried rice, an egg station, fish, kimchi and Boracay Garden’s famous arroz caldo. On the side, one can add boiled eggs, green onions and crispy garlic to the delicious broth with rice and chicken.
In partnership with Boracay Garden Resort, Southeast Asian Air offers exclusive vacation packages for as low as P10,095 per person until Dec. 19. The package includes round-trip airfare to Caticlan, hotel accommodation for three days and two nights with breakfast and round-trip land and sea transfers via Caticlan. Until the end of the year, SEAIR offers promo fares starting at P62.50++.