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About
4.5
#3 of 50 small hotels in Puerto Galera
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Value
Sitting on a hillside overlooking the sea and with breathtaking views of Mt. Malasimbo and the surrounding peaks, Tribal Hills offers the best of all worlds. Close to Aninuan and Talipanan beaches, breathtaking mountain and sea views and a short distance from the nightlife at White Beach. With our own beautiful swimming pool, excellent food and free shuttle to local attractions we are a family friendly resort. Come visit us at Tribal Hills!
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Mid-range
Romantic
Languages Spoken
English, Filipino
Location
Baragay Aninuan, Puerto Galera, Mindoro 5203 Philippines
Tribal Hills Mountain Resort
122 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
Our son & his wife stayed here 3 years ago & enjoyed it so much that it was his ambition to return with his dad & me because he thought we’d love it. How well he knows us, we adored it. It’s an adventure at first being picked up from the Main Street & being transported up the steep road to the hotel but once up there - WOW. Beautiful views of the mountains & sea. Check in was easy. We had 2 adjacent rooms on the lowest level & these were clean, & basic but fine. No fridge but we didn’t really need one as we could get cold water as required. Maybe a kettle & a couple of mugs could be available as I like an early morning warm drink. We had breakfast & some lunches in the restaurant. The food was excellent & reasonably priced. The swimming pool was clean & pleasant. Of course a good hotel must rely on its staff who were all courteous, friendly & helpful. The driver was always available to take us to White Beach & quick to collect us on an evening. Thank you all.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I first visited Tribal Hills with my family in December 2016 and was so blown away by the tranquility, beauty and level of service that we longed to return when we next visited Puerta Galera. 7 years later my family and I returned to the resort and were delighted to find that it was just as beautiful as we remembered. I Highly recommend this resort if you're looking for breath taking views, relaxation and good service.
We will definitely be returning the next we are in the Philippines.
Thanks, Tribal Hills!!
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Date of stay: December 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
While looking for a place where we could spend our second year anniversary, I came across Metro Deal's website. They were selling vouchers for a 3D/2N stay at Tribal Hills Mountain Resorts and it was only for P3,499! ( Well, I don't suggest purchasing a voucher from Metro Deal I think some group buying companies are also tied up with Tribal Hills). If you're someone who enjoys quality time with your loved ones well, this is the perfect place for you! This resort is located on top of the mountain so you get to see different views. The food was good and the serving was pretty generous (well except for the free breakfasts). They also provide free shuttle service so you won't have to pay P100 for a trike! :)
Plus, they have EXCELLENT customer service.
It wasn't my first time to visit Puerto Galera but Tribal Hills Mountain is truly a taste of heaven.:) We're definitely coming back!
Visit their Website: http://tribalhills.com/
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Date of stay: October 2011
Value
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Location
Cleanliness
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Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:It's true! Their standard room is probably the biggest standard room you'll ever see -...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My stay in this hotel is a so-so experience. It lived up to its claim as having the largest standard rooms you'll ever see. However, that's all there is to it. To our disappointment, the 140 m2 roof deck their site is boasting of is still under construction! Also, the view is not that breathtaking since the hotel rooms are facing the mountains and not the beach. The location is very far from the White Beach and the way to the hotel is verrrrry steep. It is really perfect if you want to get isolated from the hustle-and-bustle of life and you just want to be in your room your whole stay. The free breakfast is not that good and the food offered in the restaurant is a little expensive compared to the delicious food in White Beach.All in all, it's a nice place but doesn't give that much value for money. P.S. Their website is kind of misleading.
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Date of stay: January 2012
Value
Rooms
Location
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We have the most memorable weekend getaway (Aug. 25-27).
We have booked in advanced. I called up Tribal Hills to make sure that we are getting a legit deal. After making sure, we bought the coupon and reserved our dates.
The coupon: 3-days/2-nights in Puerto Galera at the heavenly Tribal Hills Resort Enjoy the famous white beach and relaxing music and entertainment Situated on a hilltop 60m above sea level with breathtaking panoramic views on Mt. Malasimbo and the surrounding peaks Spacious air-conditioned rooms with big, comfortable beds Free WiFi internet within the resort Daily luxury breakfast Inclusive of 10% discount on food, local beers and spirits at Treetops Restaurant Use of swimming pool included Includes guided trek to Aninuan Falls Roundtrip transfers from the pier
Upon arrival at Puerto Galera muelle, we expect a Tribal Hills resort shuttle service to be there to fetch us. However, we were told that they will get us from White Beach.
We saw the road up the resort and it was very steep. Steeper than the grotto in Baguio. Some of us were riding at the back of the pick up and there was nothing to hold on at the back of the pick up if not for the spaces between the back of the seat.
At the front desk, the house rules were explained rather hurriedly and impatiently by the receptionist. She repeated at least 3x that we should have our lunch at their restaurant. Php 240 for an order of adobo. Less 10%? I would rather eat out.
Now, the check in time is 2pm. We got there earlier and they did not prepare the room ahead of time. One guest was irritated already and the receptionist was answering her back, also raising her voice at the guest. Seriously?!
Remember how the check in time was 2pm? Shuttle service to the beach was 1:50 and we can only avail it after we checked in. I don't see the logic. However, there's a consolation. They will bring you downhill for free and the rest is up to you. Php20/pax for a tricycle going to the beach. You really have to ride. And it is indicated in their website that: It sits on a hilltop 60m above sea level but still only a few minutes walk to the beach.
I would say that the rooms are okay. The bathroom has only one drain - in the shower area. Then we were told not to wet the other area since there's no drain. However, it is impossible because the partition is small and there is no shower curtain. One guest complained about it and she was told by one of the owners that perhaps she doesn't know how to use the shower. Neat, eh?
Luxury breakfast - I doubt I'd describe it as such. It's a simple breakfast.
Free wifi if it reaches your room.
Everything was great during the second night because of the performers at Hiyas Bar. It covered up our irritation from the previous day.
The day before we're about to check out. we asked the owner for clarification if we are still going to get a free ride to the muelle (free bec we've already paid) and he said yes. On the day that we are about to leave, we are in for another surprise. There's no free ride bec according to the driver, they don't bring guests to the muelle. Then when we arrived at the muelle, we saw other guests from the same resort getting a free ride.
To summarize, we appreciate the rooms, the pool, the jacuzzi use, and the free breakfast. However, the service we got was very lousy. Their website can also be misleading.
No more repeat for us at Tribal Hills.
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Date of stay: August 2012
Value
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Location
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Trip type: Travelled with friends
Room Tip:Find some place else. There are plenty of other accommodations near the beach front.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ManilaChief, Owner at Tribal Hills Mountain Resort
Responded Sep 16, 2012
Here at Tribal Hills we exert every effort to ensure that our guests will find their visit relaxing and restful. It is with some regret therefore that we discover that your group apparently did not enjoy their stay. However we do find some of the observations in the review inaccurate and slightly odd. For example you state that you' expected to be picked up at Muelle in Puerto Galera town'. We send a confirmation of booking to all of our guests, yours was sent to, and received at, your email address. This contains all of the information about your stay including that the point of collection / drop off for transfers will be White Beach. We will be happy to forward this to you again should you wish. You refer to the steepness of our approach road and compare it to another in Baguio. We are not able to comment on the accuracy of the comparison but can assure you that, while the road is indeed steep (we are after all a Mountain Resort as our name suggests) we do provide a rugged 4 x 4 vehicle to ensure the safety of our guests and that many find it particularly enjoyable, likening it to a roller coaster ride . You make several references to your perception of the treatment offered to other guests not in your party. We consider this inappropriate as this is a forum for comment on your own stay. We can assure you however, that with only one or two notable exceptions, our guests are more than happy with their stay. You make observations on the check in and shuttle service timings. Both check in time and a detailed timetable for the free shuttle service are posted on our web site and therefore were available to you before you booked? You say that you arrived early and were cross because the room was not ready. Please forgive our bafflement at this observation, the room was cleaned and ready for you by 2.00 pm as arranged. Your statement that our website being 'misleading' without offering any substantiation for that statement is quite improper. We take great care to ensure that the website is informative and accurate. If you can point to any specific inaccuracies we will of course correct them.
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I was the one with Larissa party. In our group, I was the only one who had already gone to the island.
* First of all, we just came from a very rocky boat trip from Batangas pier so excuse us from being cranky. As our voucher has stated that the trip includes roundtrip transfers from the pier. The last time I was in Puerto Galera was when we still had to land on white beach itself. We were brought to the bottom of the resort's driveway by the boat service shuttle. We were also brought from the resort to white beach when we were ready to leave. IF this is the case, the resort should have clearly stated that pick-up and delivery point is white beach itself (Voucher: ROUNDTRIP TRANSFERS FROM THE PIER).
When will you get around to editing that most important line? there are less than 500 words for the entire highlights section. For those people who hate having to go through transfers, THIS will be a deal breaker.
* The steepness of the road approach. Yes they did provide a vehicle to bring us up and down the driveway.
But what they failed to inform you buyers is that there is a time cut off of 10PM. So if we stayed out late, we run the risk of being stranded at the bottom of the driveway. In daylight that road is considered as a difficult trek, what more at night. If we did not bring flashlights, what are we expected to do. The driveway also has some blind spots so in case we are attempting to go up and down that same driveway, we run the risk of being hit by a vehicle.
* The incident with another party I ignored. But the treatment while others in our party was swimming was another matter. A FEMALE STAFF was loudly stating while a friend and I was on our way to the pool "Kaya nga tribal hills kasi nasa hills" with a pointed reference to our group. I was not expecting to hear this type of comments from members of the staff to a group inquiring about the resort. This is aside from the comments made by the vehicle driver when we were on our way to white beach to leave. I have very keen hearing.
* Shuttle service schedules. The shuttle schedules was very inconvenient, we had to wait for 2pm to check in to the room, before we can avail of the shuttle service. Then the shuttle service to white beach was at 1:50pm. Do the math.
* Misleading website. the luxurious breakfast was Longanisa meal: 1 pc egg, 1 cup rice, 1 small tocino around roughly 1 x 3 inches, coffee. And hot water from the thermos that has a slight film floating on top when poured on the cup. I already went to another resort in another province just a month before this trip. Their breakfast also included tea, juice, unlimited coffee and a bigger longanisa meal since there were 2 pieces instead of one.
Other comments: * breaktaking panoramic view of Mt. Malasimbo and surrounding peaks. This is am not impressed. I had already gone to Bicol four times to view the mountain and that is classified as breathtaking. The view of the beach was too far away. If you squint and crane your body just right at the reception area, you might just be able to see the view. * Air-conditioned rooms, the aircon in room 5 was only at a comfortable level and it had a bad habit of conking out. Pillow was too flat, this agravated a back problem. * free WIFI within the resort. This is if you can find the exact spot where the signal is stronger. Even if you are outside the walls of your room. Good thing we brought our own. * Guided trek to Aninuan Falls. We did not avail of this offer.
The whole point of going to Puerto Galera is to enjoy the beach. If I wanted to do some swimming, there are nearer alternatives rather than going there. Cleaner too (I admit my skin is very sensitive to pool water).
Thinking about the resort experience made me decide to not go back within the next five years.
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Date of stay: August 2012
Value
Rooms
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Cleanliness
Service
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Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My girl friend and I have been return guests. Last December we had stayed at Tribal Hills for three nights, this time we booked three nights, again, looking forward to a quiet, relaxing stay at Tribal Hills.
The resort is close to the beaches, but on a steep slope, so transportation to and from the resort to the beaches is crucial. Although the resort offers 3 round trips a day, the service never really worked without problems and waiting and we did have a serious, quite intimidating experience with locals harassing us during a pick up at 10 pm at White beach one day. The regular shuttle arrived 1 hour late.
We tried the restaurant the very first night, waited 1 and 1/2 hours for our food, which was very average this time, and were presented a bill that was 20% higher than the prices advertised in the menu. After that we only had our free breakfasts there.
We spent several hours by the pool, but not once the staff at the pool bar was present to serve us drinks or turn on the Jaccuzzi etc. Staff seemed pretty busy to entertain themselves and the management obviously did not mind that. The music that was playing at the pool to entertain the staff playing billiards was so loud, that swimming was not very relaxing, either.
All in all, we were so disappointed that we will try another place next time.
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Date of stay: June 2014
Value
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Location
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:The Deluxe Rooms are not worth the extra money because the balconies are all open and there's...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stayed here with friends. We booked 5 rooms. We we're assisted by Tribal Hills from the time we arrived at the port, up to the day we checked out and back to the port. Throughout our stay, they've prepared all our tasty meals and even planned our activities. Gotta love that service! I hope all resorts are like that.They even offered a picnic activity for us on the next time we book here. The mountain view from our veranda is breathtaking. The rooms our spacious and clean. We like the ambience. but on the low note, if you're not a thrill-seeker, you might have a problem on the ride going up and down to the resort. it's really steep! like 60 degree angle steep! this was not a problem for us, in fact we enjoyed the ride. But if it's not for you, then just close your eyes, and you'll be fine. other than that, the place is perfect.
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Date of stay: November 2016Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from ManilaChief, Owner at Tribal Hills Mountain Resort
Responded Apr 30, 2017
Thanks to you guys for your kind words for Tribal Hills. Perhaps just to enlighten potential guests the steepest part of the road is only 22 degrees (there are actually public roads in the US and Europe that steep). We recognise that our road is a tough walk which is why we provide the complimentary shuttle service. There are steps on the side of the road for anyone who does like to walk however and surprisingly quite a few guests do. Think of it as a 'stairway to heaven!'.
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When my friends and I went to the resort, we were warmly greeted by the staff. Checking in went very smoothly and all the staff are very friendly and accommodating. They are always visible to ask for any assistance. We had the privilege of meeting the owners Owen & Tita Maying who are both very humble and warm and friendly. Tita Maying even invited us to her house and we had a house tour. She is an amazing and fantastic woman! I got to observe how she manages and how she takes care of all her staff. Very impressive! No wonder that each employee is very loyal to her and speaks highly of her. Staff are very trustworthy, all our needs and request were met and we had no problem at all with the security of our things. Worth coming-back here for sure! (See you soon guys..)Hats-off to you guys! Keep up the good work :)
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Date of stay: November 2012
Value
Rooms
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Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I stayed here with my friend on a weekday this December. I am hoping it is off season during the days we were there. Why? So it can explain the lack of professionalism of the workers.
Room itself is big for 2pax. Even if you add another adult in the room, it is still big. I hope they can add electric kettle in the room. I always drink hot water in the middle of the night, and I can't ask the restuarant for that in the middle of the night.The restaurant closes at 8pm. Toilet is clean, no bidet though. I would suggest to add another hook at the back of the door so people can hang their clothes. There is only one towel rack.
Restaurant needs a lot of improvement. When I had my lunch on their restaurant, the waiter-and-cook-in-one guy reminded me twice (before and after eating) about the activities I can do in Puerto Galera. Reminded me of a tout. If someone is interested in the activities, they would ask the front desk, not someone from the restaurant. Chicken afritada was very salty, seems like they used instant seasoning only. Same with stir fry veggies. My friend wasn't feeling well, so we ordeted chicken noodle soup for her. This is definitely the Knorr instant chicken noodle. I always buy this in the grocery, so I am sure what it tasted like. It costs 40pesos in grocery but they sell for 159. They just added a piece of egg and a few cabbage. The pizza we had for dinner was probably the worst pizza i have ever tasted. The food itself is okay. but it is not how a pizza should taste like. It seems like they put all the ingredients in a hawaiian pizza and put it on a big round dough. When we had our breakfast during our 2nd day, we went to the restaurant and asked the staff if it can be served to us on the pool area. They said yes, but one of the girl staff looked like she didn't want to do it. I don't know if she was just forced to say yes or she just looked sleepy. We finished our breakfast at 9am and left our plates there on the table near the pool area. We went out during the day and came back around 3pm. Much to our surprise, the plates were still there! We went to sleep and around 5pm, the plates were gone.
On our last day, I was reading a book outside our room. I smelled the smell of the cigarette. I saw the employee smoking while mopping the floor! I was really surprised because it is very unprofessional & unsanitary! Worst of all, the wind direction is going in the rooms. So just imagine if I didn't open the aircon in my room and just opted to open the window for fresh air instead! It wouldn't be fresh air that I would be inhaling but the cigarette smoke of the resort's employee!
I honestly wondered if the management knows about what their staff is doing during off peak season. I hope the management trains the staff properly.
Pocket wifi was provided for free. Unfortunately, it wasn't working (we confirmed it wasn't working on our last day already). We didn't inform them earlier since we realized the internet in puerto galera isn't really that fast.
Front desk is very helpful. They reserved our boat ticket back to Batangas on our behalf.
Will I come back? Yes. If the staff improves, good. If not, I'll just ignore them and post a sign outside my room door stating "Please don't smoke near my room. Thanks!" I won't make the same mistake of eating in their restaurant again. They have free shuttle to white beach, I can easily eat somewhere that is cheaper and has more delicious food.
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Date of stay: December 2016Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
down the hill there is sari sari store... its like less than 300m but the trick its a hill.. so imagine like steping 300 steps down the hill its near.. you may ask assistance going down the hill. staff here are nice.. or before u go to hotel buy anything u need.
Hi Christopher,
We can confirm that all rooms are air conditioned with modern split type units. Our Penthouse Suite actually has two air conditioners, one in the lounge area and a second in the bedroom.
please take a few minutes to browse our website where you will find a host of information about the resort and our activities as well many pictures.
Among our activities we have a small archery range, ATVs for rent as well as a wonderful swimming pool. You can see them all at the website.
Best regards,
Tribal Hills
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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