Nestled along Cabahug Street, Panagdait, Mabolo Cebu City is a relatively new but not too expensive hotel in the Queen City of the South. Citi Park Hotel is conveniently located between Cebu City proper and Mandaue City, making travel time to and fro Cebu International Airport easy.
I had the chance to stay at Citi Park Hotel Cebu during the recent electoral campaigns/sorties. I was with one of the senatorial candidates that I did PR/media relations for and we stayed for two nights at Citi Park Cebu. Here’s a look at their lobby cum lounge. I arranged for a mini press conference here with some of my Cebu media friends:

Here’s the restaurant at this hotel in Cebu City. We took our breakfast here. They serve it buffet style:

A photo of one of the hotel rooms in Citi Park Hotel after the jump.
Hello fellow Mindanawans! Planning a trip to CDO soon? Here’s a budget hotel in Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao that you might be interested in.
Lamar Inn, located at the corner of JR Borja and Velez Streets (just a few blocks away from Divisoria, the heart of the city), is a downtown hotel that offers value for money. Conveniently located at the central business district of the City of Golden Friendship and owned and operated by VIP Hotel (which is located just right across the street), Lamar Inn CDO offers reasonably priced rooms and good amenities.
They have 14 tourist type rooms (P750.00 per night), 8 business type rooms (P850.00 per night) and two suites (P1,300.00 per night).
The business type room that we stayed in recently was air conditioned, had cable television, had a telephone and a hot beverage utility set.
Hence, it was easy for us to prepare coffee even in the middle of the night and early in the morning.
Our room also had hot and cold shower and a clean bathroom. We had clean towels and two bars of soap. No free shampoo but you can easily buy sachets from the reception desk. Bottled mineral water can also be bought at the reception area, by the way.
What I also liked about the business type room was the FREE wireless internet connection! On our first night of stay in Lamar Inn Cagayan de Oro, my wi-fi capable phone caught two wifi signals – Lamar’s and CGC (I reckon this stands for Canoy Group of Companies, the owners of Lamar Inn and yes, of VIP Hotel). I just asked for the security keys from the front desk and I was browsing the web in no time.
The hotel staff members were friendly, by the way, and they made sure that they kept our luggage safe (we had to leave our things for a few hours).
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY MINDANAO – Here’s another value-for-your-money budget accommodation in Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao – Sir George Pension House. Located at corner Pabayo and Gaerlan Streets (just a few blocks away from Divisoria), Sir George Pension House Cagayan de Oro is a new player in the Mindanao hotel and lodging industry.With more and more events being held in CDO and a very business-friendly atmosphere in Northern Mindanao, this cheap hotel in Cagayan de Oro is definitely a welcome addition to Mindanao tourism especially to the tourism efforts of CDO.
Here are the room rates of Sir George Pension House CDO:

Speaking of room rates, the range of room rates of this Cagayan de Oro budget hotel was actually the first thing that caught my attention. Not bad for an inn that also offers FREE wi-fi Internet, yes? (my humble homestead in Farm Town was therefore still very much well-maintained during my 2-day stay LOL)
The room that I got was a double room. It had a small television set which had cable connection, a telephone, a refrigerator (which I absolutely liked because that meant that I could easily just buy beverage from nearby convenience stores and place them in the fridge), cabinets for my clothes, a simple vanity table which also doubled as my work desk, a chair, a comfortable double bed with clean sheets and hot and cold shower. My room did have free wi-fi Internet although the hotel management staff told me that only selected rooms have strong wi-fi access. (I guess the ones near the guest reception area) I was provided with clean, fluffy towels and a bar of soap.
My room at Sir George Pension House Cagayan de Oro City was airconditioned and clean. Even though my room was right along a relatively busy street (Pabayo Street), it wasn’t noisy at night. It also had enough space for me to move around – unlike many cramped budget inns.
The only downside about the room that I got was the very weak water pressure at the washroom. I had to request for a tabo and a timba (pail). Oddly enough, the shower was all right — there just wasn’t enough water pressure for you to flush the toilet. There also wasn’t a garbage can in the washroom (which for me is a bit necessary). The only garbage can was found at the vanity table area.
Other than these, there wasn’t anything else to complain about. The staff members were friendly. Even the security guard was helpful enough to hail a taxi for me.
By the way, you might be surprised to find that this Cagayan de Oro pension house uses a ramp (instead of stairs) from the reception desk towards the second floor. It was all right for me but for those of you who might wear heels during your stay at Sir George Pension House, just make sure that you hold on to the railings very well!
All in all — I highly recommend that you stay at Sir George Pension House Cagayan de Oro. If you’re in need of a clean, decent airconditioned room that also offers free wi-fi Internet, then check out this place…and please don’t forget to mention that you found out all about their budget inn here at Mindanaoan!
Thankies!
Here are some of the photos I took of my room in Sir George Pension House:
Are you an owner of a hotel or inn? Do you own a restaurant or any type of business? Do you provide a certain kind of service? Whether your establishment is in Mindanao or in Visayas or Luzon, Mindanaoan can write an honest review about your place or service. Let the people here in Mindanao, Philippines read all about it! Mindanaoan can even write a review about your establishment for FREE! Check this page out or contact me. Should the contact form fail, you may send an email to mindanaoan (at) gmail (dot) com
Southwinds Hotel is located along Capt. Vicente Roa Street Extension in Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao, Philippines. It is a hotel known for its very strategic location – it’s just a few meters away from Gaisano Mall Cagayan de Oro (walking distance) and a few blocks away from Robinson’s Mall Cagayan de Oro and Lim Ket Kai Mall CDO (you can just ride one of the local trisikads or padyaks for 5 pesos per person) It’s also in front of the main branch of Graphic All-In-One (a large chain of stores that sells cellular phones, cellphone accessories and the like).
Just this week, my mom, brother and I stayed in Southwinds Hotel. It was my second time to stay there, the first one was during a media tour sponsored by the Department of Agriculture a few years ago (several Mindanaoan media practitioners visited corn farms and milling areas in Baungon, Bukidnon and were briefed on hybrid corn production). My first visit was a pretty good one so I suggested that we spend our three days in Cagayan de Oro (dubbed the City of Golden Friendship) there. Plus we’ve already tried a couple of hotels in CDO and I wanted to blog about my experience this time around
Apart from its location, another thing that I like about staying in Southwinds Hotel Cagayan de Oro is the fact that its room rates are affordable. For a de luxe room, you only need to pay P1,060.00 (roughly US $25.00). Each deluxe room is good for double occupancy and get this – you also have free breakfast (good for two persons). You can choose whether you want Continental Breakfast, American Style Breakfast or Filipino Breakfast. During our stay, I opted for the Filipino Bangsilog (fried bangus fish seasoned with lots of garlic and pepper, sinangag or fried rice and itlog or egg) meal. Delish. Every breakfast meal comes with brewed or instant coffee.
Now for the room – our deluxe room had two single beds, a dresser, cable TV, cabinets and a small nook where there’s a small table and two cushioned chairs (very convenient especially if you’re on a business trip and you brought a laptop along). There’s hot and cold shower and there’s bedside control for the lights. You will only be provided with a small bar of soap and a sachet of shampoo though so it would be advisable if you could bring toiletries with you. I was also pleased to see that the room had several power outlets (sockets) – that meant that the management didn’t let their guests feel as if they were restricted or something.
One of the “distinct” features of Southwinds Hotel, by the way, is its very ample parking space for clients and guests. In fact, I think Southwinds Hotel is one of the very few remaining hotels in Cagayan de Oro that has that much parking space for guests. Hence, if you’re traveling with family and you brought your vehicle along, you won’t need to worry about safekeeping it.
The one thing that I could probably say I didn’t like during my entire 3-day stay in Southwinds Hotel is the hotel staff members’ lack of courtesy. During our check-in, for instance, one of the female receptionists that I spoke to immediately shifted her attention to another guest, leaving me unattended. That didn’t sit well with me. The other female receptionist, on the other hand, looked gloomy and indifferent and merely recited the “benefits” that come with our room – i.e. free breakfast will be served from 6 to 10 am blah blah. Not once did she and the other receptionist smile or at least looked glad that they had new guests. Also, during breakfast (on our second day there), the waitress, waiters and cooks were all busy watching HBO (”Spiderman 3″ was on and they had this huge TV at Cafe Bea, where the complimentary breakfast was served to hotel guests). So I found it uncomfortable to “interrupt” their HBO-watching session and ask for condiments because they really looked too engrossed watching the movie. The staff members were also busy, loudly chatting about the film which I found uncomfortable as well. I felt that the hotel guests should be given their “privacy” – at least a few minutes of silence during breakfast. I guess they shouldn’t have turned the TV on that day. Instead, soft music will do. Or better yet, they should’ve just switched to a news channel – I’d prefer that over Spiderman 3.
Still, I could probably still see myself staying at Southwinds Hotel Cagayan de Oro sometime soon. The room rates are reasonable, the breakfast meals are hearty and the location’s great. Let’s just hope that their staff members do better next time.
Southwinds Hotel is located along Capt. Vicente Roa Street Extension, Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao, Philippines.
Are you an owner of a hotel or inn? Do you own a restaurant or any type of business? Do you provide a certain kind of service? Whether your establishment is in Mindanao or in Visayas or Luzon, Mindanaoan can write an honest review about your place or service. Let the people here in Mindanao, Philippines read all about it! Mindanaoan can even write a review about your establishment for FREE! Check this page out or contact me. Should the contact form fail, you may send an email to mindanaoan (at) gmail (dot) com
Whenever someone asks me to recommend a good, cheap yet clean and affordable inn within downtown Davao City, I often recommend Aljem’s Inn along Rizal Street. Single occupancy is only P750.00 while double occupancy is only P875.00. If you prefer the deluxe accommodation, it’s just P975.00 and an extra mattress will only cost P300.00. Those are affordable rates, in my opinion. You have hot and cold shower in your room, cable TV, soaps, soft towels and telephone. Local calls are free of charge.
Staying at Aljem’s Inn has a couple of advantages. Guests are offered free breakfast (plated – they usually prepare Filipino almusal/breakfast like tapsilog, tosilog, cornsilog and bangsilog). Now if you’re not in the mood for Filipino fare in the morning, note that the inn is right smack within the downtown area. Step outside of Aljem’s Inn and you will be greeted with a lot of food establishments – from the Mandarin Restaurant across the street to the Jollibee and Chowking outlets just a few steps away (along Bolton Street). There’s also a Merco branch right beside Aljem’s so there’s no need for you to go far if you’re craving for the special Merco leche flan and halo halo.
If you’re a business traveler, you will also like Aljem’s Inn’s location. It’s just a few steps away from one of Davao City’s busy streets, CM Recto/Claveria. The Davao City Hall and Rizal Park are also walking distance from the inn. You can also just take a quick cab ride from the inn to People’s Park, where Kublai’s life-size sculptures may be found.
Given Aljem’s Inn’s accessibility, location and discount rates, budget accommodation in Davao City is really possible!
The inn is located at 49 Rizal St., Davao City.
Are you an owner of a hotel or inn? Do you own a restaurant or any type of business? Do you provide a certain kind of service? Whether your establishment is in Mindanao or in Visayas or Luzon, Mindanaoan can write an honest review about your place or service. Let the people here in Mindanao, Philippines read all about it! Mindanaoan can even write a review about your establishment for FREE! Check this page out or contact me. Should the contact form fail, you may send an email to mindanaoan (at) gmail (dot) com
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