Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay

good view and good service

Overall a disappointing stay with Crimson. It started off bad and really never improved sadly. Our flight into Caticlan was delayed 5 hours, arriving at 19:30. I was in communication with Crimson throughout the delay updating them on our progress and estimated arrival time. They had warned me that they don’t organise transfers after 8pm. However, upon arrival they had left us to transit to the hotel via a third party provider. This provider was fine, and did their job, but it was a transfer that involved stopping at 3 other hotels - very much not the private 5 star experience we had been promised, taking 1 hour and a half. The fact they did not wait until 8pm, when other resorts were prepared and waiting, was a big disappointment. The transfer was eventually provided for free after our experience - which to be honest is the bare minimum. It’s insane I even had to pay for the transfer considering most 5 star hotels would provide this for free. Whilst the rooms were fine, the service was extremely disappointing throughout. Check-in took ages, and for some reason there is no aircon in anywhere outside the restaurants and rooms, so we were stuck sweating after an 8 hour journey whilst waiting the 30 minutes to check in. Additionally, every single request we made was either ignored or took ages. I had requested decorations in the room to celebrate my girlfriend’s birthday, but received nothing. I managed to get things organised whilst there, but after requesting matches to light a candle, these never arrived. Add on the fact we would have to request water multiple times before any showed up and it was all just very frustrating. We had booked a sea view room, but were unable to fully enjoy it as it was located directly in front of the infinity pool, with guests able to see directly into the privacy of our bedroom due to the lack of any noticeable tinting on the windows. The rooms were also not soundproofed, and we had to wake up early every day to the sounds of screaming children using the pool in front of our room. No amenities were on offer - no access to water bottles without requesting or paying, no access to coffee without paying, no welcome or departure drinks, no free water on the beach (which is seriously just dangerous). Crimson certainly has a 5 star beach and sea. The access to the beach is superb and the sand and sea were typically excellent, but it’s not as if Crimson has control over these things. In fact despite the environmental fee, I regularly saw some litter in the sea and on the beach. It felt very budget in the way they treat you. There are shuttles to the centre but these run almost every 3 hours and are often packed, offered on a first come first serve basis. Every little thing is charged too. For a check out at 12pm instead of 11am, it’s 2000PHP. There’s no way to charge anything to rooms to pay upon check out (like every other hotel) if you do not have a credit card. Debit cards are no good for the deposit apparently. We just stayed at Piece Lio in El Nido, which was far far far superior. It’s a real shame because Crimson does not do service to a terrific sea and stunning location. It may be the most modern 5 star hotel on the island but honestly just pay the extra and go to the Shangri-La. It’s almost as if they knew how bad it was. We weren’t even asked how our stay was upon checking out, as if they were dreading the answer. It felt like an American diner leaving, where they just wanted us out the room as quickly as possible to make space for their next cash cow. We even arrived at the airport 3 hours early for a domestic flight for some reason.