Hotel Review: Acacia Hotel

I have never made a review on a place before, but I will nonetheless do this one because I had a great experience. I do not know if the fact that I will be leaving my family in the next couple of days has got to do with this. The past few weeks have been hectic for me and it seemed that this was the time when I really got the time to relax and bond with my family.

With Dad and Jeriel

Last Thursday, my family got to avail our free stay at Acacia Hotel located at Alabang. We got to use two rooms for an overnight stay. For a guy who wanted to rest (my despedida the previous night ended at 3 AM), bond with his family, and buy stuff for his relocation preparations, all I can say is…

…wait for it…

Read the rest of this writeup to find out!

Acacia Hotel is found at the heart of Alabang, this five-star hotel is very accessible to a lot of places in the South. If you live in Ayala Alabang and you have balikbayan relatives, you can have them stay at this place. A grocery is just downstairs and it has good restaurants nearby like Army Navy, Hap Chan and North Park. And of course, Acacia Hotel is five to ten minutes away from Alabang Town Center. I got to buy last minute shopping for my travel because of this. It is always awesome any time you can hit two birds with one stone.

View from the hallway

I know that there are fewer corporate buildings down south (thus making Acacia’s location less favorable for foreign investors who work in Makati). However, Acacia Hotel is great for those who want a different setup – you get to feel more relaxed because it does not have the hectic atmosphere of Makati and Ortigas. If Makati is the Philippines’ New York City, Alabang is more of a Los Angeles with the “sunny mood” the place brings.

The people in the place are very accommodating. They do not annoy you with stressful security questions. They just do the

Acacia boasts of a very good bathroom

welcome right by being there when you need them and by not overdoing it. When my TV did not have ABS-CBN, their electrical guy arrived quickly. When I asked for a bubble bath, they provided me with not just one, but two liquid soaps. I had a hotel experience then when they did not even provide me a single soap for my daily supply. The maintenance people are also trustworthy because my laptop was not stolen during the “surprise maintenance” they did. I was surprised that they cleaned the bathroom even if only a few tissue papers were just used. They also leave a “welcome” cake behind.

Acacia Hotel also provides complimentary mineral water. I hate it when hotels charge you extreme prices for just a mineral water bottle. Good thing, Acacia offers them. I also appreciated the fact that they provided us a newspaper at our doorstep. I know these are just minor but these minor things make a hotel stand out to me.

King-sized bed + Sunlight = Awesome

The deluxe room that we used was small but it was impressively spacious. I suddenly realized that there is no need to have a larger room because the room that we had was already spacious enough. We even have a king-sized bed and its pillows are very soft. And yes, I jumped on the bed during the first time I saw it. The airconditioning unit runs smoothly and efficiently that you won’t notice the heat of the sun even if our room was facing the west and I slept smoothly at night (I am sensitive to a very cold environment because I find it hard to sleep due to respiratory concerns during December in our house – which does not even have airconditioning).

The TV in Acacia Hotel is a 32-inch Samsung HD TV and it has cable. So far, I like it except for the fact that it did not have BTV. Acacia Hotel offers unlimited wi-fi. Each room also has a flat iron in case you want to iron your clothes.

View from the lobby

In the bathroom area, they were able to fit a bath tub and a sleek-looking shower room. And yes, the shower room is not in the tub area so you won’t get annoyed that you have to step in a bath tub to take the shower. However, if you want shower while you are bathing at the tub, it is still possible as there is also a shower cap there. If you like using the bath tub (and having a bubble bath) in a hotel, you may notice that there is no bubble bath available. However, I tested ½ of the shower gel and it still had the effect of the bubble bath soap. No worries for the bubble bath hotel people. If there is something missing in the bathroom, it would be the bidet.

Overlooking view from the third floor

As for the eating place, the hotel boasts of a classy restaurant situated at the lobby and the second floor. If you are in the South and you want tasty hotel food without checking in, you can eat at Acacia Hotel. It is a bit pricey, but if you want elegant ambience for your special occasion, it is also worth it. Speaking of elegant ambience, the hotel boasts of a ballroom that can house 300 people. When we arrived at the hotel, we noticed that it was used as a wedding reception. I am not sure if the ballroom was used, but the place looks gorgeous enough for a wedding reception. Acacia Hotel also has a good overlooking area (in the third floor) if you want to see Alabang while feeling the breeze.

All in all, Acacia Hotel is a great place for relaxation. The amenities are great and the people are very accommodating. What it lacks is just minor and can easily be improved on (i.e., the swimming pool might be useable some time soon).

I think I already have a wedding reception. All I need to find is my bride. :p

If I were to rate Acacia Hotel, I would give it a ten to start great this new year. I probably had the best hotel service experience I have ever had. There may be minor concerns but there is no such thing as a perfect hotel. I hope it continues to provide great service in years to come.

Happy New Year!