CEBU'S FINEST: MOVENPICK HOTEL CEBU

             People are often surprised when I tell them that I grew up in the beautiful city of Cebu. Their reaction is usually, "Sa Cebu ka lumaki?" (You grew up in Cebu?). I always reply with "Sa Cebu ako HINDI lumaki" (Cebu is where I didn't grow). 

          Perhaps the main perk of living in Cebu (apart from the wonderful, affordable food), is the beach just being around 30 mins away, MAX. I should know. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this, but my family's business in Cebu, was a beach resort. As you can imagine, it was pretty awesome having a beach to go to at a moment's notice, whenever your heart desires. As wonderful as it was, this meant that throughout my entire life, I wasn't really able to explore the other resorts and hotels of Cebu. 

        So when I got the opportunity to visit Movenpick Resort and Spa, in Cebu, I jumped at the chance! Better late than never, right?

        Together with a few of my blogger friends, Movenpick flew us to Cebu, to give us a taste of the Swiss hospitality and service that Movenpick has garnered international acclaim for. 

           You know how other hotels picks their guests up in Vans or Shuttle Buses? Well, where's the fun in that right? Movenpick picked us up in this sweet, pimped up Jeepney/Limosine (Jeepneysine?)! 

          From the onset, Movenpick makes sure that you're experience with them is a memorable one!

          The lobby of Movenpick is a place where you can imagine lounging around in throughout the entire afternoon with a good book. Of course, you'd be missing out on the amazing facilities if you didn't roam around the hotel, but that's how relaxing it is. It's nice and breezy, with extremely comfortable furniture that knocked our driver out cold within seconds of him sitting on it. On the whole, it's got a great, vibrant, youthful vibe, but at the same time, comforting enough to make you feel right at home. 

                   With a slight delay in our flight, we got to the hotel roughly at around 3pm.. which meant we were right in time for CHOCOLATE HOUR!! Every 3pm, a man walks around giving out free Profiteroles to guests of Movenpick! This has been a tradition in all Movenpick hotels across the world. 

          I stalked the Chocolate man, Jeco, every day I was there. We became so close I think I'm gonna be Godfather to his next baby. 

       To this very day, I have dreams about those delicious, Chocolate Ganache-topped, cream-filled drops of heaven!

        When our Godfather Spanky asked to use the restroom, our host, Laurie, said, "Oh you're going to love our bathroom!". Apparently, it wasn't just because it was co-ed (Although that tidbit alone was worthy of some love from Spanky as well). It's because the bathroom looks so futuristic, I was half expecting to see Dr. Spock taking a whiz in the urinal!

             The cubicles are all around, and properly labeled if its for men or women's use, but at the center are the sinks that look like fountains. When you place your hands in the center, water immediately shoots down.. pretty cool stuff! Let's just say I made it a point to wash my hands every time I was in the lobby hehe

      Movenpick's Pool is what rap videos are made of. I was imagining a shirtless rapper with gold chains around his neck rapping about "shortys" & "hoes", as half naked women in bikinis gyrated their abundant posteriors to the beat of the booming bass. 

          Back in reality though, the pool is a majestic sight to behold, even sans gyrating posteriors. What I enjoyed the most about it was the lounge chairs that are partially submerged in the shallow area. perfect place to hangout on a cool afternoon.

               Shared a dip in the pool with Tales From the Tummy, Travelogues by Matet, Babe For Food, and Hefty Foodie.

        The recreation room has a billiards table, an Xbox Station, and a foosball table!        

              The Forum, offers guests a nice sanctuary.. It's a laid back cigar lounge, and the tranquil ambiance really appealed to me. They have a vast selection of drinks, including some international whiskeys. 

           Though Mactan island, in actuality, is a giant piece of rock, Cebu has always been synonymous with the beach. The man made cove of Movenpick is stunning, with several beach chairs set up so you can spend a relaxing afternoon facing the sea. 

         Me, together with fellow bloggers Between Bites, Tales From the Tummy, and Hefty Foodie, we hopped on a boat to try some of the water sports that Movenpick has to offer. 

         This was my first time to go Parasailing, and Jane, who had done this before, reassured me that it wasn't all that scary. 

         What she failed to mention, however, was that she wails like a banshee when she gets over 100 meters above sea level. Jane is a petite woman, but don't let her size fool you. The sounds that came from her as we slowly made our ascent to the heavens, was anything BUT "Heavenly". The decibel level of her screams were earsplitting, and I was convinced that her screeching was in actuality, the mating call for the Legendary Krakken.

            Krakken mating calls aside, this had to be one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. I am afraid of heights, which I suspect, is the main reason why I'm not tall.  But being an excellent swimmer in my heyday, I do find some comfort in knowing that if ever I should fall, it would be in the open water. 

           Our view of the shore is spectacular, not to mention mention how spellbindingly beautiful the water was from 350 Meters above the sea. Yes, 350 meters. Ms. Scream-a-lot decided that 150, the usual standard, was not enough for her, so she asked to go the highest possible, which is described by our parasail experts as "Magnum". 

          I must say, as nerve-wracking as our experience was, we felt reassured by the capable hands of our Parasail instructors, who was party of the team of Scotty Action Water Sports Network, the group that handles the water sports activities of Movenpick. Great Job Guys! 

Check em' out here: 

http://www.divescotty.com/

https://www.facebook.com/divescotty?ref=profile

          Thankfully, when I got back to shore, my hearing returned. 

         But to this very day, I wake up in the middle of the night in a sweat, with the sounds of that blood curdling shriek still ringing in my ears.  

          One of the main attractions of Movenpick, is the Ibiza Beach Club. Much like its namesake island in the Mediterranean Sea, Ibiza Beach Club is PARTY CENTRAL. The place gets WILD at night (But more on that in another post)!

          Trapoline like day beds are lined up on the side, and is perfect for sunbathing or just plain old, lounging around. 

         Proving that its an unconventional night club, Ibiza Beach Club also has a Hot Tub available! A Hut Tub. In a BEACH club. GENIUS. (More of the night time shots in another post)

THE ROOMS

             I stayed at the room of Movenpick, which was absolutely perfect for me. It had pretty much everything I look for in a hotel room. A huge, King sized bed, flat screen TV, Wifi Connection and a desk for blogging. I loved the vibrant, yet soothing tones of the room. It managed to invoke a relaxing vibe, without losing the playfulness that the Hotel is known for. 

                     The Glass door shower was quite spacious and.. umm.. Made me miss Rina. No reason. Hehe..

            As did the bathtub. But good thing I had little Nemo to keep me company so So I could play with him in the tub. Umm.. I was talking about the little fish, you weirdo. 

         Rina was fuming mad when I showed her this picture. She said I should have put the toiletries straight into my bag for her, and had sachets of Head and Shoulders bought instead for me to use! 

Other available rooms are:

           The gorgeous One Bed Room Suite. (Living Room)

One Bed Room Suite. (Bedroom)

The Shower. This also made me think of Rina.

 Until I saw the reflection on Hefty Foodie in the mirror right beside it. 

The Ocean View Room looks quite identical to my Deluxe room

 However, the main difference is, the balcony 

has a breathtaking view of the beach.

(The First Photo was taken from the Balcony!)

For those big time ballers, you may opt to check in to the

 Two Bedroom Suite of Movenpick! 

It has a spacious living room. 

Beautiful Guest Room

And luxurious Master's bedroom!

            To my recollection, this was the first time that I had ever slept in another beach resort, other than the one that my family used to own. Now that our beach resort is no longer operational, I need to look for a new home whenever I visit Cebu. 

          I think I may have just found it.  

          I'm going to be sharing with you our amazing dining experiences from Movenpick, including their legendary Churrasco dinner, Asian Fusion lunch, and Spanish Tapas!

But wait.. There's more!!!!!

Well, well, well....

What do we have here??

SOON.

Something HUGE is going to happen soon, so I strongly suggest you like the following facebook accounts:

https://www.facebook.com/moevenpickhotelmactanislandcebu

https://www.facebook.com/IbizaBeachClubCebu

And Twitter:

@moevenpickcebu

@IbizaBClub_Cebu