Palawenya Tattler

#PWDTravels

The apartment we are renting in the city is not big enough for entertaining. I haven’t hosted a single event since we were forced to move here due to a fire hazard at the old place. Because of that, the idea of having the family over for Christmas meant a staycation somewhere big enough to comfortably house everyone.

Since #TeamEunice (me and my three now-adult kids) has done two Christmases at a hotel abroad during my firstborn’s university days, I thought it would be nice to have the rest of the family experience a fuss-free Noche Buena as well.

The nice hotels at prices I wouldn’t cringe were all in El Nido so, when my sister announced that she might not be able to come, it ruined my whole Christmas plan for everyone. As you know, I am wheelchair-borne and I ditched owning a car in 2014 because of my condition. Back then, none of the kids were old enough to get a driver’s license. I was a solo parent then, so it was just not sensible.

Looking for a place in Puerto Princesa that had what everyone would appreciate having for Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at prices we’d all consider reasonable turned out to be quite a feat. By mid-December, I settled for a nice place with a private pool; and I took care of the Noche Buena part by ordering a feast (from three different suppliers) that we will pick up on our way to where we were staying.

Nevertheless, even with everything locked in, I kept looking. On the night of the 23rd, family members based at my childhood hometown arrived. Everyone was tired and I was getting ready for my shift so our “comfort concerns” for everyone was highlighted. My brother had to sleep in the common area where there was no air conditioning. I took a moment to pray for three specific places and asked the Lord to give us one of them. So close to Christmas, it seemed farfetched, but my faith in His willingness to bless His children was satisfied. I took one last sweep on Booking.com and saw that one of them is close to a price I can negotiate with everyone.

After a bit of a discussion, I got everyone’s “yes” to make a last-minute change to our Christmas plans. Of course, I can no longer cancel our Noche Buena-to-go and had to pay corkage at the hotel; but it was all good. Everyone was comfortable and we got adjoining rooms so it never felt like we were in two separate hotel rooms. Save for a few things that really only mattered to me, we had a great time. And the photos and vids my daughter and my brother had were worth the bother.

But because this is supposed to be the “PWD Travels” part of my December blog, I would have to mention those two things:
One, the Deluxe Double Rooms were not spacious enough for someone in a wheelchair. I could barely pass from the door to where the first bed was. It was just not possible to do it alone as the wheelchair had to be folded a little bit to fit through. The same predicament is true from where the second bed is to if I wanna go out and enjoy the chill night air at the balcony.
Two, there was no ramp access from the building to the pool. My husband and my brother had to carry my wheelchair to get me to the pool area, where I could join them for Christmas Eve bonding out of the room. At least one access ramp would have been great.
Allow me to say that the PWD comfort room in the common area on the ground floor was very spacious. It could accommodate a PWD and two caregivers assisting without any problem.

On a personal note, I also loved that they had the Nativity incorporated into the Christmas tree at the lobby. Everything was tastefully done and the staff were courteous. One area of improvement would be for them to be familiar with the room types. I booked two Deluxe Double Rooms as they didn’t have a Family Room on the booking site. As we were settling in, we noticed an extra door at our room so I called the front desk to ask if it’s to an adjoining room. When she said yes, I asked to move half of our party to the adjoining room if it’s the same room type. She said that it is so they did not unpack and waited for the other room to be ready. When they got in, they didn’t have a bathtub or a balcony. Out of respect for the staff who prepped the adjoining room, we decided to let it be. Overall, we had a pleasant stay for Christmas 2025.

Check out my Facebook post for the photos.

Sotogrande Hotel Palawan gets my nod of approval for a regular stay, but I’m afraid I can’t honestly give it my PWD Stamp of Approval. Of course, they might have better rooms and they were just too busy (because of the holiday season) to give me a heads-up and/or present an option.