Exploring Coron: Ralph's Pension House

Ralph's Pension House, our Home away from Home.

After numerous quotation requests and discussions with friends about what tour package to avail, we finally decided to avail of the tour package offered by Sir Jun of Ralph's Pension House.

From the get-go, email communication dealing with the tour package (itinerary & package discussions and bargaining) was wonderful. He was courteous, direct to the point, and patient enough to respond to all inquiries.  I think he gave us a good deal with accommodation, food, and tour.  It was great to not have to worry about anything from the time we land to the time we leave Coron. (Budget - Check!)


To ensure that the place is as good as he claimed, we took the time to check reviews from different sites, one of which is trip advisor.  Reading good reviews about the place helped sway us to this decision.  Being aware of the few bad reviews, we also knew to set our expectations at a reasonable level.  From the way I understood the reviews, they could have been influenced by a misconception on what's in store for them.
** An important note, if you're into pampering and 5-star service and facilities, this may not be the place for you.  Once your expectations are too high, you'll most likely end up disappointed.  Bear in mind that this is a simple house, turned to an Inn.   

What factors did we consider in deciding where to stay? Sleep - The room has to be clean and comfortable to sleep in, simple and with all the basic necessities since we won't be staying there for most of the day anyway. Budget - We'd rather spend money on food and tours, rather than on the accommodation.  Our objective: Maximize the Coron experience. Security - Having to leave most of our things behind for the set tours of each day, we definitely need to have a reliable place so we won't have to keep worrying as to whether all our things will still be where we left them when we get back. Proximity - It should be easy to get around town ourselves especially since day 4 involves going around town on our own for pasalubong shopping and just seeing more of the locals. Comfort Room - This is always in my list when talking about the criteria for accommodation.  It doesn't have to be huge, just spacious enough so you don't feel like you're trapped or anything.  Lastly, all the amenities have to be clean and functional.

Ralph’s Pension House -- a humble,  cozy place you can call home. In Good Company Sir Jun himself welcomed us and briefed us on what lies ahead for us in our days in Coron.  Known around town, security for us as his guests is guaranteed.  (He seemed to know a lot of people since while we did the town tour with him, he knew someone from almost every block.)  The town itself is actually a safe place, but knowing we had him to turn to helped ease any worry we had. (Security - Check!)    Sir Jun struck me as genuine with a passion for God, family, and the simple life. The warmth and humor he shares with his guests is something I've never encountered before.  Hearing him talk about his own family and just joking around with us was just wonderful.   He actually treated us so much like family, that by the second day we were calling him Tito-Ninong Jun (which I'll be using from this point on).  Ralph's Room I was assigned Ralph's room.  I'd say that the room was not that spacious, but just enough so you could move around comfortably.  Upon getting in the room, it's exactly as shown in the site.  The beds were okay, towels were laid out on each bed with the promised soap that was part of the package. The same case applies for the restrooms.  Everything was spic and span with all the required amenities. (Sleep and Comfort Room - Check!) Heart of the City What stands out is that the place is indeed at the heart of the city.  Going around town could be done by foot, literally -- the church, market, port area, town baywalk, and even the foot of Mt Tapyas. (Proximity - Check!) Achilles heel Truthfully, everything about the place was fine except when night came.  I didn’t think that the electricity going off from 1am to 1pm would be an issue, until I woke up in the middle of the night sweating from the heat -- even the fan wasn’t working.  Raining that night, I figured opening the window and letting the breeze into the room would help, sure enough it did.  The only thing was that along with the breeze came the mosquitoes.  Time to slab on some OFF lotion. We knew that the electricity would be out all over town, but we were told that the fan and light would be still be running the rest of the time.  Unfortunately, crude oil seemed to run out each night.  It was explained to us that some of the guests didn’t turn off their air-conditioner on the specified time, thereby using up all the oil in the generator allotted for the black-out duration.  Mga Pasaway! :P

Over-all I was pleased with the turnout of the place.  It's not that kind of place you'd marvel about with regards to it's look and amenities, but more importantly the place grows in you and you just feel comfortable and safe.  You end up feeling like it’s your home with the privacy and necessities you need, and best of all you're amidst the warm company of the God-fearing, family-oriented man named Tito-Ninong Jun.

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Want to know more about Ralph's Pension House?
     To date, you may reach him via email at ralphs_pensionhouse@yahoo.com.  
     More information and contact details can also be found in his website.

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