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Reviews of Saboga Lodge and Villa Noelia

2.5 out of 5
Saboga Lodge and Villa Noelia
Isla Saboga, Archipielago de las perlas, Saboga

Reviews

7.4

Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 4 out of 16 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 6 out of 16 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 3 out of 16 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 2 out of 16 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 1 out of 16 reviews" "

7.8/10

Cleanliness

8.8/10

Staff & service

7.4/10

Amenities

6.8/10

Property conditions & facilities

7.8/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

6/10 Okay

Dimo, Houston

Travelled with family
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Yes - No - Maybe!?! We were greeted at the Saboga pier by the hotel boat driver who later transported us to the lodge. Nice ride. Be ready to climb over 3 stories of stairs with your luggage from the beach to the reception desk with no assistance. The beach was full of trash and debris.Right away we were told there is a shortage of water and therefore no running water. We had a few drinks and then we were able to check in to our room early. The room and balcony were nice, a few spider webs and bugs but that is expected near a jungle. Apart for the pillows outside covered in mold, we set those aside the accommodations were not bad. Now… from using the toilet to washing our hands - we were unable to do any of this on our first day. Glad we had hand sanitizer and wipes because the hotel did not have these available for guest. We had a wonderful lunch. We went on a long hike to the town and got some drinks and water for our room. Not going to pay very marked up when I can get for qtr.. When we returned we had dinner, again the food was great. The water Finally started flowing at 930pm but only for an hour. But, we also noticed the large amount of BLACK MOLD all over the bathroom wall. It was gross and very negligible and also concerning. I got some vinegar and sprayed it as a temp solution during our stay. Over night the power went out due to a storm and so on our second day - no running water, no internet or electricity. The beach amenities are limited.
Stayed 4 nights in Apr 2024

10/10 Excellent

Will

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Really attentive staff and beautiful property. Quiet, private beach. Stayed in the villa, Piedad is an excellent cook and always asking if we need anything. Rustic island life, as long as you know that going in, you'll have a great time!
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2024
Response from Saboga Lodge and Villa Noelia on Apr 1, 2024
It fills us with joy to know that you enjoyed your stay and felt happy with us, Piedad is a star. Our goal is to provide a welcoming and comfortable environment for all our guests. We sincerely appreciate your preference and look forward to welcoming you again in the near future, your satisfaction is our greatest motivation! See you soon and have a great day! Saboga Lodge Team

2/10 Terrible

Andres

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
I contacted the property prior to booking, inquiring about their pet-friendly policy and mentioning that it was our anniversary. They assured us of their best room and a hassle-free experience. However, upon arrival, we faced several issues. We had to pay in advance for a boat transfer, which seemed unnecessary on the island. No one greeted us at the beach, and we had to ask locals for help. The room assigned to us had no lock and a dirty bathroom with no water. Despite paying extra for an early check-in, we couldn't take a shower. After complaining, we were given a bucket to flush the toilet and a bottle of water, but were told not to inform the manager. The offered room in another property also had no water and no Wi-Fi. The manager expected us to go without water for over 24 hours. On check-out, we expected compensation but were asked to pay for our meals. The manager threatened to withhold transportation unless we paid, but relented when we mentioned involving a lawyer. Overall, a negative experience due to the lack of water, poor service, and additional charges.

10/10 Excellent

Sean-Michael

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Mar 2023
Response from Sean Michael on Apr 25, 2023
Par nosotros e muy valiosa su calificacion de su estancia, esperamos que haya disfrutado mucho de relajarse en la isla , disfrutar de la playa, la comida y un buen descanso de la ciudad, esperamos contar con su visita de nuevo en un futuro no muy lejano!

6/10 Okay

Jose

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Amenities
Where do I begin? I didnt want to write this but i feel it needs to be said. This hotel is good for 1 night and 1 night only. Instayed for 2. The problem started when i was told not to bring food or drinks (including water). They dont have drinkable water so all water needs to be purchased in plastic bottles. Not so eco-friendly. The bottle of water is $2. Food prices are hicked up. Understanding since youre on a island... again, 1 night is best. The hotel markets itself a "Adults Only" area. On my second day, there were kids there. That changes the dynamic of your stay. My room said ocean view, there is no ocean view. There are tress blocking it. Also, the rooms are not sound proofed. You can hear everything. I do mean EVERYTHING. The door to my room did not close properly. There is a 5-8 cm gap that the door doesnt cover. I found a big spider in my room on my last day there. Besides the Kayak and Paddel Boarding (rough waves), not much to be done. The staff were great. Always helping out and making sure you were great. If the staff wasnt as good as they were, this would be a "skip". Not worth the price in my opinion.
Stayed 2 nights in Feb 2023
Response from Saboga Lodge on Mar 1, 2023
Hello José, it certainly saddens us a lot that you write this to us when through our WhatsApp chat you never said anything to give a timely solution during your stay, not to mention that you did not answer our message where we explained why for only one night the children of the hotel owner stayed, although it is not something that should be, it has been the only time there are children and it was for a situation that left us with no other options.Within our policies we indicate that the entry of food and beverages is not allowed, our idea is to provide a real sense of relaxation and that also involves delighting with the gastronomic variety we offer, however there are those who have food restrictions and we are always open to please the customer.It is important to point out that being on an island two hours away from the city, shipping costs increase. Our rooms are oceanfront, and although there is vegetation present throughout the hotel, the views are beautiful and relaxing. We are sorry that your experience was not the best, we would love to have you back and change your expectations, so in your next stay we will have a complimentary dinner for you and your companion.

8/10 Good

Ana

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
My husband and I stayed at this property for 3 nights. The pros: -this is a small hotel and feels quite homey; no long walks to places, staff often brought our meals to our room, and it was easy to befriend other guests -the hotel is very beautifully designed and we enjoyed our room balcony, the pool area, and the yoga/sun deck -the staff were friendly and attentive, particularly Tyrel and Zuly -if you can, take advantage of the island tour; this really made the trip worthwhile The cons: -with it being a small hotel, only 4 people were working during our time there. That means that all people do all things, and therefore you can’t expect consistency across your stay. For example, we ordered the same breakfast for all 3 mornings we were there, but on the first morning we received 2 pancakes, on the 2nd morning 1 pancake, and on the 3rd morning literally half a pancake. -related to this point, it seems the hotel could use a manager. It wasn’t clear if they had one, and it looked like staff roles could be better coordinated. -the beach at the hotel itself is good for watching the sunset and hearing the relaxing sound of waves crashing, but not much else. It’s pretty small for walking if the tide is up, and the water just isn’t appealing. There was also a lot of trash washed up on the shore, including glass. Like I mentioned earlier, the best is to take the island tour. I was disappointed by this, since I wanted to spend more time in the ocean. -bring bug spray!
Response from Saboga Lodge on Nov 30, 2022
Hello, we are glad you enjoyed your stay with us. Thank you for sharing this information that is of utmost importance to continue growing! Your comments are very necessary to improve in every aspect. We have a set menu and we will verify why the variation in food. Regarding the beach we have implemented mechanisms and daily cleaning days in order to reduce garbage and that you can be calm for enjoyment. Always welcome

10/10 Excellent

Manuel

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2022
Response from Saboga Lodge on Nov 29, 2022
Muchas gracias Manuel, nos da mucho gusto ver tu calificación 3 Siempre bienvenido

8/10 Good

Olivier

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2022

8/10 Good

Vahan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 4 nights in May 2022

6/10 Okay

Lauren

Travelled with partner
Liked: Amenities
Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service
The staff was very friendly but we do not believe they had the proper training.If you asked if they had something on property they would just hand it to you without communicating it’s an extra charge. When you ordered food or drinks it would take at least an hour to get it to you. Keep in mind there were only 4 rooms on property… The plumbing went out one night for 12 hours and then the next night electricity and wifi and ac went out for 12 hours. Our room had numerous spiderwebs and at night bugs would come out of the wall it seemed. The communication was subpar, had to reach out numerous times to confirm. When leaving the property they arranged by boat and while it went ok, we opted for the ferry because our bags weren’t waterproof so getting to the ferry by boat instead of car was not ideal. The atmosphere was amazing though. The access to the beach, the pool was beautiful and peaceful(there are crabs in the pool), and the tour was lovely. Overall I would say the value of what you are getting isn’t worth the hassle or the price. It’s like a well run hostel. Would go back if they cut back what they charged. It has a lot of potential, could be great but right now it’s meh. And definitely not worth the cost of the place!
Stayed 2 nights in Apr 2022
Response from Saboga on May 2, 2022
Thank you so much for your valuable feedback. We are in a constant growth and every bit of inputs allows us to make every stay better the previous one. We are glad you enjoyed your stay and the tours provided, and hope you visit soon again. Because we located in the middle of the jungle/island, visits from several critters are bound to happen, hope they were not much of a burned. We will take your suggestions into account and keep an eye out for them. Our staff was happy to serve and are constantly trained to provide always the best quality service. Hope you come back soon. Regards, Saboga

10/10 Excellent

Abraham

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Staff views experience.
Stayed 2 nights in Apr 2022
Response from Saboga Lodge Team on Apr 13, 2022
Dear Abraham Thank you so much for your visit and your commets we were very glad yo have you with us and to know you enjoyed your visit.

4/10 Poor

Carlos

Travelled with partner
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The lodge itself was really nice, but the lack of maintenance makes it now look old and dirty. The attention was really poor, stayed for 4 days in which coincidentally there was almost no food and we had to eat the same 3-4 dishes every day. Due to summer in Panama the Hotel cuts water and you only get around 4 hours of water per day, which in itself it's fine, totally understadable, however that is not mentionned until you arrive at the property. Talked to customer service on whastapp several times, weeks before going (to arrange the transport to the island) and that wasn't mentionned. Overall dissapointing experience, this was a trip I was looking forward for months. The island itself was good.
Stayed 3 nights in Mar 2024
Response from Saboga Lodge and Villa Noelia on Apr 6, 2024
Hello Carlos, I sincerely regret that your stay did not meet your expectations and that the food was not up to par. Despite that, we assure you that our team always strives to provide the best possible service and our desire will always be that our guests' experiences are satisfactory in all aspects.It is important to mention that in our hostel is full of safari adventures, we strive to inform our guests in detail about the logistics of the activities, including water related issues and any previous recommendations, the same was provided to your chat directly from the customer service team. We appreciate your feedback and will take it into consideration to improve our services in the future.

4/10 Poor

Jose

Travelled with family
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Dissappointing experience
Mi booking un era en Saboga Lodge y me enviaron Villa Noelia, otro lodge. Pedi una habitacion con 2 camas y me dejaran en una con cama doble. La reserva decia Adults only y el hotel estaba lleno de niños. No habia muchas opciones para comidas en el hotel asi que tuvimos que buscar opciones de restaurante fuera del hotel
Stayed 2 nights in Apr 2023
Response from Alejandra on May 5, 2023
Hola Jose! Agradecemos mucho tu feedback y te contamos que el menú está siendo modificado para tener una mayor variedad.Por otro lado queremos aclarar que se anuncia Saboga Lodge y Villa noelia como uno solo, y la habitación que tú reservaste es de la villa. Además, es falso lo de las camas, la que tu solicitaste fue: "Superior Villa, 1 King Bed, Mountain View" este es el tipo de habitación que se te dió.

8/10 Good

NAYRA YAOSCA

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Muy bien ubicado en la playa y en medio de la naturaleza, en un bosque tropical. Perfecto para relajarse. Seria bueno que cortaran almenos algunas ramas de los arboles frente a la habitacion para poder ver el mar, que ahora esta' completamente escondido (solo se escucha el ruido de las olas).
Response from Saboga Lodge on Nov 29, 2022
Hola Nayra, gracias por compartir tu comentario que nos ayuda a seguir creciendo, es para nosotros muy importante su opinión y lo tendremos en cuenta. Planearemos una jornada de jardinería :)

8/10 Good

Anita

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Agréable séjour à Saboga
Appartement avec bcp de charme au-dessus de la plage et possédant egalement une piscine. Seul inconvenient manque un plan de travail et petit réchaud pour pouvoir cuisiner puisque l'ile ne possède qu'un restaurant.
La chambre
La plage en contrebas
L'extérieur de l'appartement
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2020
Response from Michelle on Jan 15, 2020
Hello Anita, thanks for your comments! we are working on having a restaurant on site this year :) Hope to have you back with us!