Travel Review#1: Azure Urban Resort: the Paris Beach Club

pattytalks (32)in #steemit • 7 years ago

Azure Paris Beach Club Review

Me and my friends had been longing to have a mini reunion since its been years since the last time we saw each other. We searched for good hotels with unique amenities and Azure got our eyes sparkling with excitement since based on guest reviews it has a lot of amazing things to offer.

Location and how to get there

Azure Paris Beach Club is located in Paranaque City Philippines, its adjacent to SM Bicutan (which you can google by the way) . There are lots of option for you to travel with to reach this lovely place and for your convenience i will indicate the options i know:

From Edsa MRT taft, you can take a jeep with a signage of SM Bicutan. There are two kinds of it, the one says only "SM" and the other says "Express", the difference is that the one with "Express" will take the highway passing through tolls which can make your commute faster than taking the other. Of course, it goes to say that the one with "Express" has a higher fare.
From Pasig City Palengke, you can take a jeepney which says "Bicutan". The last stop of it would be at the tail of Camp Bagong Diwa Grand Stand. You can actually see the SM from here, just walk straight ahead and youll see the footbridge going to the other side.
Uber or Grab, Azure can be pinpoint in the map. So basically just set your destination then off you go! Of course the fare would be dependent from your origin.

Amenities

This High-end hotel is owned by Paris Hilton and i think the Pacquiao's are its co-owners so basically its well invested and the facilities are on top of its class. Its known for its man-made beach/pool equipped with wave simulator, infinity pool (which is exclusive for its residence,lol 😜), Volleyball court, A beach bar located between the pools (the bar was designed by Hilton herself!), Roofdeck and Restaurant.

Drone shot of the iconic man-made beach with fine white sand! The beach bar can be seen in the center alongside with the huge playground set in the children's pool. Note that once booked you are entitled to 4 persons which are free of pool's use. If you exceeded in count you have to pay 250 pesos/pax (5Usd) on the registration booth near it.

Drone shot of the infinity pool.

The restaurant which offers a lot of dessert and wide variety of cocktails!

The view of the pools during night-time. Lovely isn't it?

The roof deck, design varies per building BTW.

Rooms and How to book

Azure's masterplan contains 8 high-rise building but only 6 of them are finished. Take note that the rooms are condo units so prices for each varies. In our case we booked our room via AirBnB rated at 4,000 pesos (80Usd), not bad for a group of 5.

Here is a snapshot of our rented room btw.

Another option to book aside from AirBnb is through booking.com or agoda or any hotel booking app but personally i discourage you to take this option since most of units posted there doesnt disclose all owner's term. Last option is through Facebook, F-a-c-e-b-o-o-k yes you read it write! try search Azure in FB and you'll meet a lot of Azure condo owners which markets their units through their profile but be careful since this option might involve alot of scammers so better put that NBI skills "on" while hunting for the best bargain.

Verdict

PROS

Azure lives to its promise! the place is beautiful and well designed. Every corner is picturesque, perfect for that "pak na pak" profile picture in FB
The wave simulator will surely take you on a "beach vibe". Waves are tolerably high (for a 5 footer like me! 😜)
The condo owner and her room was nice! everything we need is provided.
Security was tight! you can't just go in without being accompanied by someone from inside, I say its a 1pt for me since this ensures that no unexpected guest will ruin your vacation.
Its near the express way and near malls and markets. You'll never have a problem if you ran out of supply since everything is within reach.
Its a family-friendly getaway! playgrounds are located anywhere!
The man-made beach speaks for itself! the sand bury was actually deep!, i was trying to snug my foot underground if i can reach the concrete foundation but hell no i found none!
No corkage fee! YES NO CORKAGE FEEEEE!!!!!

CONS

The pools has a timeout period. It only operates from 7-11am and resume by 1-7pm after that everyone will be asked to come out. I suggest that they should make the time longer like till 9pm so that guests will really enjoy the stay specially those with children
Room varies so you really have to talk with the agent or the owner carefully. Let them highlight the rules for you since they have tight security here means every violation may come with a charge.
The pools are heavily chlorinated......
The line at the concierge is too long (it'll pissed you off)

With all this and that, overall we enjoyed our stay here. The place is something to be remembered so i highly suggest to book here during celebrations to make the day extra special.