Nay Palad Hideaway review: The surfing Mecca that feels like Bali before the beach clubs
This Filipino hotel has no televisions and the WiFi is patchy — and it's all the better for it, says Lauren Ho.
Siargao, a tear-shaped island in the south-eastern Philippines, is known for its surfing, yet, with its tangle of palm forests, fishing villages and jade-green lagoons, it feels like Bali before the beach clubs. Here, there’s still a sense of real life, where bikes weave past pastel-painted houses, children splash in the shallows and fishermen cast nets at sunrise.
Nay Palad Hideaway sits between the sea and the mangroves. Formerly Dedon Island Resort, it was rebuilt after the 2022 typhoon Odette by its owner, Dedon founder Bobby Dekeyser, and French architect Daniel Pouzet, who worked with local craftspeople to restore what was lost. Much was made by hand on the island — from the timber beams and woven thatch to the sculptural rattan and shell details.
Perlah Villa is surrounded by ponds and sleeps up to nine guests in four bedrooms.
The resort unfolds in the manner of a small village. Foliage weaves its way around villas, set amid private gardens, shady terraces and pools. There are no televisions and the WiFi is patchy — wonderfully irrelevant when the sun shines, but mildly challenging when it rains. When the weather does behave, there’s almost too much to do, from kayaking through the mangrove channels to island-hopping to the nearby islets of Daku and Guyam for picnics on the sand. Those on the island to surf should make for Cloud 9, the legendary break that put Siargao on the map.
Health-and-safety officers look away: the best way to explore Siargao is in a Moses basket atop one of Nay Palad Hideaway’s Jeepneys.
One of the loveliest ways to see the island is by Jeepney, the open-sided minibuses that are a national symbol of the Philippines. Nay Palad’s version is a chic take on the original, crowned with what looks like a Moses basket. Jump inside the basket for a tour, stopping wherever you like. If you prefer to explore under your own steam, there are bikes to ride past emerald rice paddies and coconut groves.
When the rainclouds do gather, the place doesn’t lose its magic — WiFi aside. In the spa, the soothing soundtrack of falling rain soon becomes part of your treatment. The menu includes Filipino hilot massages, hot-stone treatments and coconut-oil scrubs — and you can book as many as you want. Once a term that brought to mind bland breakfast buffets, ‘all inclusive’ has been entirely redefined here. There are no bills to sign, merely the simple and seamless pleasure of knowing you can have whatever you want, whenever you want.
The food offering changes daily: breakfast might be mango pancakes or sinangag rice with fried egg and local longanisa sausage; lunch and dinner is normally fish, caught that day. If you crave something that isn’t on the menu, the team will happily whip it up. Nothing here is ever too much trouble.
Rooms at Nay Palad Hideaway, the Philippines, start at $890 (about £660) per night for a two-bedroom Garden View villa on a full-board basis. For more information and to book, visit the Nay Palad website.
