NS Royal Pensione

A well-located accommodation right in the heart of Cebu. The breakfast is decent, with a nice touch of Filipino food and culture. The receptionist, Ma’am Jen, is outstanding—warm, accommodating, and always smiling. She truly reflects genuine Filipino hospitality. The security guards are also very helpful. Our room (205), however, is next to a housekeeping storage area, which can be quite noisy when in use, and there was a somewhat unpleasant smell when entering the room. The bed is also quite large, leaving limited space to move around. Overall, it was a good experience for the price.

I would never recommend NS Royal Hotel to anyone, especially international travelers. My friends and I were completely shocked at how we were treated when checking out, turning what was otherwise a fine stay into a stressful and frustrating experience. We were fined 5,750 pesos for what the hotel claimed were “stains” on towels, a bath mat, a pillowcase, and bed sheets. We understand that hotels charge for damage, but fake tan is not permanent, and we were never informed that it could lead to a fine. Any proper wash would have easily removed it, just like in every other hotel we’ve stayed in. What made it worse was the way the staff handled it. They refused to return my friend’s passport until we paid the fine, forcing us to scramble for cash and making us wait over 20 minutes while they “calculated” the charges. The receptionist couldn’t even explain why the fine was so high. A simple towel at their hotel costs 90 pesos, yet somehow, a few items added up to nearly 6,000 pesos—more than the cost of a night’s stay. This hotel clearly takes advantage of tourists, knowing people will pay just to leave. In contrast, we stayed in other hotels in the Philippines where small stains from makeup or fake tan were simply washed out, as they should be. What’s most disappointing is that we were respectful guests who supported their business, buying coffee and food at their café. Even the café staff were lovely and took photos with us. But despite this, we were treated with zero kindness and forced to pay an outrageous fine for something that should never have been an issue. Save yourself the stress and stay somewhere that treats guests fairly. NS Royal Hotel is a scam.

I regret booking a stay at NS Royal Hotel in Cebu. The experience was far from pleasant. The bathroom in our room had a strong sewage smell that never went away, making it really uncomfortable. Despite this awful odor, the hotel oddly refused to let us bring dried fish back to our room—apparently, bad smells are only acceptable when they come from their plumbing. On top of that, they charge for every little thing. Need an extra pillow? That’ll cost you. Lose the flimsy plastic door key? More fees. They even have a price list for stains on linens, which makes you paranoid about using the towels or bedding. It felt like they were nickel-and-diming us at every turn with small, unnecessary charges. For the price, we expected much better service and basic amenities to be included. Unfortunately, this hotel is more focused on squeezing extra money out of guests rather than providing a comfortable and welcoming stay. I wouldn’t recommend it.