We booked the hotel last minute when me and my husband finally decided to go to Boracay. It was really last minute that we booked Sandcastles on the day of our flight. Because of that, we got really great rates from Rates-To-Go which basically made our stay well worth it. The rates online was even less than half the published price of the hotel, which is why I would say that we got our money's worth. At the time, the front of the hotel was being reconstructed so you would have to go through a narrow pathway to get into their frontdesk. I didn't mind that at all because I was just actually after a comfortable place to stay in and in a convenient location. Sandcastles is located right in between Station 1 and 2 where you would find the most activities day and night. This made it convenient for me any my husband to go around all the great places and get back easily to our place when we got tired of walking. It is also located beachfront so you wouldn't have to worry about crossing the highway; although, we stayed in a room far back and with a little more walking. Not really a hassle though.

The room was spacious enough for four people to accommodate, although there was just the two of us. The bathroom was spacious too. Contrary to other reviews, our bath had hot water installed. I just didn't like that there was no safe deposit box in the room which made us bring all our variables with us every time we left the room. I guess bugs can't really be avoided because my husband had to buy an insect repellant for his bites. I don't know why but I didn't seem to get any bites. Maybe because he's from Canada and I'm from the Philippines.

In addition, the staff was really great! I'd say that they were really friendly. We didn't have any problems with them at all. Although I did notice that they didn't religiously follow turndown service and housekeeping schedules because I noticed that the room looked the same when we left it.

Overall, we were really satisfied with our stay. We had a great honeymoon in Sandcastles because we knew what we wanted out of the hotel. We didn't exactly need extreme privacy because we wanted to be able to explore the island more. Also, we wanted to stay where it would be convenient for us to find food and still be able to swim in the greater part of the beach. If you're looking for a convenient location in Boracay, Sandcastles is one place to stay in. Great for young singles and friends. Recommended. It's really not bad at all.

Hotel staff was nice and attentive, room was clean, but that's about it. Worried about leaving your stuff in room because key to room was just regular key and no safe deposit box inside.
Location between boat station 1 and 2, so it's a short walk to D'mall and beach is right in front of hotel.

Terrible service. No hot water for shower during 4 nights stay. It is over priced compared to other hotels in the area.

Rule #1 - Arrive during daytime
Rule #2 - Don't believe what the website tells and shows you about the "resort".
Rule #3 - Don't rely on the feedback here or any other sites as opinions vary depending on people's standards. I consider myself well-travelled, and prefer to stay in boutique hotels in the U.S. and no lower than 4-star hotels abroad. Comfort,luxury and security is very important to me. This place brands itself a "boutique" hotel, this branding needs reassessment. Brings new meaning to "boutique", which doesn't appear on my dictionary.
Rule #4 - Stay away from Philippine Airlines. Service leaves much to be desired. It's entire reservation system is utterly inefficient: I was given 3 quotes for one itinerary. This is where you'll find that customer is not always right. The word "Upgrade" does not mean upgrade in class; to PAL this means rate increase, as in upgrade in fare while you stay in same class. Make sense? Only if you work for PAL. I digress.

The upside to this place, and I'm only going to talk about the positives here, are the people. The staff (not management except for the fill-in manager who made up for all the discomforts of this facility) will go above and beyond their call of duty. Our room was absolutely beachfront; it's a beachfront "resort", but I believe only 3 units are actually beachfront. It's the best spot to people watch and to also watch the sunset in the comfort of your own porch.

We will definitely return to this island but will stay at either Discovery Shores, Le Soleil, or the Shangri-La (to open in 2008),