Following our four-night stay at the Median, we transferred to Mactan as the Arcanys annual summer outing will be at Movenpick Cebu located at Punta Engaño. We first thought of staying overnight at the said resort as Arcanys were giving a discounted rate but after finding out about the pricing, we decided to stay somewhere else nearer.

After checking on Airbnb, I found this room good for four at The Mactan Newtown. We paid Php ₱5,211.15 for two two-night stays.

The Building

Here's the building, our room was at the 8 Newtown Boulevard 3 and 4 Cluster. There are four clusters and the entrance to the first and second clusters is the one just beside Starbucks Cafe. The other two clusters' entrance is beside Robinsons grocery store just a few steps away.

From afar, the buildings look great, you'll see them in the photos below and it is also nice up front. My little one loves the octopus figure above the building entrance roof.

Lobby

The lobby is huge, and it is super spacious. The furniture is big, they aren't the normal ones so when we waited for the caretaker to help us check in, we were like tiny creatures sitting on the couch.

The check-in time was at two in the afternoon. We were already at the building by noon but they couldn't get us in because they had guests before us and they were still cleaning the unit. The owner is actually in the US and she has another person managing the unit. So we stayed at Starbucks in the meantime and waited until two.

By two, we went inside the lobby and waited for the caretaker. She came with our papers and asked for our IDs then ten minutes after, we were shown to our room.

Room

The room is at the 8th floor. Walking to the elevator by the way takes time as it is located way behind the lobby. Anyway, there are four elevators so it was easy to get an available one and it wasn't that busy during our entire stay.

Chinchin, the caretaker showed us the room and gave us the key. It was then time for me to take photos of the room, I tried bracketing for these images, it was my first time but didn't get things right however, I did my best to get the images post-processed well. I will do better next time!

As we entered the room, this dining table for two was available right next to the main door. Then on the right is the kitchen which includes all the things we needed, a fridge, top burner, rice cooker, coffee maker, microwave oven, and there's even a front load washing machine!

I used the front-load washing machine during our stay of course because we got loads of dirty clothes from our stay in Cebu. It worked but the problem was that when it was already in the drying phase, the machine somehow was moving rapidly in every spin so it was scary but we managed to get our clothes cleaned up.

Aside from all of these, there were many plates and cups, glasses, and bowls available to use. They were all placed on the shelves above and below the counter. I appreciate that they have provided clean towels here. Drinking water was not a problem, this is usually the case with other Airbnbs we stayed before. But here, they got a gallon already in the dispenser and another reserved one. I truly appreciate it!

There's no work station however in this unit so we used the dining table instead which worked well. I was just concerned about the glass vase because my little one is very curious and he'd like to hold it. Thankfully, no items in the house were broken during the entire stay.

There's the living room. Looking at this bed couch I already felt at home. The carpet was thick and nice. I love staying in the living room! The television was I guess 50 inches big and they have Globe wifi. The details were provided and I must say they have arranged the items well. They even have nicely done curtains!

Taking these images made me realize we need a wider lens. I regret selling our wide lenses but it was also an opportunity to get one as we were in Cebu. Mind you, my husband bought one right away when I complained about how tight the images were with the 28mm lens.

On our second night, my husband and I watched the Netflix movie entitled The Journey and I was crying because of how great the storyline and the acting were top class. I am glad we enjoyed the TV and Netflix provided.

Let's move on to the bedroom.

The bedroom can stand alone or be an extension of the livingroom. I thought that there's no bedroom but there is and a sliding glass door separates it from the livingroom. However, there was nothing to cover it, the see-through glass would have been better if there was a curtain too. But we were just three in there so no problem at all. The listing however offers 4 persons can fit in this room and I agree it can accommodate the said number of heads but it would be better to also offer that there's a covering of the partition.

There's a standing mirror which was delicate if you have a toddler. I just made sure to look after my little one the entire time!

The bed was super comfortable. I can't explain how nice to sleep here, I slept right away when I lie down, the same goes with my husband and the little one. The sleepy head of me was super happy the entire two nights! More photos below:

Opposite to the bed is the bathroom which has all the things we need - body soap and shampoo with conditioner! I love that there's a bathtub! Of course we used it!

I actually let my little one just play at the bathtub and he was even asking me if we could get a bathtub the same as that in the house. I was laughing of course because we can't afford this yet. I told him, we can enjoy the bathtub during summer and the month of October and perhaps in December for on those months, we get to travel to Cebu and other country too.

And I must talk about the bowl because it is a Japanese bidet! Although there's a separate bidet, this one is Japan technology so just a few press, the toilet then uses a stream of water to clean! I love it! I remember when my husband and I traveled to Japan and I experienced sitting on heated toilet seat, it was an amazing feeling!

The View

The view was nice as we have a sea view! However, there were construction going on around the vicinity so the view was somehow blocked but it was still nice though as my son is fond of cranes and construction vehicles so he would watch the cranes bring huge items up into the building top.

In a few years from now, I believe more buildings and structures will pop here and there in Mactan Newtown. It is just a matter of time and as they say, this is the IT Park equivalent in Mactan and I must say they are right. It is slowly showing the signs and for sure more business owners will invest here because it is very strategic being near the airport and the beach resorts!

Mactan Newtown

In the morning, we strolled around Mactan Newtown and here are some of the images and realizations we found while walking.

There's a structure of dolphins with water fountains in it. It looked nice during the evening because of its lights. From here, we could see the beauty of the 8 Boulevard clusters! The building by the way has BPO companies on the 1-5 floors. The other buildings around the area also have BPO and Insurance companies.

A covered walkway towards the Bus Terminal. And there's an al fresco eatery here with a lot of food options. We dined here and tried their Japanese food and even Filipino items. There's also Lemon Co. here which is our favorite lemonade store!

8 Newtown Boulevard Amenities: Outdoor Playground

Having a toddler would mean, I must consider staying in spaces with playground amenities. I am glad that this one has a spacious outdoor play area! On our first day, Matti asked for us to go to the playground and explore!

Here's the huge hallway going outdoors to the playground and the pool.

The playground looks well-maintained. There were no damaged areas. They have a climbing wall, slides, swings, and some seesaws too.

We loved 8 Boulevard and when we visited the family in Oslob and went back to Cebu City, we persuaded the sister-in-law that we should stay overnight in Newtown so Matti and Zia, his cousin could spend more time playing and swimming.

Here, we took some photos of them playing at the playground:

Waiting for the kids to be done with play? Any homeowner or guest can stay indoors while watching the kids. There's an indoor couch which has a view of the playground!

8 Newtown Boulevard Amenities: Pool

Here's another thing that persuaded me to book the listing: the pool!

The Horizon swimming pool complex with a paved sunbathing deck. It was superbly huge! I understand the size because this one is shared by the four cluster buildings! Imagine if all the homeowners or their guests would want to take a dip. I bet it will be crowded but with how it is designed, it is possible for a lot of people to go swimming at the same time.

There are two separated pools for kids, this is just three feet deep and is perfect for those who do not want to worry about their kids. While the bigger pool has shallow parts too, it is not that safe to let the kids just play there as there's a tendency they might jump into the deeper part. However, this one is just pretty shallow for the kids to swim as they can reach the floor!

The pool has an infinity design but this end part is six feet deep already and the view in front is covered by the construction. Still, it is a nice pool, reminds me of the swimming pool of Singapore's Marina Bay Sands.

8 Newtown Boulevard Amenities: Outdoor Common Spaces

Another great outdoor amenities are the following:

• Podium-level recreation deck
• Horizon swimming pool complex with a paved sunbathing deck
• Outdoor spa
• Pavilion
• Outdoor dining area
• Koi pond
• Bonsai Garden

All throughout our stay including the one-night stay after coming from Oslob, I found no one staying at their common spaces. I am not sure if they have specific guidelines for using the outdoor spaces but I see it is a great addition to the amenities. Having a space to chill with friends and family to picnic or whatever, you got it here!

It was only when I was making this blog that I found out that this property is Japanese Architecture-inspired. That's why the building amenities including the outdoor and indoor ones are very Japanese just like this koi pond and more!

8 Newtown Boulevard Amenities: Indoor Amenities

Another set of amenities available for homeowners and guests are the indoor ones which includes the following:

• Indoor spa
• Origami room
• Onsen room
• Ikebana room
• Gym and fitness center
• Multi-purpose tea rooms

I only get to see the gym, the onsen, and the origami rooms. I wish I checked what other things to see here but for sure I am marking 8 Boulevard for future trips in Mactan!

Conclusion

After this stay, I am pretty sure we will be coming back in the near future! I will make sure that we will check out and make use of the onsen room and the indoor spa! I would love to see the origami upfront too and will check with the owner if we have access to the other amenities.

The entire stay was truly relaxing, with only some minor issues which were understandable and easily resolved. I am truly happy we stayed here!

If you are interested, you can book Evangeline's space here.

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J U N E B R I D E
_{Boholana | Cebu | Philippines | Travel | Photography Enthusiast | Calligraphy | Art
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