CHIISAI NATSU RESORT

CHIISAI NATSU RESORT: a Bolod Beach base outside the Alona crowd

CHIISAI NATSU RESORT — “Little Summer Resort” in Japanese, and the name is not decorative marketing but a literal translation kept by its original Japanese ownership — sits in Barangay Bolod on Panglao’s southern shore, roughly a five-minute drive from Alona Beach rather than on it. Bolod Beach itself is a real, named stretch of Panglao’s coastline, quieter than the Alona strip and less built up, and this resort’s position there is the main thing distinguishing it from the dozens of near-identical Alona-front budget resorts. As of early 2025 the property returned to direct management by its founding Japanese owner after a period under other operators, which locals and repeat guests point to when explaining the consistency in its Booking.com score: 7.4 out of 10, Good, from 15 reviews — a modest sample, worth weighing against the resort’s small room count.

The rooms and the building itself

Rooms are family-oriented, air-conditioned, with private bathrooms, a kettle for tea or coffee, a balcony, and a choice of garden or pool outlook. What sets the physical building apart from Panglao’s concrete-block norm is the construction style: the resort’s room architecture uses native materials — bamboo, cogon (a local thatching grass), and timber — rather than poured concrete, a deliberate nod to pre-resort Filipino vernacular building on an island where most newer construction defaults to concrete block and corrugated roofing. It reads as rustic rather than luxury, and guests should calibrate expectations accordingly: this is not a design-hotel reproduction of native materials but an older, functional use of them.

Pool, garden, and grounds

The resort centers on a year-round outdoor pool with a separate kids’ pool, a garden, a sun terrace, and an outdoor dining area, with free private parking for anyone arriving by rental scooter or car. It’s built for families and small groups who want a fixed base to return to rather than a beachfront party strip — the property markets itself explicitly toward single travelers, families, and small corporate groups rather than the dive-and-bar crowd that dominates central Alona.

Getting around from Bolod

Being off the main Alona strip means a slightly longer commute to the dive shops and restaurant density there, roughly five minutes by tricycle or scooter, and to Tagbilaran City and its port and airport connections about sixteen kilometres and twenty-five minutes away by road, though the 2018 opening of Panglao International Airport on the island itself has shortened that trip for anyone flying rather than taking the ferry from Cebu. The trade-off is quiet: Bolod’s beachfront doesn’t carry the evening bar noise that keeps lighter sleepers up along central Alona.

Local context worth knowing

Panglao’s fishing communities in Danao and nearby Boljo-on still keep some traditional boat-building knowledge alive, even though fibreglass hulls have mostly replaced wood for the motorised outriggers that now run the daily snorkeling and island-hopping trips departing from Alona’s beachfront — a livelihood shift visible in any walk along the boat-launch areas near Bolod and Danao. On the food side, the island’s distinctly local dish is kinilaw na tanigue, raw Spanish mackerel cured in coconut vinegar, ginger, chilli, and onion, made with vinegar tapped and produced on Panglao itself rather than shipped in — worth asking the resort’s restaurant staff about, since it’s a dish tied specifically to Bohol’s coconut-vinegar tradition rather than a generic Filipino ceviche. Diving out of Bolod or Alona both reach the same offshore sites, including the Balicasag Island wall and its resident sea turtles, about 20 minutes out by outrigger, where the municipality now caps visitor numbers at 150 divers and snorkelers a day with a roughly ₱250 environmental fee per diver, a direct response to reef pressure from the volume of boats now working the strait.

Timing a stay

Late August brings Hudyaka sa Panglao, the municipality-wide fiesta held around 28 August for patron saint Augustine of Hippo, when all ten of Panglao’s barangays send parade contingents and dance troupes into Poblacion and food stalls sell the island’s seafood specialties streetside. Staying in Bolod rather than central Alona during that week means a quieter base with an easy tricycle ride into the festivities rather than being in the middle of the road closures. Outside fiesta season, the resort’s relative distance from Alona’s restaurant row means guests eating on-site more often than not, so it’s worth checking what the kitchen serves for dinner before committing to a multi-night stay if variety matters.

Who should book here

This suits families and small groups who want a real pool and quiet grounds over beachfront immediacy, travelers happy trading a short tricycle ride for lower noise and rates, and anyone curious about staying somewhere built with visibly different materials than the concrete blocks that dominate Alona’s resort row. It’s a poorer fit for solo divers who want to walk out their door onto a dive shop’s doorstep, or anyone prioritizing nightlife within stumbling distance.

Getting There & Booking

Bolod is roughly 15–20 minutes from Tagbilaran City or Panglao International Airport by tricycle or hired van. Book on Stay22 or Booking.com, and given the smaller review count here relative to Alona’s higher-volume listings, confirm current room photos and pool access directly with the resort before paying a deposit.