Villa Reef Talpe

This property is a rare example where the reality is better than the photos. It is so often the other way around. It is a unique villa, situated right on the beach with a safe and lovely swimming area just down the steps from the back garden. The pool is lovely if you don't fancy going in the sea, and you can walk along to see the green turtles arriving every morning and evening on Thalpe beach. This is one of the most majestic sights. You do not have to pay anyone to see them - you can walk and see them yourself, and even swim alongside them should you choose to. I had a lovely room on the first floor with a balcony where I spent time reading and enjoying the views. A great place for a solo traveller, too.

The checkin and checkout was one of the weirdest so far. There was noone around who spoke English when we arrived. I booked a standard room which turned out to be a small box without windows. I decided to upgrade to a seaview room and was presented with a room rate by a housekeeping boy that was way higher than the rate shown online. Then we started haggling which ended up to be a back and forth with the manager via phone. I finally managed to lock in the proper rate for the upgrade. When the room was ready, there were still several items amiss which I had to request. The location has direct beach access but there are hardly any restaurants or markets in the area. There is one person who runs a kitchen that appears to be a separate business. When you order a drink, he will say "let me check what fruits I have" and then pillage through the fridge. He is working super hard and makes up delicious food. During checkout, noone was around so we just left. However, there were 2 staff people who were super friendly. Aside from the language barrier, it was fun to interact with them. The internet was relatively fast but dropped out constantly. Also, there were numerous power outages during our stay. The seaview room itself was great and had a balcony which was shared with the neighboring room.

The checkin and checkout was one of the weirdest so far. There was noone around who spoke English when we arrived. I booked a standard room which turned out to be a small box without windows. I decided to upgrade to a seaview room and was presented with a room rate by a housekeeping boy that was way higher than the rate shown online. Then we started haggling which ended up to be a back and forth with the manager via phone. I finally managed to lock in the proper rate for the upgrade. When the room was ready, there were still several items amiss which I had to request. The location has direct beach access but there are hardly any restaurants or markets in the area. There is one person who runs a kitchen that appears to be a separate business. When you order a drink, he will say "let me check what fruits I have" and then pillage through the fridge. He is working super hard and makes up delicious food. During checkout, noone was around so we just left. However, there were 2 staff people who were super friendly. Aside from the language barrier, it was fun to interact with them. The internet was relatively fast but dropped out constantly. Also, there were numerous power outages during our stay. The seaview room itself was great and had a balcony which was shared with the neighboring room.

Great spot with safe swimming beach access, need formal trained staff to lift the game and revenues!!!