Hue Hotels and Resorts Puerto Princesa Managed by HII

Rooms and decor

Picture walking into a hotel in the middle of Puerto Princesa and meeting a wall of bright, punchy color and modern design that feels fun from the first step. That's the first hook at Hue Hotels and Resorts Puerto Princesa, a 122-room lifestyle hotel managed by HII that sets out to be a good-mood, young-feeling place rather than a plain in-town hotel. As the name Hue suggests, the lobby and common areas play with color and modern shapes with real energy. Rooms read clean and bright in a contemporary tone, tidy and easy on the eye, and many look onto the city or the pool. If you like a stay with design and character, and you don't want a hotel that looks like every other one, this should click from the moment you walk in. The overall feel is friendly and warm, and it suits couples, families and groups of friends doing Palawan together.

Food and amenities

The highlight reviews talk about most is the rooftop pool and rooftop lounge, with a wide city view. By day you can cool off after a full day of touring, and near sunset is the best time to sit with a cold drink and take in the city from above, a relaxed mood you don't usually get from an in-town hotel. For food there's both a restaurant and a cafe in-house, serving from breakfast through dinner with Filipino and international dishes, handy on days when you're too tired to walk far. There's free Wi-Fi throughout, and the thing reviews agree on is staff who are warm, smiley and happy to help, whether that's arranging an Underground River trip, a Honda Bay island tour, or pointing you to good places to eat in town. That makes it easy for first-time Palawan guests to plan their next move without chasing down an outside agency.

Location and getting there

Another trump card is the location, because Hue sits in the heart of Puerto Princesa right next to Robinsons Place mall. Walk over and you've got restaurants, cafes, convenience stores, a supermarket and shops all within reach, so you can sort out food, supplies and souvenirs without calling a car, unlike the out-of-town resorts that lean on their own restaurant. Being on the city's main road also means it's easy to grab a ride to the tour piers and meeting points, and in and out of Puerto Princesa airport (PPS), which is about a 10-15 minute drive away. That makes it a great in-town base for the first or last night of a trip, with day trips out to Palawan's headline nature, the UNESCO-listed Underground River and Honda Bay, both of which mostly pick travelers up from town anyway.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide. First, Hue is a city hotel, not on the water and without the natural views of a beachfront resort. If your mental picture is waking up to clear sea or a limestone-karst skyline outside your room, this won't match, and you should look at the Sabang side or an island instead. Second, as a big 122-room property, the lobby and rooftop pool can get lively and crowded in high season or on busy days, more than a small boutique, so if you want real quiet and privacy you'll have to factor that in. Last, it sits in town near the mall and a main road, so some street-facing rooms may catch traffic noise or neighborhood buzz at times. Light sleepers should ask for a higher floor or an inward-facing room. Overall these are understandable trade-offs for an in-town lifestyle hotel at this price, as long as you book it for what it is.

Our take

After reading through a lot of real reviews, Hue Hotels and Resorts Puerto Princesa is a hotel that sells bright, modern lifestyle design, a young good-mood vibe, a city-view rooftop pool and lounge as its highlight, a central location next to the mall with walkable shops and food, and solid 4-star value you can actually reach. If your trip picture is having a stylish stay with character as an in-town base for the first or last night, then heading out to the Underground River and Honda Bay on day trips and coming back up to the rooftop pool for a drink over the city in the evening, this fits neatly. It's best for couples, families and travelers who value design, convenience and an accessible price over sea views or the quiet privacy of a beachfront resort. But if the heart of your trip is quiet seaside time with a private beach outside your room, this in-town location may not be the answer. Overall we give it 8.8/10. Pick it for the design, the location and the value, and you'll have a convenient, fun and memorable base in Puerto Princesa.