Last Frontier Beach Resort

Rooms and decor

Picture turning off El Nido's main road into a small resort hidden in a coconut grove and green gardens by the beach. The town's engine noise fades, leaving only palm fronds in the wind and soft waves - that is the first charm of Last Frontier Beach Resort, an adults-only boutique on the south-side Corong-Corong beach. It is built in traditional Filipino style, a handful of thatched-roof wooden bungalows scattered among the trees for a warm local feel that blends into nature, clearly apart from the usual concrete resort. The rooms and bungalows are few in number and decorated in a simple tropical-local style that leans on blending with nature rather than full-on luxury. Woodwork, thatched roofs, and traditional Filipino details make it feel more like a seaside holiday house than a hotel, and many rooms open onto green gardens or the sea, catching the breeze and the sound of the waves. Inside, the focus is clean, airy, and functional, with comfortable beds and a small balcony or sitting nook for morning coffee or an afternoon book. Because it is a small adults-only resort, the room area is especially quiet, and plenty of reviews praise the rooms as clean and well kept.

Food and amenities

The heart of a stay here is the sunset-facing beachfront and the beach bar everyone talks about. Corong-Corong is El Nido's south-side beach that faces the open sea, making it one of the best-known spots for sunset in the area. In the evening the orange-gold light spreads across the water over the horizon and the limestone islands of Bacuit Bay, a scene reviews almost unanimously call memorable. Right on the sand, the beach bar is the resort's center, where you nurse a cold drink, listen to the waves, and lean back to wait for the sunset. Just behind it is a small outdoor pool to cool off in a shaded setting, better suited to easy relaxing than swimming laps. The beach itself is for sitting and strolling more than serious swimming, since the water is shallow with some rock at low tide. For clear water and snorkeling, the resort arranges Bacuit Bay island tours such as Tour A and Tour C out to lagoons, hidden beaches, and snorkel spots, then you come back to close the day with sunset at the beach bar.

Location and getting there

The resort sits on Corong-Corong beach, the south side of El Nido town that faces the open sea, which is why it is one of the area's best-loved sunset spots. It is quieter and more private than the busy town center, yet old El Nido town is only about 5 to 10 minutes away by car or tuk-tuk, where you will find more restaurants and food variety for dinner along with the town's nightlife. El Nido airport is roughly 20 to 30 minutes away. The location also makes it easy to set off on Bacuit Bay island tours in just a few minutes, so you can balance a calm beach base with quick access to the water.

Things to know before booking

To talk straight and help you decide - the first thing to understand is that this is a small boutique resort. Its charm is the quiet and the privacy, but the trade-off is fewer facilities than a big resort: there is no full spa, no gym, and no choice of restaurants, so anyone expecting an activity-packed resort should adjust expectations from the start. Second is the beach - Corong-Corong generally suits the view and the sunset more than swimming, since the water is shallow with some rock or coral at low tide, so for proper clear-water swimming you should take an island tour. Third, it is adults-only, so it is not suited to families with young children, and because it is small and popular with couples, rooms are limited and fill up fast in high season - book well ahead if you have your eye on it. Finally, the Corong-Corong location is quieter than in town, but reaching a wider range of restaurants or the nightlife means a 5-to-10-minute ride into old El Nido town. If you understand from the outset that you are choosing calm, privacy, and the sunset view over the completeness and convenience of a big in-town resort, you will not be disappointed.

Our take

Having read through a lot of real reviews, Last Frontier Beach Resort sells a quiet, private stay on the sunset-facing beach with real charm. It is a small adults-only boutique in a coconut grove on Corong-Corong beach, built in traditional Filipino style, with a beach bar and a small pool to sit and relax, and a spot that puts you a few minutes from town or a Bacuit Bay island tour. If your trip vision is escaping the crowds for a calm stay with someone special, waking to green gardens and the sea, cooling off in the pool in the afternoon, then closing the day with a cold drink and the sunset at the beach bar, it delivers. It suits couples and anyone after quiet privacy by the sea best, while travelers with young kids, those wanting full facilities, or those set on swimming off the beach may find it less ideal. Overall we give it 9.2/10 - choose it for the calm, the privacy, and a hard-to-find sunset view, and you get a quiet corner of El Nido that stays with you.