Coco Beach Resort

This small resort is situated in a quiet part of the beach overlooking towards Miele and with good sunsets. It is off the beaten track and quite a walk from the bus route but there are plenty of private taxis to call on for the 15 min journey to town. (Except on Sundays and cruise ship days). It is worth upgrading to one of the Beach facing villas which also have air conditioning. Snorkelling is excellent and there is a swimming pool also. We found the chalets very comfortable, the staff very friendly and helpful, prices reasonable with a two hour Happy Hour. Alternative restaurants are easy walks at resorts either side of Coco Beach. Not everything on the menu was available - but the island as a whole suffered from shortages.

I did not stay at the resort so can not review that but we ate dinner at the restaurant. My suggestion is to go some where else! There are plenty of great restaurants in Port Vila. Unfortunately, this is not one of them. The service was great, the tables are out on the water in a beautiful spot but the food was terrible. The menu was limited to start with and they had run out of 90% of it. The food tasted like it was caked in chemicals e.g. like chicken salt on the chips. The rest of the meal was so salty we could not finish it. The sauce on the dried out fish tasted like it was out of a bottle or jar. The salad was fresh and tasty but that was it. Very disappointing.

I’ve just been reading some other reviews before I began and I’m struggling to understand some of the negative comments. Coco Beach was on our short list because it very clearly advertises as Adults Only. Travelling in off season meant the resort was at low capacity which was incredibly peaceful for those of us there to unwind and relax which is precisely what we were able to do over 7 glorious days. This is an older style resort and based on our research - exactly what we expected. No organised activities, No Day Spa, No noise, Nothing nearby except another beach. Fresh simple food done well. Cold drinks and unassuming hosts who will do what they can to assist you - when you are polite. Fresh, clean bures with old style coral walls in the bathrooms. We chose a room with air-con due to the time of year. Rooms are serviced daily. Beds are comfy and linen is fresh and crisp although some pillows could do with an update. Our days were spent between the open air waterfront restaurant, which could do with some fans, loungers under a tree on the beach, the pool and the sea. Entire grounds are immaculate beautiful tropical gardens and swept daily. Incredible swimming at all tides due to a canal through the reef to allow boat access and plentiful sea life on and around the reef when snorkelling. We took our own gear because it was to be a main activity of our holiday and this wasn’t our first island trip. You never get decent gear in resorts. We took the water taxi to town one day and the trip on the bay was a little tour in itself. Even detoured to ferry some local school kids across the inlet on the way home. Another day we arranged a local bus driver to take us to Blue Lagoon (where we also snorkelled) and returned via 83 Islands Rum Distillery before lunch in town with our driver at his favourite ramen noodle joint. Picked up some snacks and drinks at the supermarket and that was us. Every FAQ in TA forums will tell you to do this. Back to the resort for the rest of our stay. It has been my experience that it is rare anywhere in the South Pacific Islands to stay at a unique small, peaceful resort that your entire stay will go off without a hitch. Nothing drastic happened and any glitches were dealt with smoothly and effectively. Remember that you are on Island Time and there is absolutely nothing you can or should want to do about it if your hosts are taking care of you. Go with what you DO have not complain about what you don’t. No-one should choose a place like this if they want to be amused. Chill out, relax and enjoy the magnificent sunsets. Or get up early just to sit on the dock and watch a cruise ship come in. Coco Beach truly allowed us to switch off, wind down and re-connect. Thanks to H and the team for your hospitality. Truly loved our time with you. Thank you te mass.

Coco beach was the friendliest resort. The view was amazing the food was excellent. The pool and ocean were Devine. It was secluded and a place to switch off completely . The manager and staff were very obliging and very friendly. Harim was very helpful and an interesting character . Had a lovely time there.

We went at the Coco beach Resort as a Family to spend the Christmas Lunch over there. Before we came we did a booking few days before. At the arrival they did not treat us well. They said they don't accept kids. You can imagine how they ruined our Christmas. They should inform us earlier as we did mention that we will take 4 kids. From a Local tourist

Drinks were expensive, however after buying two bottles of wine (XMAS dinner one night and a celebration in the room) we were informed that they were out of wine, so we could drink beer (Tusker). I don’t really drink beer. Over the next seven days we found the following: 1. The resort is on sale and the maintenance has been kept up, the faults and items needed maintenance were very obvious, lights broken, fans that either would not work or were not controllable. Bathrooms with cobblestone walls that were missing section that allowed the local critters access, crabs and lizards. 2. Everything is an extra, as an example the coffee at breakfast is a thimble sized cup of plunger coffee (terrible taste) if you ask for another then that is an additional 450 on the account. 3. The location is wonderful, and the water is fantastic. This however if offset by the fact that you can’t get out from the resort very easily. Water Taxi is probably the most convenient however this cost 1000 V each and each way so a trip to town to get anything or see the sights costs a$50. Additional: Night 2 we were told to go somewhere else as the resort was being used for a local Birthday Party and there would be no cooking. Night 4 we were told the cook had to take leave so there would be no local restaurant food. He had apparently worked too many shifts (really). The resort organized a taxi to get to town and find your own way back. (This was Christmas day. Our room (the upgraded one) had the following problems, Fan Faulty, toilet bowl loose (not cemented down), outside sun lounge broken, path lights broken. One wash bowl broken; the second bowl worked. The pool (saltwater) this pool was chlorine bombed and after jumping in it was found to be caustic, that is to say it actually left red welts on the skin, so basically at some stages un-usable. The use of resort equipment is all well and good, however sanitary precautions are not enforced, or even available, so things like diving masks and snorkels were a pass from me. To be honest there are a lot of other problems with this resort and after discussions with other guests, (who also booked with you) for the sake of brevity I have left these in my trip diary. In summary: The location is wonderful. However, it was more like a survivor episode, with everyone at the resort having their hand out for more money for even the smallest item, water $8 a bottle coffee $6 for dishwater.