Perfect getaway for families

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

IF LIFE can be compared to a beach, then Bluejaz Beach Resort and Water Park would be it. Just five to 10 minutes away from Davao City, it has everything a whole family can ask for.

Three water slides for children, two giant slides for adults, infinity pool, cafe bar, fine dining, zipline, water activities, an open field for soccer, a pavilion for parties, and cozy rooms resting. Don’t forget the white sand beach with crystal clear waters and the kaleidoscopic rays of sunset.

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Bluejaz is located at the Island Garden City of Samal, a second-class city which has established itself as vacation site, thanks to its white sand beaches with 118.5 kilometers of continuous coastline and pristine clear waters.

"The slides are 130 meters long and consist of two serpentine flume rides that drop 30 meters from top to bottom," said owner Jazmin Middleton, who is the president of Davao RJM Properties, Inc. “The slides were one of the things that we wanted to do to help the tourism industry in the island."

The slides were designed by the Whitewater Industries of Canada and installed by Noel Nicolas of CC Nicolas Pool and Spa Builders.

“Whitewater Industries have been designing water parks and waterslides for the last 25 years around the world,” Jazmin points out. “In fact, most of the waterslides for the major theme parks in the United States come from them. With that, we are confident in the safety of our slides.”

The water slides are not for the faint-hearted and children. This must be the reason why Bluejaz also built a play area for kids with three water slides so children can also have some fun.

If water slides are not your thing, you can always take a dip at the enthralling infinity pool. “We enhanced the concept of our pool by adding a second children’s pool below it,” Jazmin says. The result: a stunning and fun waterfall attraction for the children. The water from the top drops into the pool below it – just like a waterfall.

If you’re a diving aficionado, you can easily rent some of its highly reliable diving equipment as well as snorkels from the dive center. “We also have a number of water sport activities for our guests,” says Ian Paul Pescador, the resort’s operations manager. “Right now, we have banana boat rides, sea-doo seat pulling, waterskiing, wakeboarding and parasailing. For kids, we have the paddle boats and kayaks.”

The resort offers acoustics night during Fridays and Saturdays. A big bonus: fire dancing. “This December, we will have fireworks every Saturday night,” Pescador informs.

In some instances, the resort also host some beauty contests (as it is prohibited to don bikini in public affairs in Davao City) and concerts.

One of its latest innovations, perhaps the only in Samal, is Jazule. Actually, it is an air-conditioned coffee shop by the sea. “We have foreign customers in the coffee shop and this is what they are used to,” said Richard, Jazmin’s husband. He added that foreigners enjoy hanging around by the beach and watching the sun go up or down over coffee or beer.

Although it only started its operation in the summer of 2008, Bluejaz is now one of the top resort destinations. In fact, Filipinos are not the only people flocking to the resort. People from Australia, Canada, China, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, and the United States have been mesmerized by its beauty and amenities.

“We are very excited that we have become an important part of the big picture when it comes to tourism in the Philippines and especially here on Samal Island,” Jazmin states. “It gives us a lot of personal pride that we have become well known in such a short time.”

In terms of accommodations, Bluejaz has some safe, convenient, and comfortable places to stay. Guests can choose from any of its elegant Jazmin rooms, White houses, and Fiji-inspired cottages. It has also presidential and ambassador suites, which are built on top of the beach.

Visitors need not worry about foods. The Bling Bling Bar offers various cuisines and mouth-watering dishes. It also has a lot of drinks to choose from. Whiskey, rum, wine, beer – name it, the bar has it!

Bluejaz is located barangay Calicic of Babak district. It operates its own passenger boat service from Davao City (at JP Laurel Boulevard) to the resort and then back. On weekdays, two boats – Christian and Erin (named after the couple’s two children) – are ferrying passengers to the resort. On weekends and big event occasions, when there are many passengers, the so-called pirate ship also sails to bring visitors to the resort.

Bluejaz is just five minutes from the jetty near Maryknoll. “The boat ride is just like taking a jeep from Matina to the downtown area,” Pescador claims.