Dedon Island: Shoeless luxe

As the plane hovered above Siargao Island, the stunning beauty of lush mangroves gave an indication of what we would experience at Dedon Island.  Every positive superlative word used to describe it is totally true. The resort, owned by Bobby Dekeyser, famous for its namesake furniture, lives up to its promise: “A barefoot state of mind.” 

The Dedon experience is definitely world-class. While the resort itself is Architectural Digest-worthy, it is really the people who manage it that make the experience simply spectacular. The maximum number of guests is 36. An hour after we arrived, I Vibered my daughter: “I don’t want to go home!”

 Matt and Morag Koerner are the co-general managers of Dedon. Matt,  an  American, makes it a point to meet every guest at the airport. He also doubles up as the driver of the Dedon jeepney, the most luxurious jeepney in the Philippines.

Service is a  natural ethic among  all of the people there — foreigners and Filipinos alike. They will bend over backwards so that the guest need only ask, and if it is within their power, the guest  shall receive.

We were looking for fireflies. Matt so willingly obliged by bringing us to a talisay tree beside his residence, turned off all the tree lights, and in five minutes,  the fireflies appeared, right on cue.

We asked for lobster.  There were no lobsters in the market or from their fishermen contacts.  Mo lucked out and found a lady walking on the beach with a bag of fresh mangrove crabs. We had crab ravioli and steamed crabs for dinner!

The only Sunday morning Mass was at 6:30 a.m. in town, which is 30 minutes away. Matt brought out the Dedon jeepney, drives for us, and waits for us until the long provincial Mass was over.

Sean Heartley was born in Uganda and has always had a passion for the African bush. Three years ago, he was the manager of a luxury safari camp, the Singita Mara Plains. Bobby Dekeyser visited the camp, met Sean, hired him as general manager before purchasing what was Pansukian Resort and naming it Dedon Island.

Sean managed the two-year construction of the resort, making sure that each villa was functional and comfortable. He did not hesitate to tear down something already built if it was not. The bathroom in the villa is a good example of something that took four remakes before he was completely satisfied.

His current position as “adventure manager” suits him perfectly. He has a passionate regard for the environment, for animals, and for the inclusion of local input. He maintains that locals know more about their environment than any foreigner. He did this in the African bush, he does it in Siargao. This openness allows him to keep each guest’s adventure appetite satisfied.

We certainly had our first taste of “adventure”  through the principal means of transport on the island, the habal habal, a motorcycle with an extended seat, so that five people — plus the driver — can ride on it at a time.  Now that’s pretty exciting for seniors like us!

Sean brought us to the airport and he did not leave until the aircraft took off. We were told that flights from Siargao are sometimes cancelled. We wouldn’t have minded at all if it were.

Ashley Appleton is a 27-year-old chef from Maine.  This young lady  has already previously worked as chef in tall ships,  big boats with sails, which have gone all over the world: the HMS Bounty, The Concordia, the Roald Amudsen, and the Flagship Niagara.

Ashley came to be chef at Dedon upon the invitation of Matt, a long-time family friend. Since she has worked in Africa, Thailand, and Singapore, she brings the delicious flavors of her experiences to the Dedon kitchen.

Her kitchen is as welcoming as she is and her food is fresh, healthy, flavorful. She sources the vegetables from the property’s organic garden and from another organic farmer in Siargao. She serves  fresh fish that she buys from the market in General Luna.

Her desserts are irresistible and sized just right. She serves smoked bacon done in-house and  dehydrated pineapple, coconut and mangoes as snacks. Meals are delicious, but not heavy.

All four hectares of the resort are ably run by four foreigners and fewer than 50 Filipinos, all well-trained, efficient, eager to be of service, extremely knowlegeable. Their training includes knowing the names of each and every Dedon furniture used in the resort.

Meticulous attention to detail and functionality, even more meticulous attention to guests — these made for our wonderful weekend in Dedon Island.