Sunshine Place Boracay 

I've always liked staying in a place not just close to the beach front but exactly in the beach front where I don't have to go down the elevator and walk through the lobby or the pool or the restaurant of what most "beach front" hotels offer. This place offers beach right outside your doorstep. Located at Station 1, aka the high-end location, you'll be surprised at how budget-friendly the room rates are. I consider it as a local needle in a commercial/franchise haystack. On their website, you'll only see the photos and rates but there are basically two types of room you could choose from, the old room and the new, but don't get me wrong, they serve their purpose well. I'd say the old room should be considered if up to 4 people are staying, and the new room if 2. It's because their old rooms offer bigger spaces. I stayed here for 4 nights during the summer of 2013 and 2014 with my friends and they gave us the same rate when we told them that we were going to stay here again for the 2nd time. I have stayed at a mainstream hotel as well in 2009 and it was good but here is just better. In a mainstream island where everything is becoming mainstream, a touch of local is a treasure usually ignored. It may not be the best but it's definitely my go-to place to stay in Boracay.