Banaue, Sagada & Baguio Travel Budget Guide

"Tara, Sagada nalang tayo!"

Those were the words my co-workers & I agreed on when planning a "biglaang outing" for the branch. Even before we finally decided where to spend the long weekend last August, Sagada has been in my bucketlist. I really wanted to go to Sagada because I heard many good things about it, like exploring caves which I never tried yet, trekking for hours just to reach the falls and what really made me more excited about it was the hanging coffins featured in "Biyahe ni Drew"  .

Sagada is located in Mountain Province. It's about 12-15 hours away from Manila and about 6 hours away from Baguio. 

HOW TO GET THERE

You can reach Sagada on public transportation via any of the three routes: 

Via Banaue:

This route takes more or less 12 hours. Manila to Banaue bus takes about 9 hours. Passes through different provinces like Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya. From Banaue Bus Terminal, a short tricycle ride will lead you to the town proper where you can catch buses to Bontoc. It will take 2 hrs to reach Bontoc and another 45 mins from Bontoc to Sagada.

Via Baguio:

Victory Liner is one of the known bus line to Baguio City. Buses leave every hour. It takes 6-8 hours to reach Baguio. From Baguio, you may take a cab to Dangwa Bus Station. Locate the Lizardo Transit Station. First bus to Bontoc leaves at 6:30AM and last leaves at 1PM. Trip would take 6-7 hours. 

Via Bontoc: 

Bontoc is the capital of Mountain Province. It is 12 hours away from Manila and about 45 mins away from Sagada. 

Cable Tours
E. Rodriguez Q.C near the Trinity College
Cell. 0918-521-6790

Since we are a group of 10, our boss ought to take a package for less hassle and stress. We had a van and passed via Banaue. We took a package that only cost 2900/each for 10pax. Not bad, right? :)

Taking the Banaue route gave us the chance to see the beauty of Banaue Rice Terraces also known as the Hagdan Hagdan Palayan. These terraces were carved into the mountains of Ifugao by ancestors of the indigenous people. 

WHERE TO STAY: 

There are many accommodations you'll find around the town. But since it was part of the package, we stayed at Tinagtago Lodge & Restaurant which was just few minutes away from the hanging coffin. Yaayyy! Haha!! 

 

300/head not bad.

 WHAT TO DO:

Spelunking in Sumaguing Cave & Lumiang Burial Cave

The highlights of visiting Sagada is to explore Sumaguing Cave and Lumiang Cave. Exploring Sumaguing Cave was one of the most tiring, yet exciting, fulfilling experience I've ever done. Experiencing traffic inside the cave, seeing big chambers, rock formations, stepping on slippery rocks, and touching Bat poo just to hold on to something is one of the unique experience I've ever had. You will have a tour guide carrying a lamp to guide you in the whole tour. It would take 2-3 hours to finish the entire route, so make sure you stay with your tour guides. Cave connection takes spelunkers from Lumiang Cave to the entrance of the main chambers of Sumaguing Cave. The entire activity would take 3-4hrs.

During our tour here, we didn't try the Lumiang Cave anymore since we were all so tired of exploring Sumaguing. But the experience was really unforgettable!! This is a must try!

When will this be over??hahaha

I can do this!! :D

Trek to Bomod-ok Falls

I never thought trekking just to see this falls would be so hard! Since I do not climb mountains most of the time, I do not trek and this is my weakness, it was really hard for me. BUT... I conquered and faced my fears haha!!! What an achievement! Doing this, esp to those who are not fond of this kind of adventure, would make you think twice, but I tell you, once you are able to finish this entire activity, you would actually be so proud of yourself!! haha!  :D

Breathtaking!! this reminded me of Katibawasan Falls in Camiguin

WE'RE HAVING FUNNN!

and after 90mins of trekking going back.... 

WOHOOO!! We made it!! :D

kung sa rafting may HighFive, sa trekking din!! hahaha

Kiltepan Sunrise

No sunrise =( but still worth seeing! :)

Echo Valley and Hanging Coffins

hanging out of coverage due to bad weather haha

 

 Lake Danum

 

Sagada Weaving

WHERE TO EAT: 

SAGGAS is where you get your tour guides

Pinikpikan/ Adobo

yoghurttt!! ASIM! pero masarap naman

@ Rock-Inn

@ Salt & Pepper

On our last day, our route was Sagada to Baguio then Baguio to Manila. Our experience here was 6 hours of zigzag road.. so expect what to feel. haha! We arrived in La Trinidad, Benguet where Strawberry Plantation is located wherein you can also experience strawberry picking. This is also where we bought our pasalubong. Btw, it took us 14 hours to reach Manila! woohoo!! What a long longggg ride! :)

ITINERARY: 

Since this is a tour package, I didn't make a DIY itinerary for this tour. All is set. No hassle, No stress. :)

DAY 0

2100 ETD to Banaue

DAY 1

0600 ETA Banaue
0700 ETD to Sagada
1000 ETA Sagada
Check-in
1200 Lunch
1300 Proceed to Lumiang & Sumaguing Cave
1700 estimate time of return from cave
1900 Dinner

DAY 2

0600 Wake up call
0700 proceed to Fedelisan
0730 start of Bomod-ok falls trek
0830 ETA Bomod-ok falls 
1030 Trek back to Fedelisan
1200 ETA Fedelisan
1230 Lunch
1400 Proceed to Sagada Weaving, St. Mary's Church & Echo Valley, Hanging coffins
1600 Visit Pottery House
1730 Sunset viewing Lake Danum
1900 Dinner

DAY 3
0500 Wake up call; Check-out
0545 Sunrise Viewing Kiltepan Tower
0630 Breakfast
0730 ETD Sagada to Baguio
1300 late lunch
1400 ETA Strawberry Plantation
1600 ETD Baguio
1030 ETA Manila

For more information about this tour, contact:
Mark Anthony Cortez
09432072039

If you plan to follow this package, estimate budget needed for this would be 3500-4000php depending on how much you will spend on your food and pasalubong. :)

Overall, i loved the falls!!! and the experience was very challenging! :) be back soon? ahh maybe after 10years, just to visit and see the hanging coffins up close. haha!!! 

Always remember, "There are no shortcuts to any place worth going". #happytraveling!!! :D -@unstoppablewanderer

NEVER GIVE UP! :D

**Thanks to Jefferson Dumandan for some of the photos!:)
 

Travel Guide: Surigao-Davao

It's my third time to step foot in Mindanao and you maybe wondering what makes me keep coming back. It's simply because 4 days is not enough to see all the beautiful places that Mindanao has to offer! And yes, after watching #Biyahenidrew's series about Enchanted River, I was like.... "WOW!!! I want to go there!!" Well, of course, my forte is to always feed my passion to go places around the Philippines, so without even any idea how to get to surigao, I immediately booked a promo fare to Davao. 

The challenge in making this trip is that I had to stick to my usual budget of 7k with pasalubong already. BUT, since we were only 3 who pushed through in this trip, our budget reached 8k... Oopppps.... I know you're thinking right now and saying, "Ang Mahal naman" or "It's too much to spend that much in a local destination". Well, yeah, I think this is the most expensive trip I've done but wait and see why it reached that much :)

We arrived in Davao Airport around 7am already so from the airport we walked a few mins to the highway and rode a bus going to Ecoland Bus terminal. Ecoland Bus terminal is around 30-45mins away from the airport. This is were all buses are situated where in their routes are going to different parts of Mindanao. We rode Bachelor Express since this is the only bus line that goes to Mangagoy, Surigao. Reading blogs, I was ready for a 6-hour ride to Surigao, but due to bad weather and "too many" bus stops, it took us more than 7 hours to reach Mangagoy Terminal. Fare cost 300. Before our trip here, I really wanted to search for someone who would bring us around Surigao since we don't know the place, And thank God I was able to find this blog (which I even forgot) wherein she included the number of the driver of the habal-habal they rode, his name is Kuya Loloy, so I contacted him and haggled for a cheap price to Enchanted Rive & Tinuy-an Falls. By the way, habal-habal is another name for motorcycle taxi which most provinces use. We were supposed to have our tinuy-an Falls tour on our first day but since we arrived late and weather is not good, we opt to move our tour for the next day. We checked-in at Paper Country Inn. I would recommend this because the staffs are very accomodating and their rates are very reasonable. We took a room for only 900php. Cheap right? :)

On our 2nd day, we met with kuya Loloy 7am. We packed our things and left our things in the reception area.First destination is Tinuy-an Falls. Tinuy-an Falls is located in Bislig City, Surigao. It is known to be the "Niagara Falls of the Philippines" because of its 95 meters wide & a height of 55 meters. When we went here, it was rainy so even if the rain stopped, water is still muddy but still, we loved the view. And you can also go near the falls using a raft when the current is not strong. A tour guide will guide you going on top of the falls, take note, they have an underwater camera to take pictures of you so make sure to bring your own memory card. 

going up.

going down.

after staying for a while, bathing on its cool water and under its falls, we went back down to go on to our next destination- Enchanter River. Tinuy-an falls is far from Enchanted River, its like an estimate of 45mins to an hour of habal2x ride. But like what I always say, there are no shortcuts to any place worth going. :) Enchanted River is known for its majestic beauty of clear deep blue water. It is located Hinatuan, Surigao. People say that no one knows how deep this river is, even professional divers failed to answer it. What's exciting about this is that during 12:30pm and 4:00pm they let the swimmers out of the river because they will start feeding the fishes. It's really amazing because you would really enjoy staring at its charming beauty while fishes swim around. It would be better if you would go to these places on a weekday to avoid the crowd. They also offer island hopping for 160/hr. Just make sure that you'd be back after an hour and don't miss the fish feeding time. 
Oh before I forget, when we arrived early morning, around 930-10am, water was like blue green, but after our island hopping, before 12pm, it became very clear blue water. Very Amazinggg!

Kuya Loloy & his Habal-habal

At exactly 4pm, we had to leave for Davao, because bus schedules are from 2am-4pm only daily. But since we had a very long trip using the bus, we agreed to take the van instead since price is just the same. Van ride only took 4 and a half hours to Davao. Imagine the 3hrs difference. It only had 1 stop over so I would recommend that you ride a van back & forth. We arrived in Davao by 8:30pm, guess what, we had no van reservations for our day tour tomorrow. So we decided to just get a taxi from the terminal to our hotel then ask the driver if he does day tour. And yes, we've done that and tried to haggle from 3k to 2500php (that's cheaper than what was offered to me by a van company when I tried looking for one here in Manila). So that night, day tour tomorrow is set. We checked in at Royal House Travel Inn & Suites located in C.M Recto near food stores etc. The hotel was good, it had free breakfast, but nothing really special about the room for the price we paid. By the way, you can get discounts if you book 2 weeks before your arrival. :)

On our 3 day, we woke up 6am since breakfast starts at 6am and kuya Andres (taxi driver) would be picking us up by 7am. Our first tour for the day would be Eden Nature Park. This is located a hour away from the city. The highlight of this day is the Skycycle. Wherein after trying this, I felt that my Zipline experience in Bukidnon was really not that scary at all. haha!! :) We also went to Japanese Tunnel, Philippine Eagle Nature Center, Davao Crocodile Farm, & Jack's Ridge.

Mickey Mouse Tomato

Now I love Sunflowers :)

So here is the reason why our travel became expensive. On our last day in Davao, we can't leave this place without going to Samal Island. Samal is the beach city of Davao. There are lots of resorts like Maxima Aqua Fun where you can experience the longest tarpaulin slide, or enjoy the white sand and crystal clear blue water of Kaputian Beach Park Resort at an affordable price. But what really caught my eye was Pearl Farm Resort. It took me days to decide whether to go to this resort or not cos its quite expensive. But looking on the photos and positive feedback it has received, I know it was worth the expense! We booked for their day tour package which includes boat transfer to and from Marina Wharf which is 30mins away from the city, Buffet lunch, welcome drinks upon arrival and complimentary use of recreational facilities. We arrived in Marina wharf at around 7:30am and at 8am grabbed the first trip so we can enjoy our day tour from 8am-4pm to the max. Upon arrival in Pearl Farm Resort we were mesmerized by the beauty of the place. I love their infinity pool, their cottages, in fact I loved everything about it. They also have a shuttle available wherein you can tour around the resort. There is also another island where they can transfer you anytime you just have to coordinate with any of their staffs. They say that this is where their most expensive cottages are located since it's like you own the island for yourself. Their buffet lunch was good, but of course, it wont compare to the food Vikings have. hahaha. A turn off to me here was their fruits, like Star Apple & Buko Juice, obviously, it was not fresh. But it's okay, overall I loved the place :)

a nice view from where I am seating while having lunch

We ended our tour by 4pm and reached Marina Wharf before 5pm. So kuya Andres, our driver picked us up again and brought us to a place where we can buy pasalubong and dropped us off the airport.

Kuya Andres and his taxi :)

Overall, our trip here was very "SULIT". Though we spent more than our usual budget, we can say it's worth it! :D

Expense Breakdown: (3pax)

DAY 1: Davao Airport- Surigao

P217   - Taxi (To NAIA3)

P293   - Breakfast

P45    - Bus fare ( Davao Airport- Ecoland Terminal

P900   - Bus fare (Mangagoy)

P190   - Lunch

P528   - Dinner

P2173

DAY 2: Tinuy-an Falls & Enchanted River

P150   - Entrance Fee Tinuy-an Falls

P150   - Tip

P90     - Entrance Fee Enchanted River

P45     - life vest

P15     - White Sand

P30     - Fish Cage

P160   - Banka

P560   - Food

P1300 - Habal-Habal

P25    - Trike (PCI-Terminal)

P900   - Van (Surigao-Davao)

P900   - Paper Country Inn

P75     - Taxi (Terminal- Royal House)

P471   - Dinner

P3150  - Royal House Travel Inn and Suites

P8021

DAY 3: Davao City Tour

P2500  - Taxi City Tour

P600    - Eden Nature Park Ent Fee & Snack

P360    - Shuttle

P600    - Skycycle

P150    - Phil Eagle

P150    - Japanese Tunnel

P60      - Jack's Ridge

*P200   - Davao Crocodile Park

P4420

Day 4: Pearl Farm Beach Resort

P7500  - Day Tour

P135    - Taxi to Marina Wharf

P225    - Buko Juice

P250    - Taxi (to Airport + Tip)

P600    - Terminal Fee

P8710

Total = P23,324/ 3 = P7,775

the remaining budget is for pasalubong

Contact Numbers: 

Paper Country Inn: (086) 853-3079

Kuya Loloy (Habal-habal): (0948) 5750496/ (0936) 6638329

Royal House Travel Inn & Suites: (082) 2273630

Kuya Andres (Taxi/Van): (0930) 2948760

Tip: Pearl Farm is optional. You can find cheaper resorts in Samal Island where in the rate of our Pearl Farm day tour can be good for an overnight stay in other resorts. If you're in a budget, try eating on cheaper restos or even in carinderias, just like we did on our 3rd and 4th day, since our budget is getting smaller and smaller. Bring some cup noodles too, it'll help you save for breakfast or snacks. For me, there's nothing wrong spending a little for your trip, because you worked for what you spend and it's not bad to give your self a treat once, twice or even thrice a year. :) Like what I always, "Traveling need not be expensive, all you have to do is budget your trip, spend and plan wisely." :) 

HAPPY TRAVELING, UNSTOPPABLEWANDERERS!!! :D