Help Me Plan My Cordillera Vacation

[crad]

I'm giving it 2 weeks, leaving Manila after All Souls. So yes I know it will be cold. For the first time ever I am bringing a fleece with me to the Philippines and also I will be bringing a blanket from England in case a hotel does not have a good one, plus woolly hat and gloves for my friend.

so I get off the bus at Baguio. What do I do then.

where do I hire a motorbike, Baguio or elsewhere. If I can't get a motorbike then I'm not going. Are they really easily available to hire everywhere. Or just in a select few places.

itinerary and guesthouse suggestions welcomed.

[BrettGC]

Never been there myself so really interested to hear any feedback given on this. 

 

Edit:  SAO has been on my back for a cooler clime holiday within PI lol

Edited June 24, 2014 by BrettGC

[crad]

my friend who is from Davao but working in Manila (her job finishes a matter of days before I arrive) is looking forward to freezing her butt off. But I'm not sure I am. It is going to be feckin' freezing particularly on a motorbike at night.

 

I suggested Puerto Galera but she said no. She's been before and didn't like it. She said too many cheap girls, just like girls say there are too many cheap girls in Colon in Cebu city.

[Jack Peterson]

I'm giving it 2 weeks, leaving Manila after All Souls. So yes I know it will be cold. For the first time ever I am bringing a fleece with me to the Philippines and also I will be bringing a blanket from England in case a hotel does not have a good one, plus woolly hat and gloves for my friend. so I get off the bus at Baguio. What do I do then. where do I hire a motorbike, Baguio or elsewhere. If I can't get a motorbike then I'm not going. Are they really easily available to hire everywhere. Or just in a select few places. itinerary and guesthouse suggestions welcomed.

 

 

 

Like Brett, i have never been, although, I have heard a lot of good things about the whole area.

 

I stored this web site away for a rainy day, maybe today, is that rainy day!

Hope it may be of some use to you.

 

 

http://www.gobaguio.com/general.html#.U6k1HpSSxCA

 

 

JP :tiphat:

[BrettGC]

my friend who is from Davao but working in Manila (her job finishes a matter of days before I arrive) is looking forward to freezing her butt off. But I'm not sure I am. It is going to be feckin' freezing particularly on a motorbike at night.

 

I suggested Puerto Galera but she said no. She's been before and didn't like it. She said too many cheap girls, just like girls say there are too many cheap girls in Colon in Cebu city.

 

Provincial jealousy, gotta love it. 

[earthdome]

As the resident expert on Baguio I will try to answer some of your questions.

 

From Manila take the Victory Liner bus to Baguio. Cost 455 pesos. They have a bus station in Pasay on EDSA and in Cubao.

 

Being a tourist destination there are transient rentals everywhere. There are people walking around holding signs for transient rentals. A lower cost hotel I used that I found acceptable was the Cosmopolitan Hotel on Naguilian Rd a short walk from Burnham Park. As I recall it was around $40 USD per night including breakfast.

 

Note that taxis are relatively inexpensive and fair in Baguio. Normal taxi fares within Baguio will only run 50-100 pesos.

 

I have no idea if there are motorbike rentals. I would expect you could find something seeing as this is a tourist destination. There are 6-10 advertisements in the weekly paper here, the Midland Courier, for car/suv rentals.

 

Baguio has many things to attract tourists. One rule of thumb is to get out in the morning to do things, especially if you want to see the mountain views.
This is due to the weather pattern here. Mornings typically are clear and sunny but in the afternoon it starts clouding up and you could get rain.

 

Regarding tourist things to do in and around Baguio, here is a partial listing.

 

If you are looking for good inexpensive Filipino food a good choice would be Good Taste or Jack's. Both have two locations in the downtown area.

I prefer the Good Taste location close to City Hall, they have seating for over 500 people.

 

On Marcos Highway on the way up the mountains to Baguio there is PUGAD Adventure. Many things to do and they have the most extreme zip line I have seen in the Philippines. Just google them to find out more.

 

The Red Lion Pub is the Baguio expat hangout. Located at the corner of Leonardwood Rd and Gen Luna Rd.

 

The White House, purported to be haunted, where Japanese officers tortured prisoners, now has a bamboo art museum. This is on Leonardwood Rd.

 

Further out Leonardwood Rd are the Botanical Garden, the summer Presidential Mansion and Wrights Park with horse rides. Even further out that way is Mines View Park.

 

Camp John Hay is a former army base turned economic development zone. Alot of open space with commercial developments here and there. There is a butterfly sanctuary and paintball there.

 

Going out Isan Rd there is the Ben Cab Museum. Ben Cab is a famous Filipino artist and the museum is full of his and other artist works along with historical Ifugao items.

 

Further out are the Isan hot springs. I have not been there but heard good reports.

 

There is Kennon Rd, the original mountain road into Baguio. There are many waterfalls and other tourist stops on that road. Kennon Rd can be very dangerous during the rainy and typhoon season due to landslides.

 

Downtown you have Burnham Park with the lake and small boats you can rent. There are some nice new fountains at the park.

 

Visitors are also welcome at the Philippine Military Academy located here in Baguio.

 

Some people hike up to the top of Mt. Sta Thomas, the tallest mountain in Baguio to get a good view.

 

A short ride north of Baguio is La Trinadad where the large strawberry fields are.

 

With 2 weeks you will have time to do some things outside of Baguio in the Cordillera region.

 

Going east out of Baguio is Ambuklao Rd. This road is 100km long going east to the Pan Asian Highway. Turning it into a 2 lane cement road was just completed 5 years ago. On that road is Ambuklao dam. From Ambuklao Rd you can go north to Mt. Pulag. The second tallest mountain in the Philippines at almost 10,000 feet. There are also some caves in that area if you like to spelunk and guided tours to hike to the summit. The middle part of that 100km drive to the Pan Asian highway is like driving through a national forest. Very little development on the road. A nice mountain drive.

 

Sagada is a 5 hour drive north of Baguio. Sagada is famous for its hanging stone coffins, caves, spelunking and waterfall.

 

A 3 hour drive east of Sagada, past Bontoc, are the world famous Banaue rice terraces.

 

Thats the best I can do for now. Enjoy your visit.

Edited June 25, 2014 by earthdome

[crad]

I have no idea if there are motorbike rentals. I would expect you could find something seeing as this is a tourist destination.

 

motorbike hire is absolutely, 100% ESSENTIAL. To the extent that nothing else matters. No motorbike hire, and at an affordable price too (300-400 a day max) and we're not going. It is that simple. There is no way I'm going to hire a bike in Angeles and drive all the way up there as a couple of other people have suggested I do. It is not that I could not do it. It is because I would not want to.

[crad]

once I have a bike sorted, the next thing is a good quality map of the region. Guesthouses and restaurants don't matter. They are no important as you can always get bed and food pretty cheap especially up there when aircon is even less required than elsewhere in the Philippines. With a bike and a map, then I can make a plan. I could extend the time as well, from 2 weeks which has got to be the minimum, to 3 weeks. But no more than 3 weeks.

[earthdome]

I have no idea if there are motorbike rentals. I would expect you could find something seeing as this is a tourist destination.

 

motorbike hire is absolutely, 100% ESSENTIAL. To the extent that nothing else matters. No motorbike hire, and at an affordable price too (300-400 a day max) and we're not going. It is that simple. There is no way I'm going to hire a bike in Angeles and drive all the way up there as a couple of other people have suggested I do. It is not that I could not do it. It is because I would not want to.

 

You might try to do an internet search for "motorbike rental baguio".

[crad]

I could but motorbike hire is not usually the kind of thing that works online, I have given my friend phone numbers of various budget accommodation places in Baguio to try as even though she is Bisaya it is better if she speaks to them in Tagalog than I do in English.

 

In the Philippines, unlike Thailand, it almost never occurs to guesthouses to have an ancillary motorbike rental service as an extra revenue generator. They are just weak, when it comes to the tourism business basically. I have not visited places before, because I was not confident I would be able to rent a motorbike. No bike, no trip. If I am not confident that I can sort one, then I am not going.