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not so old china hand
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Arrived at stupid o clock this morning. Two weeks to head wherever I fancy.. Staying here one night then on to Subic for a few days diving. Then where the mood takes me. One thought is to explore North Luzan since iI haven't been that way before.

Oh the joy of an Internet connection that runs at a decent speed

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Jack Peterson
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Oh the joy of an Internet connection that runs at a decent speed

 

?????????????  :rolleyes:

 

Morning All

:tiphat:

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mogo51
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I will be heading to North Luzon also in a month or so.  I have done a bit of homework and have a friend up that way.  Vigan City is a good central spot to see the area, day trips etc.  Dont know for sure, but think you will find places up there for scuba diving, enjoy your holiday.

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not so old china hand
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Apologies for double posting. Just getting used to Tapatalk. Not having the Great Firewall and Big Brother watching got me carried away.

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chris49
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Arrived at stupid o clock this morning. Two weeks to head wherever I fancy.. Staying here one night then on to Subic for a few days diving. Then where the mood takes me. One thought is to explore North Luzan since iI haven't been that way before.

Oh the joy of an Internet connection that runs at a decent speed

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When you get up here, farther north, I would say north of La Union, which is connected to Baguio and they are both cosmopolitan, or semi cosmopolitan. But another 140km, that's from La Union to Vigan and maybe beyond, it does get progressively quieter less ex pats the further you go north.

 

Meanwhile in Subic, you do have Bataan, Corriegedor, day trips for diving. Night life, Barangay Baretto...and you have trips a bit further north. Zambales, up into Pangasinan, 100 Islands. I haven't been all the way, only Northern Zambales, but reports on the 100 Islands are good. With only 2 weeks to work with, I would stay around that area. One pain in the a**e, is that a lot of resorts have barb wired off the best beaches. You are forced to pay up to 300/day to get a decent swim. Not all bad though, you have access to showers and toilets, hotel pool and services.

 

Diving up north? Not sure, these are unchartered waters as far as foreigners go. I have a swim out, but I am also warned about currents off shore. You would have to know what you are doing. Bataan is better.

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chris49
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Avoid Baguio. Forget everything you ever heard about it.

 

I have played golf up there a few times. If ever I went back that's the only reason. Even then...

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not so old china hand
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Thanks for the information it's very useful. The diving I was looking at is on the wrecks in Subic Bay.. Vegan is certainly one of the places I would like to visit.. So is the 100 Islands.

Two weeks seems like a long time but almost certainly if I find a spot I like I will probably hang around. That's the joy of travelling solo.[emoji2]

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chris49
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Vigan City mate, I live about 9k north, drop me a PM if you are coming.

 

The place is nice, I'm not much of a tourist, yet on a few occasions I heard people up from Manila raving about the place, so it must be.

 

Like some of those historical villages in the UK. Cobbled streets and all.

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not so old china hand
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Chris cheers will do if I head for Vigan

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earthdome
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Vigan is very nice. All the old spanish era buildings are intact, many turned into boutique hotels. Great place to visit for a couple. They have a great light/music water fountain show in the evening. Wife and I spent several nights there on our honey moon.

 

Another great place if you like the beach is pagudpud ilocos norte. That is at the very northern tip of Luzon. Haven't made it there yet but have driven past it.

 

One of the better places to surf is San Juan in La Union.

 

A few places in the mountains you might like are the Banaue rice terraces and Sagada. These are about 180km north of Baguio. You can also do a hike to the peak of Mt. Pulag, the second tallest mountain in the Philippines at almost 10,000 ft. maybe 40km from Baguio. There are also places in northern luzon where you can go white water rafting. Check that out in areas in Kalinga province.

 

The 100 Islands are nice. Visited there recently. There is a nice zip line over half a km long from Governor Island to another island. Get there early in the morning so you can enjoy the entire day. Or you can rent a cottage and spend the evening out on one of the islands.

 

Baguio would be great if it wasn't for all the darn tourists! Lived there almost 2 years. Outside of Baguio is Pugad an outdoor adventure park. They have the most awesome zipline I have seen so far in the Philippines.

 

Have fun! 

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