its more fun in the philippines

P’s List: 5 Philippine Destinations I Won’t Get Tired of Visiting

Before I started flying to different international destinations, I’ve been going around different Philippine destinations. I remember in 2012, I had 4 trips in 4 consecutive weekends – I went to Cebu, then to Bacolod, Legaspi & Puerto Princesa. I may not have been to all 81 Philippine provinces, but I can say I’ve been to some of them.

Falling in love to a place you’ve been to maybe a cliché but it really happens. I enjoy every single place I visit but I don’t necessarily fall in love with it. It takes jaw-dropping views, fun & exciting inland & island tours, great company & tasty food for me to fall in love with a place. Today’s P’s List will feature 5 Philippine destinations where I can say I fell in love with & I won’t get tired of going back again & again.

Boracay

It may be the most touristy & commercial island destination in the country but it is still Boracay. The island’s white sand beaches, spectacular sunset & relaxing holiday vibe make it a unique beach destination. The island isn’t famous for nothing. I’ve been to the island a couple of times & I keep on coming back. It’s one of those islands where you can fly in, lie down in the fine white sand & just relax thinking about nothing.

Palawan

Continuously hailed as one of the world’s best islands, Palawan stole my heart since I visited the island in 2012. I’ve been to Puerto Princesa once, Coron once, Port Barton twice & El Nido four times & I still look forward to visiting the island again. Palawan has pristine beaches, world-class islands, stunning views & rich marine life. My favorite spots / activities in Palawan include Iwahig firefly watching activity in Puerto Princesa, Malcapuya Island & Kayangan Lake in Coron, Nacpan Beach, Big Lagoon & Entalula Island in El Nido & Turtle Point, Twin Reef & Maxima Island in Port Barton. It has everything an island destination can have; it is hands down my favorite domestic destination next to home.

Siquijor

I went on a spontaneous weekend trip to Siquijor with friends in July 2017. I feel in love with how simple & untouched everything is in the island. The island is relatively unknown compared to its neighbors but has the beautiful Paliton & Salagdoong Beaches, the one-of-a-kind Cambugahay Falls, the interesting Balete Tree & the old but preserved Lazi Church. I instantly feel in-love with the island on my first visit & I want to go back & explore it again.

Siargao

I may not be a surfer but I surely fell in love with Siargao on my first visit. The beautiful tour locations (in the morning) & the crazy party vibes (at night) made this Siargao a great place to visit. I fell in love with Sugba Lagoon, enjoyed Magpupungko’s tidal & rock pool & liked the tour around Sohoton. The jellyfish sanctuary visit was really cool. I also loved Cloud 9’s island vibe. Ahh, I want to go back to Siargao soon!

Albay

Nothing beats a place called home; Albay will always be my favorite. You may find it biased but hey, you can’t blame me for being one. It’s where I grew up & where my family is. Add to it the spectacular view of Mayon Volcano, which I can see from our house’ gate. I miss home, I can’t wait to go back when this pandemic is over. Albay is the place which I’ll never get tired of visiting.

I honestly can’t wait to visit these places again. I know international travel won’t be allowed in the next few months but I hope the government will allow domestic tourism as soon as it’s already safe for everyone. How about you? Which Philippine destinations do you always keep on visiting & why? Share your own list in the comments section below!

Do you have any questions about the destinations mentioned above? If yes, you may send them via e-mail to contact@thewkndtravel.com. Feel free to follow me on my social media channels for more information on cheap fares, thrift hacks & fun lists & itineraries – Facebook & Instagram. Thank you for joining me in today’s list. Until the next one!

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11 & HTC Re.

Spontaneous BACOLOD Weekend: 48 Hours In The City of Smiles

Hey yo, hey yo! How have you been? I am very sorry for being missing in action for the last few weeks. I’ve been really busy with trips, work & engagements. My siblings & I also moved out of our house of 12 years. Imagine the amount of things we packed! Anyway, I’m super happy I finally have time to write again. I have so many trips & things to share with you. I know I haven’t started posting about my recent Japan trip, but I’ll definitely put up the posts soon.

Last weekend, my current & former colleagues went on a 48-hour spontaneous tito (or tita for my female friends) weekend trip to the City of Smiles, Bacolod. The city is located in the Visayas & is the capital of Negros, Occidental. The city is popular for the annual Masskara Festival (Festival of masks), the abundant sugar cane plantation & the famous piaya snack.

Now back to the trip. Don’t expect this to be an adventure-filled weekend. We flew to Bacolod with no plans at all & our goal was to have a break from the busy life in Makati. Let me share with you the whereabouts this 48-hour relaxing trip to the City of Smiles.

Plane Ticket

The trip started when my friends & I (a group of 7 people) booked a return Bacolod ticket for ₱3,706 each last January 2019. We found the fare deal in one of Philippine Airlines‘ low fare sale. The tickets include in flight snacks, 7 kilograms carry-on baggage allowance & 10 kilograms of check-in baggage allowance. Considering the flight schedule, flight dates & the fare inclusions, the ticket we got was worth it. Plus, it’s Philippine Airlines – our country’s flag carrier. Philippine Airlines’ fares are not as affordable as low cost carriers’ fares, except during seat sales.

Our flight left Manila at 3:55 in the afternoon & arrived Bacolod at 5:15 pm (with a few minutes delay). The flight back left Bacolod after 6:00 pm & arrived Manila before 7:30 in the evening. The schedules were perfect – we only took the Friday afternoon off from work plus we had enough rest time after the trip.

accommodation

Our trip was pretty last minute so the famous accommodations were already booked out. Good thing we found Jay’s property in Booking.com. The units were in CityScapes Bacolod, a relatively new residential building along 6th Avenue, a few meters walk from Lacson Avenue. We booked 2 units (one unit for the ladies & 1 unit for the gents) for 2 nights. It only cost us ₱970+ per person already for 2 nights. Affordable, right? The units were equipped with private shower & toilet, free Wi-Fi, private balconies, small refrigerator & a whole lot more. The units exceeded our expectations.

Click this link to check out Jay’s property at Booking.com. You may also opt to contact him directly for bookings – his number is +639477786688. Book early, his units are always in demand.

around bacolod

We flew to Bacolod without any plans at all. The only thing in our mind was to rest, eat the best chicken inasal & have dessert in Calea. We figured out our itinerary when we arrived. We initially thought of spending a day in Lakawon Island but we got stressed by expected travel time & resort / island fees. We decided to just go to the nearby upland town & go around the city. Check out the following places we went to & the local restaurants we tried.

The Ruins

The Ruins is an ancestral home mansion of Lacsons. It is located in within the family’s plantation in Talisay City. The house was burned down during the World War II. The remains of the mansion after the fire is now Negros Occidental’s most famous tourist attraction.

Aida’s Chicken Inasal

A visit to Bacolod is never complete without having the famous chicken inasal. One of the best places to have this staple Bacolod food is in Manokan Country, right beside SM City Bacolod. One of the most visited restaurants in this place is Aida’s Chicken. We went here for dinner on our 1st night.

Bacolod New Government Center

My friends & I stopped by the Bacolod New Government Center to have a photo with the big BACOLOD signage.

Don Salvador Benedicto

Our driver recommended that we go on a half day tour to Don Salvador Benedicto. It is a small town 45 minutes to an hour away from Bacolod City. This municipality is called Negros’ Little Baguio because of its location in the mountains & its (not so during our visit) chilly weather. We went to different viewpoints & Instagram-worthy places, plus Nami Island-like place full of pine trees. We also saw Malatan-og Falls from afar; we had no more time to hike down to the falls.

Balay Negrense

Balay Negrense is another ancestral house previously owned by the prominent Gaston family of Silay City. The house was abandoned years after the death of Don Victor Fernandez Gaston & was later turned over to the Negros Cultural Foundation & the Philippine Tourism Board. The house was restored into a museum in 1994 & was declared a heritage site by the government.

Seaside Restaurant

We headed to a seaside community in Silay City to have lunch. I forgot the name of the place but it’s a small row of ‘paluto‘ restaurants that offer cheap but fresh seafood. My friends ordered 2 buckets of oysters at ₱65 per bucket. We also had rice, buttered shrimp, pork sisig & liempo & a few more dishes for a very affordable price.

Calea Pastries & Coffee

Calea Pastries & Coffee is Bacolod’s most famous dessert place. They have a large range of cakes & pastries to choose from. They also have a wide variety of coffee & drinks to try. We were a group of 7 so we each got a unique cake of pastry. Their best seller Imported Chocolate Cake was so-so. We liked the pecan apple pie & pistachio cake.

Negros Occidental Provincial Capital Grounds

We dropped by the provincial capitol grounds before going back to our accommodation. We took photos of the building against the sunlight & the partly blue sky.

21 Restaurant

We had hopes of having batchoy for dinner at 21 Restaurant only to find out they only offer it until 5:00 in the afternoon. We had no choice but to order other kinds of food. We still had a good meal even if we felt we were under-dressed (we were in shorts & shirts).

Ted’s La Paz Batchoy

We can’t get over the fact we missed 21 Restaurant’s la paz batchoy so we decided to have lunch at Ted’s. Batchoy is a local noodle soup with round noodles & pork, chicken or beef as flavor. The broth is very rich & tasty. The soup is best paired with pandesal or puto (steamed rice cake). Ted’s la paz batchoy originated in Iloilo (another Visayan city in Panay Island) & fortunately has branches in Bacolod.

Felicia’s Pastry Shop

We spent our last few hours in the city at Felicia’s Pastry Shop. I didn’t try their signature chocolate cake because it didn’t look enticing to me. I got the pecan cheesecake instead. It was okay, nothing special. Their ensaymada with signature hot chocolate was so good!

Pendy’s Napoleones

One of Bacolod’s famous delicacy is napoleones. It is a pastry made of sugar, egg, flour butter & milk topped with white sugar glaze. In my opinion, Pendy’s & Roli’s have the best napoleones in the city. We went to Pendy’s the updated price as of early March 2019 is ₱18 per piece or ₱180 per box of 10. It’s a must buy pasalubong from Bacolod, of course together with the famous piaya.

That basically sums up our quick 48-hour trip to Bacolod last weekend. We basically went there to have food trip. Everything was relaxed & spontaneous, no plans or whatsoever. I look forward to more trips like this.

Any suggestions on where I should go next for 48 hours? Or maybe have you been to Bacolod? How was your visit? Which food or place did you enjoy most? Feel free to start the discussion in the comments below. You can also share your thoughts via email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. Make sure to follow me & please also help me in promoting my social media channels – Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Until the next 48-hour weekend trip! I don’t have anything planned or booked yet but let’s see where I’ll go next.

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.