Strawberry picking is one activity you shouldn't miss when visiting Baguio. Situated 3km from Baguio City proper is La Trinidad Valley, it is known to be the strawberry capital of the Philippines. Here you get to pick fresh strawberries with the Ibaloi farmers.
How to get there:
In our case we stayed in the near by transient house and it only took us about 8 minutes to get to the strawberry farm. If you are coming from Baguio City, you may choose to ride a cab specially if you are travelling in a group and just split the fare. Taxi in Baguio base from my experience is cheaper than the ones in Manila and they have honest drivers that will give you change up to the last penny.
If you are a one of those budgetarian travelers, you may choose to ride in a public transportation. To do this, go to Gen. Luna area near University of Baguio and hop on the jeepneys going to La Trinidad. Just tell the driver to drop you off at Strawberry farm, cross the road and walk the rest of the way until you reach the strawberry farm. Travel time is around 30 mins and fare is Php 12.
You may also picked and buy lettuce with the farmer's assistance. Price: Php25 each.
Rates:
The rates for strawberry picking vary depending on what time of the year you are coming. In general, it costs twice the market price to pick your own strawberries. When we were there 3 weeks ago, strawberry picking costs Php 500 per kilo but outside it just cost Php 160 per kilo. If you are wondering why, it is because strawberries are delicate and can cause a lot of wastage if harvested incorrectly. No minimum amount of strawberries to be picked per person and no entrance fee in the farm. If you are in a group I suggest that you just pick about 1kg just for experience and if you want more strawberries, you can just buy outside. Or if you just want to take pictures and pretend to be picking strawberries, you may also do so for free ;p.
Strawberry for sale for Php 160 per kilo
Tips:
Wear caps or bring umbrella and put on sunblock. There is no shade in the farm and can get too hot.
Enjoyed this strawberry ice cream for Php 25
Fresh strawberry fruits, jam, wines for sale.
This is also one of the cheapest place in Baguio to buy souvenirs.
The gigantic 40-foot Lion’s Head along Kennon Road is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Baguio. It's a popular stopover for quick photo ops before entering Baguio’s downtown area.
Getting to Lion’s Head is easy to access since we are traveling by a private car. However for those commuters, it might be out of way as provincial buses do not pass through Kennon Road, instead they use the Marcos Highway. So what you can do is to ride a jeepney with a sign Camp 7 in Carantes Street. Travel time is around 20 mins and jeepney fare is Php 16.50.
Just expect a lot of people specially during peak season just like when we went there. It was hard to take a single picture without a photobomber. :)
Nestled in the white beaches of Oriental Mindoro, Puerto Galera lures weekenders from the exhaust centers of Manila. Known to be the poor man's Boracay because of the white sand beach and the rowdy party scene and without a need for airplane ride, this is really a cheaper option.
We had no hotel or ferry ticket reservation when we went here, all we have prepared was the dates and call time. And we decided to spend just 2 days and 1 night, a typical weekend getaway. But like most trips, expect the unexpected. Would you believe we got stranded in the island and spent an additional 1 day and 1 night due to unexpected weather changes. The next day when we asked the boat companies if there are passenger boats going to Batangas, they said coast guard still won't let boats to sail and its either we wait until they have the go signal or another option is to go the Calapan route. Since my sister already missed 1 day of work and said she couldn't afford to miss another one, we headed to Calapan which took us 2 hours to get there and rode the passenger ship to Batangas. Lesson learned, make sure to check the weather forecast before going to Puerto Galera.
How to get to Puerto Galera
>There are bus terminals in Cubao, Buendia and Taft. We arrived early in Cubao and boarded the bus bound to Batangas Pier,
Bus Fare: Php 170/person
Trip Duration: 2 hours
>At Batangas Pier, board a boat going to White Beach Puerto Galera. Boats leave every 30 minutes. The well-known shipping lines are Minolo, Father and Son, and Gallerian. We rode the Father and Son and paid the boat fare for White Beach, however we were dropped off at Muelle and asked to board a shuttle going to the white beach.
Remember to confirm your departure time with the boat operator a day before the departure date to reserve a slot for the boat going back to Batangas. They boat companies have ticketing stations located at the beachfront.
This is how "bukayo" looks like and being sell here.
Accommodation
We stayed in Orchids just a few steps away from the beach and payed Php 1000 for a fan room. I'm not sure if we are just unlucky when we stayed there as there is no electricity that night and water pressure in the bathroom was not that good and we needed to inform the reception to open the water pump every time we will use the bathroom. Electric sockets are in the ceiling, I don't understand why. Though the room is spacious, honestly, I don't recommend you to stay here.
Things to do in Puerto Galera
Island Hopping
Its a common activity in the beach to go and visit other islands around and enjoy watching and feeding fishes while snorkeling. Island hopping in Puerto Galera costs Php 1500 / boat and this is good for a maximum of 8 person. Usually boatmen/agents are holding laminated cardboard with photos of the beaches you can visit and the snorkeling sites. They will approach you in the white beach.
Note: The Php 1500 boat fee will only include the big boat that will tour you around the beaches. If you wish to go snorkeling, prepare to shell out another Php 200 /person for the small boat that will take you to the snorkeling site. Another Php 200 /person if you want to go on the underwater cave and Php 200 /person if you want to visit the Giant Clam Sanctuary. So that is another Php 600 pesos.
Tip: If you are in a smaller group, you may want to join and combine with other groups to bring down your expenses or you may ask the boatmen to give you a package already including the big boat, snorkeling and the underwater cave. We are originally 3 in the group and one of our friend who is also in the island joined us and got our island hopping tour for Php 2700 already including the small boats.
Haligi beach
Small boat you will rent if you want to go snorkeling or swim in underwater cave.
Pic from the underwater cave.
Diving
Diving is one of the top things to do when you go here whether you are a beginner who just like to try it for the first time, someone who wants to take the diving course or a pro, you will never run out of diving options as several dive centers and resorts around white beach which offers diving course and diving packages in the best dive sites.
Rate: Starts at Php 2500
Visit Tamaraw Falls
About an hour and 45 minutes away from white beach. this can be done by chatering a jeep or hiring a tricycle if you are on a small group. Tricycle to Tamaraw falls costs Php 1000 good for 4 person. This already includes a side trip to Virgin Island. Cheaper option is to commute; ride a tricycle to "bayan" or calapan terminal, fare is Php 100, from Calapan terminal, ride a jeepney going to Tamanaraw falls, fare is Php 45.
Side trip to Virgin Island
Slurp down mindoro sling
They said this is a must when you come here, a cherry red alcoholic drink consists of Tanduay rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, mango juice, grenadine syrup and sprite. This cocktail costs Php 350 per pitcher, available in almost all bars along the beach.
Try Mud Carts and ATV rides in Extreme Sports
This is such an amazing experience, a dirty fun filled ride. We tried the mud cart and ATV ride for Php 600 (3 laps for mud cart and 3 laps for ATV).
Itinerary and Expenses
Sharing our supposedly 2D1N trip turned into 3D/1N due to unexpected circumstances. You can still bring down the price depending on the activities you want to do and the accommodation you want to stayed at.
Tip: Make sure to check the weather before you go here, who would like to be stranded in the island like us especially if you have work the next day.
Contact for Island Hopping and other activities while in Puerto Galera:
