Guimaras Island Resorts March 2018 Preview 3 of 3

          When you come to Iloilo, the beautiful, yet underrated Guimaras Island should be included in your itinerary. White sand beaches, rock formations, mango plantations, innumerable islands, and the list goes on for this charming island just 10-15 minutes away from Iloilo City by boat.
           Click the links under each resort to learn more!

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It's almost summer! These are my 3 picks for March 2018 v3.0:
(These are in no particular order. They are randomly chosen from the many resorts in Guimaras island for this particular post. The photos are taken from the web.)

1. La Puerta Al Paraizo Resort

Address: Nueva Valencia, Guimaras
Google Maps Location: La Puerta Al Paraizo Resort 

Website: see other links below
Other Links: Facebook Page
                      TripAdvisor
                      Ocean Island Travel

Description:
          Very pristine beach with a good view of the surrounding islets. The cottages are good with some located on top of the hill with majestic ocean views.Perfect for those who want a little more privacy.

Shots from the Web:

2. Isla Naburot Resort

Address: Jordan, Guimaras
Google Map Location: Isla Naburot Resort 

Website: see other links below

Other Links: Facebook

                      TripAdvisor

                      Lonely Planet

Description:

          "Occupying its own island, this absolutely private resort is one of the best offshore options. Those who fantasise about being a castaway will enjoy the eight cottages made from natural materials, including pebbles, shells, tree trunks and the discarded parts of other houses. Each rustic structure is well designed and comfortable." - Lonely Planet

Shots from the Web:

3. Cabugan Adventure Resort

Address: Nueva Valencia, Guimaras

Google Map Location: Cabugan Adventure Resort 

Website: see other links below

Other Links: Facebook

                      TripAdvisor

                      Agoda

                      Lagawone

Description:

          "Cabugan Nature Resort is Guimaras' Ecological Reserve. It gives you a whole new experience of "Going Back to the Basics"... Thus, A Way of Life..."

          This resort is across Magic Island Resort.

Shots from the Web:

Sea Urchin Roe or 'Uni' as the Japanese people call it.

Iloilo Eats!

          Iloilo's culture is a fusion of Spanish-Mexican, Chinese, Indian, and local inputs from centuries of contact with these people through colonization and trade. The culinary heritage of Iloilo followed suit and has become a melting pot of this diverse array of different cultures.

          I linked a few videos below to give you a graphic description of the more common and popular Ilonggo dishes.

          PS: Ilonggo cuisine is fond of using batuan as a souring agent for soups or stews. Ginamos, a flavoring agent made of fermented anchovy or small shrimp/krill is another popular Ilonggo ingredient. Of course, let's not forget kadyos/pigeon peas, batchoy, and others.

(All rights reserved. The videos were taken from youtube.)

Guimaras Island Resorts March 2018 Preview 2 of 3

          When you come to Iloilo, the beautiful, yet underrated Guimaras Island should be included in your itinerary. White sand beaches, rock formations, mango plantations, innumerable islands, and the list goes on for this charming island just 10-15 minutes away from Iloilo City by boat.
           Click the links under each resort to learn more!

Link to Preview 1 of 3
Link to Preview 3 of 3

It's almost summer! These are my 3 picks for March 2018:
(These are in no particular order. They are randomly chosen from the many resorts in Guimaras island for this particular post. The photos are taken from the web.)

1. The Clara Beach and Guesthouse

Address: San Lorenzo, Guimaras
Google Maps Location: The Clara Beach and Guesthouse 

Website: https://www.theclarabeach.com/
Other Links: Facebook
                      TripAdvisor
                      Agoda

Description:
          "The Clara Beach, our boutique guesthouse on the beach in Guimaras-Philippines,  provides the facility to stay, to eat, to day visit, or use the whole facility for functions and meetings.
          Its simple, its relaxing, and its quality, with a gentle mix of eastern and western cultures blended together suiting both home and foreign visitors."

Shots from the Web:

2. Tatlong Pulo Beach Resort

Address: Jordan, Guimaras
Google Map Location: Tatlong Pulo Beach Resort 

Website: see other links below

Other Links: TripAdvisor

                      Pinoy Travel Freak

                      Valerie Caulin

Description:

          A breathtaking white-sand beach resort in Jordan, Guimaras unknown even to most locals in Iloilo. It sits in a beautiful cove beside Balingasag Beach Resort, protected from strong waves by a stunning islet just offshore.

Shots from the Web:

3. Costa Aguada Island Resort

Address: Inampulugan Island, San Lorenzo, Guimaras

Google Map Location: Costa Aguada Island Resort 

Website: see other links below

Other Links: Facebook

                      TripAdvisor

                      Agoda

                      Asia Travel

Description:

          "A first-class eco-tourism island resort where nature and people lived as one. Visit us and we will definitely bring you straight into the embrace of paradise."

          An island resort off the eastern coast of Guimaras.

Shots from the Web:

Guimaras Island Resorts March 2018 Preview 1 of 3

          When you come to Iloilo, the beautiful, yet underrated Guimaras Island should be included in your itinerary. White sand beaches, rock formations, mango plantations, innumerable islands, and the list goes on for this charming island just 10-15 minutes away from Iloilo City by boat.
           Click the links under each resort to learn more!

Link to Preview 2 of 3
Link to Preview 3 of 3

It's almost summer! These are my 3 picks for March 2018:
(These are in no particular order. They are randomly chosen from the many resorts in Guimaras island for this particular post. The photos are taken from the web.)

1. Andana Resort

Address: Nueva Valencia, Guimaras
Google Maps Location: Andana Resort 

Website: http://www.andanaresort.com/
Other Links: Facebook Page
                      TripAdvisor

Description:
          "Nestled within a secret cove southwest of Guimaras sits Andana. A 70-room luxury resort with white sand beaches, serene waters and mesmerizing scenery."
          This resort is near the more mainstream Raymen's Beach Resort or Alubihod.

Shots from the Web:

2. Kenyama Beach Resort

Address: Nueva Valencia, Guimaras
Google Map Location: Kenyama Beach Resort 

Website: see other links below

Other Links: Facebook

                      TripAdvisor

                      Agoda

Description:

          A white sand beach resort at the westernmost part of Guimaras Island in close proximity to the historic Guisi Lighthouse.

Shots from the Web:

3. Vilches Beach Resort

Address: San Lorenzo, Guimaras

Google Map Location: Vilches Beach Resort 

Website: http://vilchesresorts.com/

Other Links: Facebook

                      TripAdvisor

                      Ocean Island Travel

Description:

          "Vilches Beach Resort was established in 1993 and originally called Sunrise Beach Resort. A major renovation took place in July 2007 which resulted in a modern yet authentic resort. Our accommodations include a air conditioned beach house, 2 bedroom air conditioned cottages and native cottages where you are literally steps away from the ocean. Enjoy waking up every morning to see the beautiful Guimaras sunrise...."

          This resort is just about 2.5 kilometers from the Guimaras Windmills.

Shots from the Web:

Baguio City

Baguio City, although politically and administratively independent being a highly urbanized city, is geographically part of the province of Benguet in the Cordillera Administrative Region of the northern Philippines.
This city of the Kankanaeys, Ilocanos, Ibalois, and other ethnic groups is fondly called the Philippines' Summer Capital owing to its cool highland subtropical climate at an altitude of 1,540 meters asl. The temperature in this mountain resort city ranges from around 12C to 22C in January to about 16C to 25C in May. If you're planning to come here, expect considerably heavy rainfall during the East Asian monsoon months from late May up until October.
I went there on March 2016 to check the place out and came back again last December 2016 to attend a relative's wedding and we stayed there for three days and two chilly nights. We visited some popular spots and I'm going to post some of my shots here both from my March and December 2016 visits.

After a 6-hour bus ride from Manila, we arrived in Baguio City at around 4:30 in the morning. The air is chilly and the city is blanketed in fog.

You can easily see these houses on the surrounding mountains especially if you're en route to La Trinidad town. This pic is shows the Quirino Hill houses.

Baguio Cathedral, the seat of the Diocese of Baguio.

The road in front of Mines View Park, one of Baguio's most popular tourist spots.

Mines View Park's famous mountainside gazebo.

View from the gazebo.

And another one.

This lagoon is just above Wright's Park and leads to "The Mansion", the official residence of the Philippine President when visiting Baguio City and is also known as the "Malacanang of the North".

This is the front gate of The Mansion. Personally, I think the gate is more of a tourist spot than the mansion itself. =)

The ever popular Burnham Park Lagoon right at the center of the city just behind SM City Baguio and a short walk from Session Road, Baguio's commercial district.

We also went to the Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine grotto. That's around 200+ steps.

The view of the city center from the top of the grotto.

After roaming around the city of Baguio, we then headed next to the neighboring municipality of La Trinidad, Benguet, the province's seat of government. This is a largely agricultural town. This municipality can be reached by hiring a cab/taxi or by riding a jeepney. There are two jeepney stations going there, one is right across Baguio Public Market and the other one is just in front of the Baguio City Hall.

Upon reaching the municipality of La Trinidad, remind the taxi or the jeepney driver that you are going to alight at the La Trinidad Strawberry Farm. The taxi will usually drop you right at the strawberry plantation but if you are riding a jeepney, you should alight at the main road, cross the street and walk about 100 meters to the site.

The plantation plants all sorts of veggies and fruits from cabbage, lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, strawberry, peas and many more. They have a mini market there so you can buy if you want.

We paid 500 pesos for every kilo of personally handpicked strawberries, OR if you don't want to pay that  much, you can just buy the already packed ones instead. For the handpicking, they will only charge you based on the total weight of strawberries you picked.

That's it. Other places that you can visit (and I will visit when I return) are:

• BenCab Museum
• Baguio Golf and Country Club
• Philippine Military Academy
• Session Road's Night Market (B-A-R-G-A-I-N)
• Baguio's Panagbenga Flower Festival (every early February)
• and many more!

Notes:

1. Bus Fair (Victory Liner - Regular Airconditioned): 450 pesos regular fare one way from Manila to Baguio
2. As of late 2016 and early 2017, taxi flag down rate is at 35 pesos, but Baguio is small enough that you will never get surprised by your taxi fare unless you want to go to spots outside or far from the city like BenCab Museum and La Trinidad Strawberry Farm.