Posts tagged with Rediscover the North

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April 12, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Lingayen, Pangasinan

The historic Pangasinan provincial capitol in Lingayen, beautifully lit at night


A visit to the Hundred Islands can be complemented by a visit to the provincial capital, Lingayen, a historic town east of Alaminos.

January 28, 2010. The provincial capitol complex in Lingayen boasts of newly renovated historical buildings that date back to almost a hundred years and saw important moments in the history of province and the country. The provincial government can provide tours of the capitol complex to interested tourists.

Behind the capitol complex, one can spend the day in one of the longest and widest stretches of beaches in the country.

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April 8, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Hundred Islands, Pangasinan

A view of the Hundred Islands in Alaminos City, Pangasinan, taken from the top of Governor's Island

January 29, 2010. It is rare to find a Filipino, young or old, who is not familiar with the Hundred Islands. Along with the Mayon Volcano and the Banaue Rice Terraces, the renowned group of islands in Alaminos, Pangasinan has always been a standard mention in textbooks as one of the best natural wonders of the Philippines. The group of islands has thus etched itself an almost permanent part in the consciousness of many Filipinos from childhood.

Corals and stones can be seen from the crystal clear water that surround the Hundred Islands

Despite its relative fame, however, the city government of Alaminos admits that the islands do not attract the number of visitors nor the investments they deserve, compared to other beach destinations in the country. I, myself, have never been to Hundred Islands before Lakbay Norte’s stop at Alaminos. And what a shame, indeed. The islands are unique gems incomparable to the Philippines’s other beach destinations.

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April 3, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Stop over at Masinloc, Zambales

The controversial coal-fired power plant sits along a bay with half a dozen marine sanctuaries and coral reserves


January 29, 2010. From Pangasinan, we drove southwards along the South China Sea into Zambales. Before proceeding to our next stop, Subic, we stopped over the town of Masinloc.

Masinloc may sound familiar to some of us, as the town plays host to a giant coal-fired power plant that was subject of a controversy a few years back, as the government was trying to privatize the facility and sold it to a dubious company.

Ironically, the town also hosts half a dozen coral reef sanctuaries and marine reserves along its coast, very near the power plant. I don’t know how they co-exist with each other, but when I asked an officer from the marine sanctuary office, he said the existence of the power plant has not affected the marine sanctuary.

Because of the town’s marine sanctuaries, Masinloc is also considered as having some of the few dive sites in Central Luzon. We were supposed to hop on a boat to one of the off-shore islands and visit one of the marine reserves and observe the giant clams sanctuary, but due to lack of time, we were just presented with a short video presentation of what the town has to offer in terms of eco-tourism.

Also in Masinloc is the San Andres Church built in the 1600′s and is considered one of the country’s few national cultural treasures. The baroque church features a white facade, made up most probably of coral stones. I’m not really into churches, so I don’t know how else to describe San Andres.

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March 17, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Where to stay in Subic & Olongapo

January 29-30, 2010. During the Zambales leg of our Lakbay Norte caravan, we were accommodated at the White Rock Resort Hotel near Olongapo. It is a 150-room hotel in a vast estate along the beach. It is also a resort and waterpark with two giant wave pools where visitors can ride the tides. They also have a bowling alley and an entertainment center.

A few minutes drive from the Subic Bay Freeport, it maintains its own peaceful isolation from the rest of the commercial centers in Subic and Olongapo, though it’s close enough for guests to enjoy night-outs in the restaurants and bars in the freeport.

Families can also stay at the Lighthouse Marina Resort Hotel, one of Subic’s newer deluxe hotels, and apparently one of its pricier ones. It is located in Subic Freeport itself, and is along the beach, so it is just walking distance from the restaurants, bars and shops in the area.

The management of the hotel generously hosted our breakfast and lunch during our stay in Subic.

We were supposed to be toured around the bay onboard a yacht, but we ended up in a Subic bay coast guard speedboat, which was not bad at all. Around the bay, we were oriented to the new seaport facilities and major infrastructures (not by the government, but privately built, by the Koreans I heard) that have been built to accommodate the plan to make Subic a major economic hub.

Before leaving Subic, we also dropped by Mountain Woods Resort Inn, still in the freeport. It is a boutique hotel (with only 28 well-appointed guest rooms) tucked in the lush foliage of Subic’s mountains, and provides an alternative to the usual beach and seaside resort accommodations in the area.

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March 5, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Subic & Olongapo

Subic Bay Freeport was once home to one of the largest overseas naval bases of the Americans. Since the abrogation of the bases agreement in the early 90′s, Subic has been transformed into a premiere freeport with a robust business and investment climate.

Subic attracts hundreds of thousands of local and foreign tourists who flock to the freeport for its duty free shopping, its nature and adventure activities, and its excellent convention facilities. Reports even claim that the freeport received more than two million local and foreign visitors in 2009, making it the top tourist destination for locals and foreigners.

One of Subic’s newest attractions is the Subic Tree Top Adventure in the virgin forests of Subic. Visitors can try out their Superman Ride where one is suspended horizontally along a zip line that transports one from one tree top to another hundreds of meters away in a matter of seconds. Other exhilarating activities include the canopy walk on the wooden trail on top of the forest’s 60-foot trees and rappelling down the canopy. One may also enjoy a trek through the trails of the forest. They also have their own cafe and restaurant where visitors can enjoy their meals amidst towering greens.

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February 7, 2010

Lakbay Norte 2010: Clark, Pampanga

January 31, 2010. It was in 1903 when the American invaders established “Fort Stotsenburg.” For almost a hundred years later, the fort, which was later renamed to “Clark Air Base” became a major stronghold of the American forces in the Far East. It was considered the largest American military installation on foreign soil. With the expiration of the base agreement in 1991, the Philippines reclaimed the air base and the government sought to transform the facility into a freeport zone.

Clark has been a known as a destination for duty free shopping and leisure estate activities from swimming to golfing. The tourism offices in the area, however, have been promoting more activities for visitors to Clark.

For those who want to get to know more about the air base’s history there are tours onboard airconditioned “Jeep ni Juan” jeepneys provided by Castro Travel Solutions (+63 45 6256608) that you may avail. They also have packages for an afternoon at volcanic hot springs, a trek to Mt. Pinatubo and an even aerial tour of the infamous volcano.

Another new activity for visitors to Clark is horseback riding at El Kabayo Riding Stables (+63 09178122106). You can ride the horses around the compound or you can request for a ride around Clark. If you’re up for it, you can even take the horse for a ride along the Sacobia River to see the lahar canyons created by the Mt. Pinatubo eruption.

Across the Sacobia River from Clark is a nature and conservation park called Paradise Ranch which features gardens and zoo animals. The park features one of the largest butterfly gardens in the country and a “millio-dollar” view of the entire Clark Freeport Zone. The place is more suited for kids and educational field trips. Adults, on the other hand, can hold team building seminars, retreats, camping and weddings in the garden.

With the development and expansion of the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport, Clark is now poised to become one of the country’s major gateways. The master development plan of the freeport zone seeks to transform the former US air base into an airport city and as a globally competitive international service and logistics center in the Asia-Pacific Region.

While that has not fully happened, Clark Airport does serve inbound and outbound flights to and from many local and international destinations. It has flights to and from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, and even the Middle East.

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February 1, 2010

Lakbay Norte: Rediscover the North

1,798 kilometers, 26 people, 8 provinces, 7 days, 1 bus.

Over the past week, I went with a group of print and online media representatives in a caravan around northern and central Luzon organized by the North Philippines Visitors Bureau (NPVB), a not for profit organization whose aim is to promote domestic and foreign travel in the region.

Onboard a special bus provided by Victory Liner, we visited the provinces of Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, La Union, Benguet, Pangasinan, Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga. (We also passed through, though without stopping over, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Isabela and Ilocos Sur). Our accommodations, meals and activities were sponsored and hosted by local Convention and Visitors Bureaus and other local tourism stakeholders.

The tour aimed to introduce northern Luzon as a re-emerging destination for tourism and trade. With growing infrastructure in the region and with the improvement of the North Luzon Expressway, travel to the north has been easier over the years and the tour aimed to encourage more people to “Rediscover the North”.

Indeed, it was a rediscovery of the places I’ve been to in northern and central Luzon, and a pleasant revelation of the places I’ve never been to–northern Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, La Union and western Pangasinan.

If there was one word I could summon to give North Philippines, it is “potential”. The trip revealed how much is in store for the provinces of North and Central Luzon in terms of tourism and trade. The richness in he region’s natural wonders, in its culture and heritage, in its people make the north a viable destination for a robust and sustainable tourism industry. Having a rich potential also means that there is a lot that can be done in terms of infrastructure and training in order to fully harness the possibilities and so that the people of the region and the entire country may benefit from the potentials north and central Luzon has to offer.

Over the next few weeks I shall be writing a chronicle of the places we visited and the organizations and establishments that have helped us “Rediscover the North”. I hope one day, you also make the same discovery and rediscovery of northern Philippines, and encourage others to continue and explore the vast potentials of this region north of Manila.