LA UNION SIDE TRIP

Most of the people who loves/ wants to surf normally go directly to Urbiztondo Beach in San Juan, La Union as this is one of easiest way to access among surfing spots in the Philippines. It is considered the surfing capital of Northern Luzon, other surfing spots are in Baler Aurora and Siargao.

If you’re a non-surfer it’s not a problem since the province have plenty of attractions and activities to offer. One of which is trekking to Tangadan Falls in San Gabriel, La Union. I wrote down instructions below on how to get to the falls and estimated budget if you’d like to do this activity + activity rentals, other attractions and where to eat suggestions.

Tangadan Falls, San Gabriel, La Union

HOW TO GET TO TANGADAN FALLS

Take a bus from Manila bound to La Union for about 5-7 hour ride depending on traffic condition. If you’re coming from the South/NAIA Airport, then go to Partas Bus Terminal in Pasay, fare is Php453. They also have one in Cubao if you’re in Quezon City area. There are also other bus terminals like Viron, Dominion, Philippine Rabit etc., within Metro Manila that you can choose from.

• If your accommodation is in San Fernando, take a bus going to San Fernando and get off to the terminal.
• If your accommodation is in San Juan, take a bus going to Vigan or Laoag and ask the conductor (driver assistant) to drop you off at Urbiztondo Beach, San Juan.

When you get off to your accommodation, you can hop in to a Jeepney bound to San Gabriel, around Php17-20. Tell the driver that you’re going to Tangadan Falls. After getting off, go to the Municipal Hall and register (Php30/ per person). They will provide you an authorized guide that you can hire for (Php500) good for 1-6 persons.

Cliff Jumping on the way to Tangadan Falls

Starting from San Gabriel, Municipal Hall, you have 3 options going to Tangadan Falls.

1. Using private vehicle: Normally done by tours, they go straight to Tangadan falls trail-head and trek down to the waterfalls for 10-15 mins.
2. Using Habal–habal (motorbike): Hire a habal-habal to Tangadan falls trail-head (Php300/ per person, round trip) and trek down to the waterfalls for 10-15 mins. *Remember that you also need to pay for your guide, so that’s another 300.
3. Using Tricycle + Trek: Hire a tricycle for (Php50/ 2 persons) for about 10mins going to Tangadan Falls jumping-off point. It’s an easy trek that would take about 1 and a half hour to the waterfalls.

NOTE:

• It is important to register (until 2pm). This is necessary just in case something happen. After registering they’ll provide an authorized guide (wearing proper guide shirts). They will not allow you to hike if you arrived late in the afternoon unless you have a private vehicle that could take you to the trail-head.
• The guide is mandatory, so you should hire one. It’s cheaper if you’re in a group of 4-6 person as you divide the guide fee.

I was travelling with my good friend Duy so we shared the cost of guide/tricycle fee, we took the third option. Below are the travel expenses to Tangadan Falls in San Gabriel, La Union.

CONTACT(S) & EXPENSES

• Jayson +639108411650

Travel Expenses	Activities	Single	Group
Php40	Roundtrip jeepney fare from San Juan to San Gabriel.	Php670	Php370 (for 2 or less if you’re in a group of 4-6)
Php100	Roundtrip tricycle fare from Municipal Hall to Tangadan Falls jumping-off point
Php30	Entrance Fee
Php500	Guide Fee

And that’s how you go to Tangadan Falls in San Gabriel, La Union!

We stayed in Urbiztondo Beach for about 3 nights with Php1000/ room accommodation. There are a lot of options, just take a pick according to your budget. Originally, we plan to surf, the waves are good on our arrival date but it subsides in the next days so we end up just eating, chilling, watching sunset and stand-up board paddling (that turned out to be sitting ’cause of unfriendly waves. haha!

ACTIVITY RENTALS:

• If you’d like to learn Surfing, rate is Php400/ 1 hour with surfboard and instructor.
• If you already know how to surf, Surfboard rentals is Php200/ 1 hour and Php500/ half day.
• Paddle board rentals is Php200/ 1 hour.

Photos from Urbiztondo beach.

OTHER ATTRACTIONS: Aside from Surfing and Tangadan Falls there are also other places/activities to visit in La Union like Churches, Macho Temple, Balay na Bato, Pebble Beach and other places that I’m probably not aware of. haha!

WHERE TO EAT: In terms of places to eat, i can suggest Surf Shack Resto Bar, Mad Monkeys, Coffee Library and Flotsam & Jetsam being my favorite because of good food, chill and nice ambiance.

That’s it, thanks for reading. Just Say Hi if you have questions.

September 24, 2017December 27, 2017 by Norman Mirasol

Siargao Travel Experience

When you say Siargao, everyone will say Surfing Capital of the Philippines and famous for the waves called “Cloud 9”. Siargao is not just about surfing, the island has a lot of attractions to offer. From Island hopping, Lagoons, Waterfalls, Fine White sands, Cockfighthing and other unspoiled sites around the island.

It’s my third attempt to visit Siargao and finally I was able to do so together with my newest bestfriend Duy. Below are the details of our trip.

HOW TO GET TO SIARGAO

BY AIR: You can book a flight from Manila/Cebu to Siargao (Sayak Airport) via Cebu Pacific since they have regular flights. It can be relatively expensive specially during the peak season, tournaments or holy week.

FROM CEBU CITY/SURIGAO CITY

• CEBU: Book a ferry in advance at Cokaliong Shipping Lines. They are selling it from SM City Cebu, Travelers Lounge. (1) Tourist Php1,025; (2) Regular Php825. It’s an overnight ferry 7PM-5AM departs daily from Cebu Pier. If you’re returning the same route from Siargao>Surigao>Cebu. I suggest you book a return ticket from Surigao to Cebu to avoid the hassle.
• SURIGAO: During our trip, there are only two ferry schedule from Surigao to Dapa, Siargao which is 6AM & 11:30AM. (1) Tourist Php300; (2) Regular Php270. It’s a 2 and half hr trip. There’s no reservation of ticket so the only thing you can do is to be the first one to get off the ferry from Cebu to buy ticket OR if you know someone from Surigao you can ask them to buy for you in advance otherwise you’ll be in next schedule which would take a lot of your time waiting.
• From Dapa Port, take a tricycle Php250 or habal-habal Php200 for two people that would take you to General Luna. If you’re on a tight budget you can walk from Dapa Port to the nearest tricycle terminal in the market and use the public tricycle to General Luna for Php50.

In our case, we took the Cebu>Surigao>Siargao route. Unable to be on the first ferry from Surigao so we took the 11:30AM and arrived in Siargao by 2PM. We just rented a motorbike close to our accommodation for Php400/day since it’s the most convenient mode of transportation to go around the island. Drove to Cloud 9 area in the late afternoon to see the waves, though there’s just few that time and a lot of people are still surfing.

Some of our photos on the first half day in Siargao. Cloud 9 and Island Beach.

WHERE TO STAY

So, like what I mentioned from my previous entries, I normally choose the cheapest option. In our case, we choose Kawili Resort. It’s a dormitory air conditioned Php500 pax/per night. But they can also be as cheap as Php350 if you prefer fan rooms. They have a pretty chill place from reception to the attic and the beach at the back is just calm and amazing. There are a lot of cheap accommodation around General Luna, just ask around and check what fits your budget.Kawili Resort

Kawili Resort Air-conditioned Dormitory Room

Beach at the back of Kawili Resort

We did planned of watching sunrise and surfing next morning but we are too lazy to wake up early. Duy already tried it in Indonesia and me in Baler but the surfboard is not that friendly to me and Duy is probably just good at drinking sea water in this kind of activity. Well, that’s our excuse! Haha!😆😂

Basically, you can go around the island for a day. From General Luna, we drove to Magpupungko Tidal Flats and Lagoons (Entrance Php50) in Pilar, Wide Stretch of White Sand in Algeria, Taktak Falls (Entrance Php25) in Santa Monica and even watch a Cockfighting event in one of their towns. Well, it’s both our first time being inside the cockfighting arena as I normally see the roosters fighting in the streets. Haha! And i’ll tell you what, it’s so painful to watch. 😦Magpupungko Tidal Flats and Lagoons in Pilar

Alegria Beach in Alegria (that’s Pacific Ocean behind our back)

Taktak Falls in Santa Monica

Cockfighting in Siargao

Result of the whole day driving in the Island. I forgot to have sunblock, so you know what happened next. 🦀 Yeah I know, we receive sun everyday in the Philippines but I still do get sunburned. 😭😆

Since our time is limited in the next day and because the last trip of ferry from Siargao to Surigao is at 12NN, we’re unable to do the following:

I managed to get details for you guys for these activities.

• Island hopping in (Naked Island, Guyam Island and Daku Island). They normally offer Php1,000/person for this tour.
• Sugba Lagoon. As per checking, it can be organized by your accommodation but if you want it cheaper, you can go to Del Carmen Marine Protection Office (about an hr from General Luna) and share a boat with other travelers. Normal cost is Php1,500 which is good for 6 people. It would take less than an hour from Del Carmen to Sugba Lagoon depending on the waves condition. Then they have entrance fee of Php100/person. You can also rent a board in the lagoon for Php200/hour or Php500/day.

I will definitely go back to Siargao in the future to try these activities that we missed.

Well, based on experience, you should have at least 2 whole day in Siargao to do everything. Or even more if you’re into surfing. And that’s it, thanks for reading. Just Say Hi! if you have further questions. Enjoy!

September 1, 2017September 24, 2017 by Norman Mirasol