Aurora Archives | Meghy Was Here

Dingalan Travel Guide: What to do and What to expect in Dingalan, Aurora

Meghy — Fri, 14 Dec 2018 00:26:43 +0000

After I graduated college, It’s been my yearly tradition to treat myself with a travel trip during my birthday. I always think that a gift of a travel experience is more worth it than buying myself a material gift or treating myself on a fancy restaurant.

So for this year’s celebration of my another year of existence, I decided to explore the hidden beauty of Dingalan, Aurora!

Dingalan, Aurora:

Dingalan is one of the most scenic place I’ve ever been in the Philippines. It is often tagged as the “Batanes of the East” because of its views and hill-like scenery that resembles those found in more famous location, Batanes. But this silent town of Aurora has its own beauty waiting to be discovered.

It is a perfect place to fill in your adventurous heart. From trekking the high mountains, to discovering the hidden caves, to chasing waterfalls or to simply swimming on its blue waters and playing with its waves, I can say that this is worth the visit.

Located on the southernmost part of the Aurora Province, facing the Philippine Sea on the east, has a montainous landscapes because of the Sierra Madre Mountains and has big waves flashing on the scenic cliffside where the green grass meets the blue waters. What a must view to catch!

Going to Dingalan:

From Manila:

There are bus terminals that offers a ride to Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija from Cubao, Pasay or Caloocan. Fare is P185 and ride may took 2 hours.

Upon arriving in Cabanatuan City Transport Terminal, catch a van going to Dingalan, Aurora. Vans are parked near 7/11 and fare is P120. It may take another 2 hour ride.

Getting Around Dingalan:

To go places in Dingalan, you can ride a tricycle and fare may be around P20 depending where you are heading to. There’s a lot of tourist attractions to visit but for this trip we only decided to go on its iconic spots, the Dingalan View Deck and Dingalan Lighthouse. As much as we wanted to go on other tourist spots, we are already tired from our Baler trip prior going to Dingalan.

Start of our journey:

Upon arriving on Dingalan Transport Terminal, we ride a tricycle going to the Feeder Port located in Brgy. Paltic (fare is P20). Feeder port is the starting point of your Dingalan Tour. From here, you need to register and pay for the Environmental Fee of P50. A tour guide is required to go on any desired Dingalan destination. No worries, it won’t be hard for you to look for a registered tour guide since they flock on the port area with their uniform and IDs. Tour guide rate is P200 per location. If you wish to eat first before starting your Dingalan activities, there are few food stalls or “karinderya” on the Feeder Port area that offers food for cheap prices.

Going to the White Beach:

White Beach is the drop off point to Dingalan View Deck and Lighthouse. You have two choices going to the White Beach from the Feeder Port. First, you can rent a boat for P800 good for 10 persons or second, you can trek from the Feeder Port to White Beach for 30-40 minutes. On our case, we decided to take the second option.

We started our trek at 6:30am. Trekking might be easy but tricky at times. You have to walk on the sea shores with big rocks while big waves are coming your way. At times, we have to wait for the waves to calm down before crossing the big rocks and do it as fast as possible before catching the next big wave.

The tour guide will require you an additional P200 if you choose to trek instead of renting boat. Upon arriving on White Beach, there are open cottages available where you can rest for some time before trekking the mountain.

Going to Dingalan View Deck:

Trekking from the White Beach going to Dingalan View Deck may take arond 30 minutes. Most part of the way to the top is covered with trees so trekking is a bit easy but still tiring at times. The path is well guided, there are posts and ropes that you can rely on.

Upon reaching the top you will be fascinated with the beauty that you will be seeing. It’s much like looking on a masterpiece of an artist on a painted canvass. The view is really jaw-dropping that won’t stop you from staring and taking pictures.

Going to the Lighthouse:

After you’re done with the View Deck, you have to trek down for 30 minutes. Once reached the jump off point on the White Beach area you have to climb again on the other side for another 30 minutes to reach the lighthouse. Unlike the path on the View Deck, there’s no shade or trees on your way but instead, you will be seeing tall grasses along the way.

Upon reaching the top, another beauty awaits you. It’s windy on the lighthouse area compared on the View Deck which will be a good place to relax and scream your heart out. I actually enjoyed lying on the grass and feel the fresh air coming.

Note: Climbing the lighthouse itself is prohibited

Going back to the Feeder Port:

Once you are done with the trekking, it’s up to you if you want to stay on the White Beach for swimming or head to other Dingalan spots. On our case, since we only decided to visit the lighthouse and view deck we decided to head back to the Feeder Port.

You can trek back to the port for another 30-40 minutes but since we are a bit tired of all the trekking we’ve done we chose to rent a boat for a cheaper price of P400. (You will only pay half the boat rental fee if you will be coming from the White Beach)

Going Back to Manila:

You have to ride a tricycle from Feeder Port back to the transport terminal and ride a van going to Cabanatuan. By this time, the travel time to Cabanatuan only took 1 and a half hour. It’s much faster than our travel time from Cabanatual to Dingalan.

On Cabanatuan Terminal, we looked and ride a bus back to Cubao for P185.

Other Tourist Spots you can visit in Dingalan:

Tanawan Falls
Lamao Caves
Matawe Beach
Laktas Falls

Breakdown of Expenses (for 2 pax):

Expenses	Fares/Fees
Fare from Cubao to Cabanatuan	P185
Fare from Cabanatuan to Dingalan	P120
Tricycle fare to Feeder Port	P20
Environmental Fee	P50
Tour Guide Fee (2 locations and additional fee for trekking)	P300(P600/2)
Food	P45
Tricycle fare to Dingalan Terminal	P20
Fare from Dingalan to Cabanatuan	P120
Fare from Cabanatuan to Cubao	P185
Boat Rental	P200(P400/2)
Total	P1245

Expenses will be cheaper if you will be coming on big groups

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Baler Travel Guide 2018

Meghy — Fri, 07 Dec 2018 12:36:02 +0000

Have you ever watched the movie “Baler” starring Anne Curtis and Jericho Rosales way back 2008? That’s the first time I fell in love with the name “Baler”. Without knowing where exactly it is, living miles and ocean away from this beautiful place, I said to myself that someday I will be visiting and appreciate it with my bare eyes. It is one of my favorite Filipino movies I watched and this is the kind of movie that any Filipino should watch and be proud of.

But back on the main topic of this article, I will be sharing with you a travel guide to Baler!

Knowing Baler:

Baler is a municipality and the capital of the province of Aurora, Philippines. Baler became famous becuse of the beaches perfect for surfing. I can say that their beach waves are crazy compared those I saw in La Union. So surfers would really love this place. It is 5-6 hour travel from Manila so a weekend trip is really possible.

How to get there?

Genesis Bus offers daily buses going to Baler from Cubao. Travel time is 6 to 7 hours and bus fare is around P550
Joy Bus in Cubao as well offers deluxe trips to Baler. They have lazy boy chairs that will allow you to sleep comfortably on the non-stop trip. It includes blankets, snacks, a bus stewardess and a comfort room inside the bus. Fare is P750 and travel time is 5 hours. (For Genesis Transport and Joy Bus Schedule you can check it out here)
If you were not able to catch a bus that goes straight to Baler, riding a bus to Cabanatuan is another option. You can ride a bus (Victory Liner, Baliwag Transit, or Five Star) en route to Cabanatuan, fare is around P185, and ride another bus or van en route to Baler

Where to go in Baler?

You can easily go around Baler and visit its tourist attractions. You can hire a tricycle to visit these locations. Rate would be P800 for the whole day and P500 for half day. No worries it wouldn’t be hard for you to look for a tricycle that you can hire, almost all the drivers on the area would offer you for their service and will happily serve you as a guide.

Sabang Beach

Surfing is what makes Baler popular and this is where it happens. Make dance with the waves by learning surfing! One hour surfing session would cost P350 with personal instructor. If you only wish to rent a board that would only cost P200 per hour.

Century-Old Balete Tree

It is located in Maria Aurora, a town next to Baler. It is a 600 year old Balete tree tagged as the “Millenial Tree” of our country. The size of its diameter is as big as 30 people hold hand by hand formed on a circle. You can go inside the tree, on its cave-like sections and take selfies.

Museo de Baler and Aurora Ancestral House

With an entrance fee of P30 you can go and learn the rich history of Baler. The museum mostly displayed historical pictures, memorabilia and artifacts from Spanish time. It displays as well the costume and awards earned by the movie “Baler” last 2008 MMFF. Across the street you can visit the Ancestral House of Aurora, First Lady of the Philippines from 1935-1944, which is already included on your entrance fee.

Baler Church

Located just in front of the Aurora Ancestral House, this small church is rich in history since it served as the site of the “Siege of Baler”. 54 Spaniards were trapped inside the church on 1898 who believed that Philippines is still under the Spanish colonization. It took 11 months for them to finally surrender.

Ermita Hill

You need to do trekking in visiting this place. Upon reaching the top it will provide you the scenic view of the town. This place served as a safe place for people who experienced tsunami on the area back in 1735.

Diguisit Beach

This is beach where you can find a lot of rock formations and islets. You can have a view of this in one of the resorts on the area with their corresponding entrance fees but there is a viewpoint where you can go for free. The drivers are very much familiar with the place so you can ask them to drop you on the viewpoint with no entrance fee. Near the Diguisit beach is the Diguisit falls which you can visit long the way.

Other tourist spots you can visit:

Ditumabo Falls or Mother falls
Ampere Beach
Discalarin cove
Hanging Bridge

Where to eat in Baler?

The Rolling Store

It’s much like a line of “Karinderya” that offers home cooked foods in affordable prices. It is located in Poblacion, Baler near the Museo De Baler.

Ram’s Tapsilog

They offer Silog dishes at a very affordable price. We tried their tapa and sisig for breakfast. A very good meal to start your day.

The Good Food

Located in Buton St. near the Sabang Beach, this restaurant serves Mexican and Filipino food choices, We tried their pork chop and cheese quesadilla. Bad thing, we didn’t tried their buritos and tacos which often recommended on their reviews online. Maybe next time when we get back!

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