One of the perks of working at home or working remotely is you can work anytime and anywhere you want. (of course, with access of Internet) Since I started working at home 2 years ago I was lucky to travel to different places here in the Philippines.
Sagada! You’ll always have a special place in my heart! I am sharing with you our trip to Sagada with our baby Trixie ( our motorcycle name :D)
Actually I didn’t know that we were travelling to Sagada for our 10th anniversary. It was a surprise. My boyfriend just revealed it to me a few hours before leaving the house. ( I was expecting going to the beach :D). So,of course I had to pack the right clothes! I grew up in Baguio so I know the weather here in the Cordillera. We went to Sagada in the 1st week of March. The temperature during these months is still cold. It around 10°C-23°C.
So there! After packing up my clothes we set out for our new adventure!
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A – Getting Around Sagada
First thing you should do when you arrived in Sagada is to register at the Tourism Office. They will give you a receipt. Keep it and don’t lose it because you need to show that at every tourist spot you’d be going to. You can take a picture of it just in case you lose it.
After registering, you can talk to their tour guides. They will give a map of tourist attractions. They will be offering you some tour packages. Don’t be shy to haggle!
We decided to go DIY on the 2nd day because it would cost us too much. So we just used our motorcycle going around the different places. Every place or tourist spots has different fees, We tried to talk to other tourist to join us but unfortunately they already have their own groups.
B – Where we stayed in Sagada
This was also a part of the anniversary surprise. My partner booked at the only Lodge in Sagada that has a swimming pool. Our stay here was awesome. Our room was so nice. It has a terrace, your own living room and even a fireplace! We got it for only 1300 pesos/night.
The staff were so accommodating. They even suggested that we can go to Blue Soil for free because it was just 30 minutes hike from there. They have a lot of dogs too which was our tour guide going to Blue Soil.
You can check their Facebook here for more details.
C -Where to eat
Sagada is like little Baguio. Their town proper is like Session Road. So you don’t need to worry about where to eat as the restaurants are located next to each other. Just to give you a heads up, food in Sagada can be a little pricey ( for me). Each dish would cost you around 200-300 pesos not including drinks. There are some grocery stores there too. If you like to save money then you can cook your own food of your accommodation allows it.
Click here to see a list of where to eat in Sagada
D – Sample Itinerary
Here is a 3 days 2 nights Sample Itinerary.
Day 1
5:00 – Take off from Baguio
6:00 – Breakfast @ Jollibee La Trinidad
6:45 – Take off again
8:00 – 1st stop over at Highest point – rest and photo ops
8:15 – Take off again
9:40 – 2nd stop over at the Arc of Mt. Province – photo ops
10:00 – Take off again
11:30 – Arrived in Sagada
12:00 – Check in – rest
13:00 – Lunch
14:00 – Register at the Tourism Office
14:20 – Hanging Coffins
15:00 – Cemetery
16:00 – Church of Saint Mary
16:30 – Rest and snacks
17:00 – Walk around the town and checking some souvenir shops
18:00 – Dinner
19:00 – Drinks with new found friends
20:00 – Went back to our Lodge
21:00 – Lights out
DAY 2
We woke late! We were tired from the ride yesterday.
9:00 – Breakfast
10:00 – Prepare for the trip.
11:00 – Early lunch at Gaia cafe (where they shot That thing called tadhana)
12:00 – Sumaguing Cave
13:00 – Lumiang Cave
14:00 – Abandoned Sagada Bus
14:30 – Sagada Pottery
15:30 – Lake Danum
17:00 – Sagada Weaving
17:30 – Lemon Pie House
18:30 – Went back to our Lodge
19:00 – Bonfire and drinks
22:00 – Lights out
DAY 3
6:00 – Blue soils ( very near our Lodge)
7:30 – Breakfast
9:00 – Balangagan Cave
10:00 – Went back to Hotel for swimming
12:00 – Check out
12:30 – Yogurt House
1:30 – Buy souvenirs
2:00 – Take off to Banaue
Banaue is just a few hours so we decided to have a side trip there. I will be writing a different blog for that.
E – FAQ
Best time to visit Sagada?
- November to April
Weather
- Sunny but very cold in the morning (much colder than Baguio) warmer at noon and cold again in the evening
Things to bring
- Bring some thick clothes, shoes for hiking
ATM
- I think I just saw 1 ATM. Better bring cash with you
By: Melody Anne Noya
