This website includes 82 Provinces of the Philippines. Travel and Hiking Guides, Top Tourist Spots, DIY Itineraries, Backpacking, Hotels, and Resorts.
Rizal is a neighbor province of Metro Manila; very accessible for commuters. Aside from Maytime Festival, kasuy and their local delicacies, they are also well known about their resorts with a gorgeous Manila golden skyline, others call it "overlooking." So, if you're planning to visit the City of Antipolo and looking for a place to stay, Cattleya Resort is a perfect place for you.
Another famous mountain in Rodriguez, Rizal is Mt. Binacayan, a small but tiring to hike because of its terrain. Though, separated by Wawa River from Mt. Pamitinan, they almost have the same features in terms of the difficulty and trails types. There are fruit bearing trees, shrubs that bloom like ornaments, and the lullabies from birds can be heard. You will be certified as a "revel in trekking" because of the rock climbing and scrambling on the boulders and limestone cliffs with sharp edges.
Mt. Daraitan, Tanay - when we saw the gorgeous photos of this mountain, we thought it's a perfect place to relax and re-energise with the positivity that nature possesses. Hiking this mountain and crossing the Tinipak River can definitely give you a unique experience because the place is surrounded with relaxing greens and the sound of the rushing water by the river preserves tranquility. Aside from this mountain, the province of Rizal has a lot to offer, from arts, crafts, food, rivers and mountains.
Mt. Hapunang Banoi is situated beside Mt. Pamitinan and separated by Wawa Dam from Mt. Binacayan. This mountain is now famous to the mountaineering world because it is surrounded by luscious green trees, making the area looks so relaxing and the wind is cool, clean and fresh. Plus, the exhilarating terrains added an adventure to hikers; a perfect place to relax and Instagram worthy.
UCM Adventure Park is one of the newest tourist spots and destinations in San Mateo, Rizal. This park became prominent because it’s 1 to 2 hours from Metro Manila. For a short travel time, you’ll enjoy the beauty that the province possesses. Free up your memory cards; you’ll definitely need more to capture the gorgeous landscape surrounding the area. Since this park is situated on the higher ground, at night, there’s a wide view of the Metro Manila’s skyline with the shining lights. What makes it relaxing? I think it's the fresh and cool wind blowing. VIEW MY VLOG HERE
Bahay Bakasyunan is one of the tourist attractions situated in the Municipality of Tanay, Rizal. This resort is perfect for team buildings because it has a wide area with amazing facilities like wall climbing, mud slide, and other fun outdoor activities. Rooms and cottages are built literally on top of the mountain, with amazing sceneries from afar. Not only that, one of the prides of Bahay Bakasyunan is the swimming pool on top of the mountain with cool and crystal clear water (photo above). The design of the landscape is really stunning.
Mt. Hapunang Banoi is a dwarf and a hiking-friendly mountain in Montalban, Rizal which can give you a tantalizing view of nature's beauty. Together with Mt. Pamitinan and Mt. Binacayan, Hapunang Banoi is ne of the must hiked mountains in the area because it is also surrounded by lucius greens trees which makes the area looks relaxing. Plus the exhilarating terrains added an adventure to hikers. In the center of these mountains is Wawa Dam, a water reservoir built by the American. This area was chosen because it's a catch basin of the three mountains.
Mt. Pamitinan is one of the most hiked mountains because it became famous due to it's accessibility from Manila. It's been a long time since we planned to visit Wawa Dam and hike the twin mountains, for some reasons, it resulted to "drawing." Hiking this mountain is a bit challenging but will definitely give you an amazing and wide view of greens surrounding Wawa Dam and part of Sierra Madre. Also, the area is famous because of the legend; according to stories: Bernardo Carpio used his super power to separate this mount from Mt. Binacayan, as a result, there's a space in between them, where Wawa Dam is situated.
If you're looking for an adventure, Tanay Adventure Camp is one perfect places you can visit, just two to three hours near Manila. In 2014, I was invited to join the TAC Attack, an annual anniversary celebration held at the camp. This year, a lot of activities were added to their itinerary, such as the ultra-marathon and outdoor cook fest. Since we a had problem with our availability, we opt to travel by 7 in the evening to Tanay and we arrived at the camp around midnight. Travel itinerary listed below.
I am not into cooking, but I love eating! One thing that I would like to share was an amazing encounter with exotic foods at Balaw Balaw Restaurant in Angono, Rizal. So, after enjoying the famous Higantes Festival, while our clothes are wet, we headed to this specialty restaurant, which is one of the prominent restaurants outside Metro Manila. I consider it as one of the must visit, best place to dine, and the best restaurants serving exotic foods.
Higantes Festival is an annual festivities held every November 23 in Angono, Rizal; its main purpose is to honor San Clemente, patron saint of the fishermen. His image is carried by male devotees during the procession, followed by the street dancers and participants. Higantes (Giants in English) is made up of paper mosaic handcrafted by the artistic minds of the people of Angono.
Traveling to the best tourist attractions and destinations in the Philippines for the past twelve months is definitely rewarding. I was able to meet a lot of people from different provinces with different cultures and beliefs. The unique and explainable excitement that I feel every time I create my travel guide and itinerary always results in an exquisite experience. Thank you for all your support!
Planning to go out of town but how far is out of town? Though, it's a one to two hours land travel from Metro Manila, we chose 3B Resort in Antipolo, Rizal because we thought that it has a relaxing ambiance and a pool with the view of Manila's golden skyline. Since it is situated on the mountainous part, the wind is relaxing, cool and fresh. This is your Backpacking Guide, Affordable Place to Stay, and Other Things You Need to Know.
