Laoag, Vigan and Pagudpud Thread 12

[ehlabart]

Up for this thread! Mga sis pahelp naman ako sa itinerary ko aug 25-27, i will be travelling alone via plane kasi..nakakadissapoint kasi di ko alam na gabi lang pala ang flight to laog, i have no choice kundi ituloy ang trip dahil naibook na ng dad ko for my lola.
 Ang dating ko sa laog is 7:30 pm na so I am torn kung ano uunahin ko.. May schedule na akong naiisip, so from laog naisip ko diretso ng vigan? Kasi gabi? Ano po yung cheapest place to stay like a backpacker room lang sa vigan or laoag? Ano yung pwede ko pang maikutan around laog or vigan ng gabi?kasi i cannot decide kasi i have to spend a day to visit my grandmoms grave at yung pinsan ko with their relatives sa nagbacalan paoay, di ko alam paano ko pagkakasyahin yung mga tours na yan.. Tapos ang uwi ko is 7 pm ng gabi sa 27 naman.. Gusto ko pa naman puntahan yung cape bojeador   worth it ba sa vigan ,kaya ba yung one day or half day?or might as well go to pagudpud for cape bojeador?pahelp naman mga sis eto yung sample na naisip ko:

Day 1

Arrival laog 7:30 pm
Going to vigan or stay in laog?
Check in sa inn

Day 2
If in vigan already, tour by a kalesa or trycycle yung cheaper?anong oras?
After the tour, check out then go to paoay to visit relative and stay the night?
(pls suggestion for this 2nd day freetime)

Day 3
Visit grandmoms grave
pack things and go home via plane

Sorry maraming tanong magulo talaga isip ko kasi tight ang schedule at ang budget haha.. Will really appreciate your suggestions mga sis, kasi i have 5 days lwft to decide. Tia

[rics]

^i think it would be better if you just stay at Laoag since its already quite late and it'll be a 2hr commute.

It was my first time to ride a calesa at Vigan, was charged 150pesos/hr. pero I suppose mas mura if you take the tricycle.

[mindiegirl]

Ehlabart, some suggestions:

Since by plane ka bith ways, mas maganda diretso ka na sa vigan agad pagdating mo ng 7:30. About an hour lang naman i think ang travel from there to vigan. Baka abutan mo pa yung dancing fountain show every night (which is very pretty!) Maganda din maglibot sa calle crisologo even at night, ganda ng lights, sulit sa pictorial. Hehe. Pag ganitong di naman peak season mura lang mga inn don. Try cordillera inn. Along calle crisologo lang sya.
For Day 2 mag calesa tour ka na, if i remember in right, 150 for the first hour yata. U will need siguro 2 hours. Standard naman rate nila so dont worry na maloko ka. Hehe. Alam na nila iikutan. Tour also hidden garden and eat there na din. Pwede din isingit ang baluarte. Kaya yan lahat ng half day. Maliit lang vigan. Maiikot mo agad.

After lunch paoay kana to visit your relative. Pwedeng puntahan is yung famous chutch na may katabing pizza house (i forgot the name hehe letter h nagstart) haha! Then sa hapon mag sand dunes ka. Ganda pag sunset. Malapit na sya sa malacañang of the north.

Day 3
Visit  your grandmoms grave
Tour laoag, food trip ka mga empanada, try saramsam also and la preciousa's carrot cake. Dami ka pa magagawa nyan kasi gabi pa flight mo. U can rent a trike para dalin ka sa cape bojeador, sa wind turbines, sa rock formations.

Hope this helps! Enjoy!

[ehlabart]

@mindiegirl Thank you sis! ngayon naliwanagan na ako sa gagawin, from Laog gano katagal ang byahe from Cape Bojeador? actually yun ang gusto ko puntahan talaga aside from vigan. Hindi ba delikado maglakad ng gabi sa Vigan? i mean sight seeing along calle crisologo? hahaha..

@rics thanks sis!!

[mindiegirl]

From laoag municipal hall, around 1 to 1.5 hrs yata sis (sa pagkatanda ko). Looban sya so better mangontrata ka talaga ng trike coz package nila yung 3 (kapurpurawan rocks, windturbines, cape bojeador). Magkakalapit lang kasi so mas sulit to go sa 3 na. Although you can always have the choice na sa cape bojeador lang. oh btw sis, like mo ba akyatin that light house? Bwal kasi talaga akyatin yun since mahina na daw pundasyon ng building. Pero some caretakers will let you 'at your own risk'. Hehe.

Hindi naman delikado sis sa vigan. May nababasa nga ako blogs as in gumigising pa sila late night to see calle crisologo at that hour. Magical daw. Hehe. Pero make sure nalang na since di ka peak seaaon punta, be cautious din sa paligid.

For me lang kasi mas maganda na unahin mo muna vigan para pabalik na itinerary mo since sa laoag ka din pupunta pauwi. Para hindi na pabalik balik. Hehe

[xxcheiyexx]

My bf and I are planning to celebrate our anniversary in vigan-laoag-baguio. Is it advisable to travel there around november? And how may days will we need kaya?

[rics]

@mindiegirl Thank you sis! ngayon naliwanagan na ako sa gagawin, from Laog gano katagal ang byahe from Cape Bojeador? actually yun ang gusto ko puntahan talaga aside from vigan. Hindi ba delikado maglakad ng gabi sa Vigan? i mean sight seeing along calle crisologo? hahaha..

@rics thanks sis!!

if you want to go to cape bojedor, sa highway ka bababa and at the entrance going up to the lighthouse meron mga tricycle.

naka-akyat naman kami sa building but not on the light house itself kasi sarado

[xxcheiyexx]

I texted Kuya Arnel na and he suggested we do the Pagudpud tour on our first day.

May mga buses ba na manila to pagudpud?
Gano katagal byahe from pagudpud to laoag! Laoag to vigan? Vigan to Baguio?

[super bratinella]

This is one listed in my bucket list of places to go, hopefully sa Dec makapag road trip dito before Christmas! Nakapunta na ako Laoag via airplane and we stayed at Fort Ilocandia but I was not able to go Vigan and Pagudpud..

[rienny25]

Hi mga sis!  I thought I posted my question here yesterday but looks like it didn't go through.  I need your recommendation of a good Travel Agency who can organize a tour pacakage for 20 pax.  We'll be going there with the whole clan next year and we would like to book na sana since Summer yung plan namin which I believe is a peak season & most of us are based overseas.  Thanks mga sis.

[mindiegirl]

Hi mga sis!  I thought I posted my question here yesterday but looks like it didn't go through.  I need your recommendation of a good Travel Agency who can organize a tour pacakage for 20 pax.  We'll be going there with the whole clan next year and we would like to book na sana since Summer yung plan namin which I believe is a peak season & most of us are based overseas.  Thanks mga sis.

Hi sis, my officemate booked thru Triple 8 Travel and Tours for their Ilococ tour last May. She had good feedbacks naman. Here's their link: http://www.triple8travel.com/ilocos.html

Disclaimer lang sis, di ako yung may firsthand experience so check mo nalang din.

And I agree na magbook ka na as early as now. Me and my family went to Ilocos Holy Week 2015. Graaabbbeee lang sa hassle magpa book. Feb ako nagbu book nun ah. I literally contacted 20 hotels/inns (I DIYed kasi). And the price per night doubles ha pag peak season. Nonetheless nag enjoy naman kami. So better to have it done by a travel agent especially madami naman kayo.

Enjoy!

[rienny25]

Thanks sis mindiegirl   Yan din yung isa sa mga nakita ng cousin ko.  Looks like sila famous sa Ilocos tour.  We're also checking on other travel agencies din.  Sis, is it cheaper kung DIY ang tour?  Si fiance kasi sabi niya mag DIY na lang para tipid.  We're getting married kasi next year, so may expenses sa plane ticket, wedding, honeymoon, we'll be going to Boracay with his family.  Ilocos is with my family naman.  Although KKB siya, as much as possible, bawasan ang costs hanggat kaya.  hehe!  Kung konti lang difference, I'd rather have a travel agent organized it for us para hindi na sumakit pa ulo ko. 

[mindiegirl]

^ilan kayo sis? Nakatipid kami ng around 5-6k. 3d/2n kami. We are 7 pax and my basis is the 3k per head rate ng mga travel agencies. Peak season pa to so namahalan pa kami sa lodging sis. Rooms can be as low as 200 per head per night if your not choosy sa place but there are super ok ones nasa 300. Mahal na yung 500 per head. Food maybe 150 per head per meal is ok. Gasoline, I think 2 full tanks ang naubos namin. Hehe

I think sis if you want na mapuntahan talaga lahat and you are not familiar with the area, better book a tour guide. Kami kasi are all 2nd timers na  sa Ilocos that's why we want to skip certain places already. Hehe. I just researched on the places we want to visit, printed google maps or waze-d it. I loved that we controlled our own time and we decided how long we get to stay on a certain spot. Usually kasi mabilis ang phasing pag group tours eh. Except if you fill the entire van, maybe you can have a control sa places and time. Also other option is you get a driver na familiar sa place.

Side note: Congrats on the engagement sis!

[rienny25]

Thank you, sis mindiegirl   Siguro mga 20 kame.  Galing na this year yung isang cousin ko pero ayaw niyang mag DIY kasi maliligaw daw kame kung siya tatanungin namin.  haha!  I'll discuss it pa with them.  Sayang din kasi matitipid.  If ever mag DIY kame, can you share sis kung saan kayo nag-stay and yung van na nirent niyo?  Kasi kung magdadala kame ng car, hindi kame kasya so hiwa-hiwalay.  Eh ayaw namin maghiwalay ng sasakyan para todo bonding.  hehe! 

[mindiegirl]

^sis i pm'ed you.

[Issabelle]

Meron bang condo for rent sa pagudpod? For 3 days lang sana. Okay lang kahit hindi malapit sa beach. Planning to visit this place on November.

[mimai1122]

Laoag, Vigan, and Pagudpud are three of my dream destinations. As in college pa lang, I wanted to go there na. Kaya lang, never had the budget. Baka next year, makapunta kami ng husband ko. For our anniversary. Only concern lang namin is we'll be traveling from Cagayan de Oro, so medyo mahaba ang byahe. We'll have to go to Manila pa kasi I don't think there are direct flights from CDO to Laoag. My friend went there earlier this year, but I forgot to ask what route she took.I think nag via Cebu siya. Can anyone offer some suggestions?

Also, what's cheaper, touring the place on your own or joining a tour? I've tried joining a tour (although it was in Madrid) and it has ita advantages. Kaya lang, feeling ko, for places like Laoag, Vigan, and Pagudpud, mas maganda mag.explore on your own. Which is safer and more practical ba?

[purple_girl]

^kung 2 lang kayo ni hubby mo, baka more cost efficient ang diy tour. hire ka na lang ng mga trike para i-tour you. i can give you the nos nung mga nag tour sa amin nung nag ilocos trip kami ng friend ko last feb. highly recommended ko sila, super bait nila.

[penelope]

Planning to go alone to north fr nov 14-18. Safe ba to travel alone by land?

[Hevn]

We did Vigan, Laoag and Pagudpud in two whole days lang by car from Baguio.

We left Baguio around 12 midnight and we were at Vigan in the morning. We had quick city tour by kalesa and ate breakfast there. (drawback is the stores in Calle Crisologo are closed).

After that we went straight to Laoag to tour the city and by night time we were on our way to Pagudpud. We had dinner at around 10pm and went straight to bed. We woke up at 6am to enjoy the beach for a few hours. By 9am we were on the road again to go to the other areas.

Here's our itinerary:
Day 1
VIGAN
Stopped by Banaoang bridge at sunrise
Breakfast in Vigan
Walked around Vigan Cathedral
Tour by kalesa:
* Calle Crisologo
* Church of Saint Augustine
* Bantay Church and Belltower (with bird feeding with the priest)
* Pagburnayan Pottery
* Plaza Burgos

LAOAG
Sinking Bell Tower
Marcos Birthplace
Malacañang of the North
Paoay Church
Marcos Mausoleum
Santa Monica Church

Day 2
Breakfast and beach time at pagudpud
Patapat Bridge
Bangui Windmills
Kapurpurawan Rock Formation
Cape Bojeador