Baguio City 2016

13 things we did in Baguio City
August 26-28, 2016

1.  Paladin Hotel
2.  The Mansion 
3.  Wright Park
4.  Mines View Park
5.  Good Shepherd
6.  SM Baguio
7.  Bell Church
8.  La Trinidad
9.  Burnham Park
10.  Camp John Hay
11.  Kennon Road Observation Deck
12.  Lion's Head
13.  Food Trip

Notes

• Five hour drive from Marikina City to Baguio City
• Van rental with driver for 3 days - P10,500.00
• Fuel consumption - P1,800.00
• Toll fees - P868
• Hotel for 2 nights / 2 rooms - P12,897.00
• Dog selfies / 4 shots - P50
• Strawberries per kilo - P450
• Swanboat for 30 minutes - P200
• Go Cart for 1 hour - P50

Photos

August 26

This was our first road trip I did not drive.  We rented a van this time for the comfort of everybody.  This was also my son's first ever trip.  The weather in the past few days was really bad and hoped for it to clear in the weekend.  Today it was gloomy but hardly rained on us.

We left Marikina at 5am with lots of snacks and excitement.  I don't have to worry about traffic and other drivers, just seated as a passenger and relax and eat the whole time.  Having lots of snacks in the vehicle, we had our breakfast along the way at Burger King.

The Mansion and Wright Park.  We expected to arrive in Baguio at noon time but because the traffic was light, we made it earlier.  So instead of having our lunch upon arriving, we spent out extra time at The Mansion and Wright Park.  We took some pictures of it and my brother's family hunted for some Pokemons.

Mines View Park.  Not feeling hungry, went to Mines View, an overlooking tourist spot with shops, restaurants and photo ops with themed horses and the famous St. Bernard dog.  An observation deck is located below where you have to take a winding stairway to reach it.

More shops and snack stores outside the park.  Dad and bro having some grilled dried squid and fried one day old chick.

Good Shepherd Baguio.  A convent that makes delicious ube and strawberry jams and other snacks ideal to take home with you or for your friends.  Your trip to Baguio is not complete if you can't bring home some of their products.  Although this is just our first day, we opted to buy pasalubongs already because our itinerary the next day will be on a different route.

Ketchup Food Community.  For lunch, we went to Ketchup Food Community, a place consist of 5 different restaurant cuisines serving homegrown food.  We chose to Canto, an American serving restaurant famous for their BBQ ribs.  Check out our lunch here.

SM City Baguio.  It started to rain while we were at Canto.  Since we can't visit other places anymore and horse riding for the kids was impossible, we just killed our time at the mall.

Paladin Hotel.  It is located on the Northwest side of Burnham Park and just about 5 minutes away from it and Session Road.  Our rooms are good for 4 pax each with amenities of air-conditioning, TV, ref, 2 double bed, chair and desk, hot and cold shower, towels and toiletries and telephone.  Set breakfast included for 4 with complimentary massage for 2 per day.  No additional charge for my 3 month old son.

Cons.  Only few slots for parking, you can use the bank's parking beside the building only when it's closed.  Breakfast is served cold.  No elevators.  Reception and breakfast lounge is located on the third floor.

After checking in late we head out to Kebab Konner along Session Road for our dinner.  They have a very sophisticated and pricey menu, my advice is just to order your all time favorite Persian food.  I gambled on trying unpopular ones but it didn't wow me.  Check out what we had here.

After dinner we went back to the hotel to rest and called it the day.



August 27

Bell Church.  Started the day going to the Bell Church, a Buddhism Temple with beautiful landscapes and buildings, perfect for picture taking.  People usually stop by this attraction before going to La Trinidad.

Strawberry Farm.  Arrived here at around 9am, it's not strawberry picking season so we just visited the place for my parents, the last time they were here was decades ago.  We also bought some fruits and vegetables before leaving.

Burnham Park.  Back in Baguio, we head to this place, probably the most favorite place to visit by tourists because of the park's recreation facilities and is located at the heart of the city.  We took pictures everywhere, tried the swan boat and bought some strawberry taho.  The kids had fun on wheels too.

Sizzling Plate Baguio.  After our morning visits, it's time for lunch.  We went to this restaurant, which is just across our hotel, to try some steaks.  Check out our lunch here.

We went back to the hotel to rest.  My parents needed an afternoon nap because we woke up early this morning.



Choco-Late de Batirol.  Time for merienda and the best way to satisfy your craving is in this restaurant, serving hot chocolate made in tablea is their specialty plus some all time Filipino favorites.  Their tablea chocolate is so good I always get the hot and frappe version.  Check out our merienda here.

Camp John Hay.  We started to go around the camp after merienda which was already past 5pm.  I didn't realize that some areas will be closed already during this time.  So we just took pictures with the Pine trees and this small statue of Liberty.

And that will be it for the day.  We went back to the hotel to rest and just had some pizza delivery for dinner.

August 28

It's a misty Sunday morning, we couldn't visit some places anymore because of the weather.  Some of them went to the market while I pack up our things.  After breakfast in the hotel, we checked out and said goodbye to Baguio.

Kennon Road Observation Deck.  Kennon Road is one of the major access road so this is where we will be passing through.  Along with it is an observation deck that allows you to see at good vantage point the beautiful mountains and twisting roads.  But because of the bad weather, clouds block us from seeing that view.  Nevertheless, we stopped by to take some pictures.

Lion's Head.  Also along Kennon Road is the infamous Lion's Head, your trip to Baguio won't be complete without visiting this place.  Still misty, we opted to stop and took picture of it.  Tried some strawberry taho again for the last time.

And that concludes our Baguio trip.  Headed back to Marikina City.