Category Archives: Resorts

Balbagon Island: Coral Cay Resort (Carles, Iloilo)

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Coral Cay Resort in Balbagon Island

The Gigantes Islands, located off northeast Panay in Carles (Iloilo), first came into prominence long before Boracay became a byword  in the tourism industry.  In the 1970s and 80s, its luxurious Sicogon Island Club was one of the first beach resort hotels in the country to achieve international recognition. Its happy days ended when the resort closed down in 1989.  There is more to the Gigantes than just Sicogon as it still has 100 small, rugged, idyllic and fascinating islands, most with white sand beaches, plus hills covered with spectacular first and second growth virgin forests, hidden coves, and many massive wind-carved and steep rock formations containing many deep, cathedral-like granite and marble caves. It also has rich marine life and simple fishing villages inhabited by 300 families.   My wife Grace’s outfit for many years now, E. Ganzon Inc., owned and developed a resort called Coral Cay Resort on Balbagon Island.  We decided to give it a visit after Christmas Day.

Villa Lily Beach Resort in Estancia

I, together with Grace, 11 year old Jandy and 7 year old Cheska left on the early morning Philippine Airlines flight to Iloilo City.  Joining us were Atty. Jose Salazar, his wife and kids and Grace’s fellow E.G.I Properties employees Mr. Disney Sevilla, Ms. Marivic Santiago, Ms. Carol Reyes and Ms. Rhoda Evora.  At the airport, we were picked up by a company van that would take us on a 135.6-km.  (3.5-hr.) long-haul drive to Villa Lily Beach Resort in Estancia, jump-off point to more than 20 of the islands of the Gigantes including Balbagon Island.    

Arrival at Balbagon Island

Upon arrival at the hilltop resort, we waited 30 mins. for the arrival of company boat that would bring us, together with other guests, to the island. The 8 nautical mile long boat trip took about an hour, passing by the large Gigantes islands of Binulangan and Calagnaan as well as the smaller islands of Tabugon, Tulunan-an and Ojastras before reaching the relatively flat, fish-shaped island of Balbagon.  As there was no pier on Balbagon, we alighted a la MacArthur, getting our feet wet before reaching dry land.

The 42-hectare, 1.5-km. long Balbagon Island is located near Gigante Sur Island and is a 20-min. boat ride from the island’s Brgy. Lantangan. Upon our arrival here, we were billeted in one of Coral Cay Resort’s 10 airconditioned cottages. Each cottage, with its bamboo-cladded interior walls and exterior walls cladded with split coconut logs, has its own tiled bathroom and verandah.  This  Class “A” resort also has 25 fan-cooled cottages with bath and a coffee shop/restaurant.

A Balbagon sunset

On our first night on the island, a torch-lit dinner was served al fresco under the stars along its dazzling white sand beach lined with prickly aroma trees. Seafood, consisting of crabs, shrimps and fish, was the “standard” cuisine and was mostly eaten by many in the kamayan style.  The next two days at the resort were packed with stress-free fun: swimming, sunbathing, shell picking, eating, camaraderie, videoke, waiting for the beautiful sunset  or simply just relaxing by the beach and reading a good book.  No work, TV, telephones, pollution, noise and traffic jams. Our 12th wedding anniversary on the 28th (Ninos Inocentes) was spent quietly in much the same way.  Disney and I circumnavigated the island’s 3 km. long shoreline in about 30 mins., passing by a rocky shore where sea birds roost as well as the nearby barangay.  We also walked along the exposed reef at low tide. Along the way, we discovered a beached basket sponge which we brought back to the resort.

Club Panoly Resort (Boracay, Malay, Aklan)

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Club Panoly Resort

During our 1990 visit to Boracay, my first such visit, we made an ocular visit of the new (opened November 1989), 4-hectare, Singaporean-owned (CTW Group) and operated Club Panoly Resort, the first triple AAA resort in Boracay. A year later, the resort was the site of the 1991 RPN-9 mini-series Boracay which starred Dina Bonnevie, Fe Delos Reyes (singer/comedienne), Joel Torre, Rollie Quizon and Noel Trinidad (the fictional resort owner).

Posing at the resort entrance

Six years later, Grace and I decided to plan our next stay on the island on this world-class resort, staying here for 5 days and 4 nights.  Together with our kids Jandy and Cheska, we departed for Kalibo on the 9 AM Philippine Airlines flight, arrived by 10 AM and, from Kalibo Airport, boarded an airconditioned  Boracay Star bus for Jetty Port in Brgy. Caticlan, arriving there by 11:30 AM.

Cafe Punta Bunga

At the port, we boarded the resort’s shuttle boat and arrived at Club Panoly in time for lunch at Cafe Punta Bunga, the resort’s coffee shop.   Sprawled throughout this luxurious resort are 8 native-style octagonal clusters with 5 cottages, all fully air conditioned, with hot and cold shower, cable TV, minibar, complimentary coffee and tea and 24-hour IDD telephone facilities, all standard features in all rooms. The custom-designed furniture were made with indigenous creativity and materials. 

Lounging by the swimming pool and poolside bar

Aside from Cafe Punta Punta, the resort also has a restaurant, a bar (El Capitan) and a beach bar.  There’s also has a swimming pool (with poolside bar), a plexi-paved tennis court, two jacuzzis, spa, sauna, multi-purpose conference room, billiards, children’s playground, souvenir shop, seaport and offers waterskiing, windsurfing, jetskiing, diving, paddle boating and speed boats.

Trying out the jacuzzi
Club Panoly Resort: Sitio Punta Bunga, Brgy. Yapak, Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan. Tel: (032) 288-3011. Fax: (036) 288-3134.  Metro Manila booking office: International Vacations Corp.,  G/F, ACT Tower, 135 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Salcedo Village, Makati City.  Tel: (632) 812-2233 local 107 or 403.  Fax: (632) 812-6455 and 812-6434.  E-mail: info@thepanoly.com.  Website: www.thepanoly.com.

Puerto del Mar Resort (Nueva Valencia, Guimaras)

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Puerto del Mar Resort

Holy Week of 1995 was Layug family reunion time we all opted to spend a 4-day vacation to a place we have never been to or rarely heard of – the 604.65 sq. km., island province of Guimaras.   Me, Grace and our kids, 9-year old Jandy and 4-year old Cheska, as well as my mom Carol, our eldest Frank, together with wife Cherry, daughters Jaja and Sandy and son Franco, and our youngest sister Tellie were joining.  However, my older sister Salve wasn’t able to join us. We left Manila on April 13, Holy Thursday, on the 4:30 AM PAL flight from Manila to Iloilo City arriving at the Mandurriao airport by 6:30 AM.  At the airport, we were picked up by a shuttle which brought us to the city’s Muelle Loney Wharf near the Post Office.  

On our way to Guimaras Island

Directly offshore from Muelle Loney, separated by the 1.5-nautical mile wide Iloilo Strait, is Guimaras Island.  Here we boarded a big outrigger boat which brought us to our destination – the Class “A” Puerto del Mar Resort, along Alubijod Bay in Brgy.  Sta. Ana, Nueva Valencia, arriving at the resort  by 8:30 AM.  Breakfast was already being served at its restaurant and we had our first taste of the island’s famous mangoes (8,000 hectares or about 20% of the province is mango orchards). 

Dinner at the resort’s restaurant

We were billeted at 3 of the resort’s non-airconditioned native-style beachfront cottages with bath.   The resort also has a private beige sand beach, picnic coves, an aqua sports club (windsurfing and snorkeling), pavilion, bamboo bridge and serves as a training center for a local maritime school. 

Cheska enjoying her hammock along the beach

 

Club Paradise (Coron, Palawan)

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Club Paradise Resort

Upon our arrival on the island, we were offered welcome drinks and  billeted in one of the resort’s rustic non-airconditioned, beachfront cottages.  Made of rattan, bamboo and nipa, it had double beds (plus an extra one for me), a marble bath and a veranda with a bamboo sala set and an enticing  hammock for relaxing.  Our luggage, though, didn’t arrive with our flight as it was bumped off to make way for the bulky dive equipment of some foreign tourists.  We thus had to take a late lunch with just the clothes on our back.  No swimming or snorkeling the rest of the day.  Our luggage arrived late in the afternoon.  My irritation was somewhat diminished by dinnertime.   Crispy lechon (roasted pig) was served at the clubhouse and we didn’t seem to have many rivals as the seemingly health-conscious foreign guests avoided it like the plague (they preferred the seafood). And to cap it all, dessert consisted of some of the sweetest mangoes I have ever tasted.

Our cottage

The exclusive, Class “AAA” Club Paradise Resort, opened in 1986, was expanded in 1990 and now has 26 non-airconditioned  cottages with bath (9 de luxe, 17 standard), 14 airconditioned family cottages and 20 airconditioned apartment-type rooms.  It has a shimmering 700-m. long, powdery white sand beach, a magnificent and colorful coral reef (including large colorful giant clams) and crystal-clear, turquoise water.  It also has a saltwater swimming pool and a spacious clubhouse with a 120-pax, al fresco restaurant (Kanog), 2 bars (Dugong and Jungle Bar), lounge with indoor sport area (pingpong, billiards, darts and board games), video/videoke room, cable TV room, boutique shop, beauty parlor, 24-hour clinic and mini-library.  

Tellie relaxing at our hammock

There is also a jacuzzi, children’s playground, tennis court and a well-equipped dive center.  The resort also offers dive and dive courses,  waterskis, sit-in kayaks, wakeboards, ringo tubes, windsurfing, Hobie Cat sailing, banana boats and snorkeling as well as island hopping, bottom and troll fishing trips, Coron town and island trips and Calauit Island Wildlife Sanctuary “Safari” tours.  It can accommodate about 150 guests at one time.

Lounging along the island’s white sand beach

Club Paradise: Dimakya Island, Coron 5316, Palawan.  Mobile number: (0918) 912-7106.

Villa Escudero Plantation & Resort (San Pablo City, Quezon)

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It was time for our annual R.R. Payumo & Partners office outing and management decided on a  day tour of Villa Escudero Plantation & Resort, an exotic 450-hectare Class “AA” resort opened in 1981.  A favorite destination among local and foreign tourists, it is situated within a vast 800-hectare (2,000-acre), self-contained working coconut plantation that encompasses San Pablo City (where most of its land belongs) in Laguna and the towns of Dolores and Tiaong in Quezon.  A total of 18 office staff joined (Annie Guevara, Vangie Vargas, Nelson Valdez, Toots Gomez, Eric Tinio, Mario de Padua, Ading Aquino, Mario Nabor, among others).

Arrival at the resort

Our trip, via a chartered bus, took all of 2.5 hrs. via the South Expressway and the highway to Lucena City.  About 10 kms. (6.2 miles) south of San Pablo City, we entered the Laguna-Quezon (Tiaong) border arch and, a few hundred past the arch, on the left, is the entrance to the resort. Upon arrival, we were welcomed at the reception hall with a warm greeting and cool native sago or fruit drinks.

Our carabao cart ride

After our welcome, we were uniquely toured around the park-like setting of the resort via a large, festively-decorated and carabao-pulled cart (aptly named Macho).  Along the way, local female folk singers serenaded us with Filipino songs to the accompaniment of a male guitarist.  All are appropriately dressed in native costumes: the women in baro’t saya or kimona and the men in camisa de chino and colorful trousers. Truly a laid-back and unique countryside experience in a serene pastoral atmosphere.

Labasin Hydroelectric Dam

Later, we had a delicious native-style buffet lunch beside the man-made  Labasin Waterfalls, actually the spillway of the Labasin hydroelectric dam. We all sat at rows of shaded wood and bamboo dining tables with 8 inches of running spring waters swirling around the calves of our bare feet, a truly singular and memorable experience as we dined al fresco with the falls as a backdrop.  The Labasin dam also created a long, narrow and deep artificial lake or reservoir from the waters of the Lagnas River.  Filled with dalag (mudfish) and tilapia, fishing is offered here but we opted to avail  of the relaxing bamboo raft ride at this lake which was included in the day tour.

Frolicking at Labasin Falls

Villa Escudero Plantation & Resort: San Pablo City, Laguna.  Manila booking office: 1059 Estrada St., Malate, Manila.  Tel: (632) 521-0830, 523-0392 and 523-2944.  Website: www.villaescudero.com.