As I was browsing through my computer I came across some old photos of our adventure trips. So I decided to post it here. My friends and I visited Mountain province (Banaue – Sagada – Baguio) last March of 2007. Banaue, Ifugao is one of the provinces in the Cordillera Administrative region in Luzon. It is famous for the Banaue Rice Terraces which is commonly referred to by Filipinos as the “Eighth Wonder of the World”. This masterpiece has been around for centuries, passed on through generations and said that it was done with minimal use of machinery or mostly hand made. You can go to the viewpoint if you just want to take pictures of the Rice Terraces. Try dining in one of their restaurants and enjoy this magnificent view.
Viewpoint
Banaue Rice Terraces
Close-up view of Banaue Rice Terraces
BUS: Many bus companies and tour agencies have trips to Banaue. There are 3 ways to get to Banaue from Manila. Manila direct to Banaue. Manila to Baguio to Banaue, or the Manila, Bontoc, to Banaue trip. Each has its own interest. Autobus (Tel. No. +63 2 740-79-59), Dangwa Transco (Tel. No. +63 2 410-1991), Florida Bus Line (Tel. No. 02 731-53-58 or 02 743-3809),and Victory Bus Line (Tel. No. +63 2 833-0218)
Manila to Banaue – 2 bus companies (Florida & Autobus) have 1 trip daily which leaves Manila at around 10 pm. Bus fares are P450-P475. Both buses have terminals in Sampaloc Manila in the España area near the Sto. Tomas University. You can take the train to Legarda station then a pedicab to any of the two stations (fare: P20)
Manila-Solano, Nueva Vizcaya-Banaue – buses heading to Tuguegarao (e.g. Baliwag transit, Victory, etc.) pass by the town of Solano. Several jeepneys ply the Solano-Banaue route or the Solano-Lagawe, Ifugao route. From Lagawe, one can then take another jeepney to Banaue.
Manila-Tarlac-Solano-Banaue – buses heading for Baguio pass by Tarlac. Vizcaya liner plies the Tarlac-Solano route at 5 am.
by car: The distance between the Balintawak Cloverleaf in north Manila at the beginning of the North Luzon Expressway and the Welcome to Banaue sign is 332 km. The road is paved all the way to Banaue. Travel time can be as long as 9 hours due to the several blind curves through the mountains.
