Touring Ilocos Without a Car Part 1: From Manila to Laoag
My wife and I just came back from a 6-day Ilocos tour. We visited places in Laoag, Pagudpud and Vigan. We don’t know anybody there so it was a great adventure for us. I’m writing our experience to help others out there who want to visit the place but don’t know where to start, what to visit, how to get where, etc.
Our plan is to go to Pagudpud first and stay there for 2 nights then go back to Laoag for 3 more nights. It was raining pretty bad the week before we’re supposed to leave and since it’s already December, we decided not to go swimming anymore on the nice beaches of Pagudpud.
We travelled by plane (Cebu Pacific) to Laoag instead of the cheaper but 12 hour bus ride from Manila to Laoag. As many of you may experience riding Cebu Pacific, always expect that the flight would be delayed. Anyhow, we were greeted with a nice sunny weather landing in Laoag Airport.
Call your airline before you leave for the airport for schedule changes. It sucks to be stuck on the terminal for hours.
Our next order of business upon landing is to head straight to Pagudpud which is covered on the next part.
One of our readers, JB, informed us of DOT-accredited tour guides that you can hire in case you don’t want to do a lot of planning. Their contact is Steve and his number is 09267124472.
If you have any questions/suggestions/corrections, please feel free to leave a comment. Thanks!
You might also be interested in:
- Touring Ilocos Without a Car Part 5: South of Laoag
- Touring Ilocos Without a Car Part 6: Going to Vigan from Laoag
- Touring Ilocos Without a Car Part 4: City of Laoag
- Touring Ilocos Without a Car Part 2: Going to Pagudpud
Filed under: Travel
very informative site, Were plaanning to visit Vigan and sana makaabot kami, this summer na sya.
thanks! vigan is a great place to visit. you don’t have to spend too much time there so overnight pwede na.
nice site!thanks for all the infos na u are sharing…my husband and i are planning to have an adventure in ilocos and tulad mag asawa, we don’t know where to start…. salamat dito
calvin: enjoy talaga mag-adventure sa ilocos na kayong dalawa lang. glad my site could help. enjoy your vacation!
[...] for an Ilocos tour can be an option or just take public transportation all the way just like what this guy and his friends [...]
hi! i really enjoyed reading your post. i am planning to visit ilocos with a friend this august. if we are going to stay for 1 night in pagudpud and 2 nights in balay da blas, how much do you think is the money i have to prepare? including the trike fares and tour… thank you…
To be on the safe side, maybe 5k for the lodging then 1.5k for the fare and tour. I think that’s a safe estimate with plenty of leftover.
heloo, im steve of ilocos norte, im so thankful to JB for recomending me as one of their friends here in ilocos, nyway i feel so greatfull that you enjoy my company, which i always do to some of the guest or tourist who came here in the nort, more over if you are planing to come here in ilocos particularly in pagudpud, or vigan, pls. feel free to txt me or call me, neither email me, here 09267124472, hardin0417@yahoo.com.ph, i will be glad to provide you information, where would be the nice place to stay, as well provive you iteneraray, of tour here in ilocos, well not to mention i can provide some of pasalubong natively made here in ilocos like longanisa, bagnet, bischocho, chichacorn etc. so if you are planing to come here in ilocos, i will be always around not just a friend but as your family here in ilocos norte…..
Your site has got to be the most usual site that I chance upon. I have been searching the net for a good 2 hours but to no avail, even TripAdvisor has been useless.
I’ll be going to Laoag, Pagudpod and Vigan this February, and I was really frantic about the scheduling… but after reading this… I think I’m covered.
Thanks.
I just realized that since I’m already here, I might as well ask you for your advice on our trip. It is a 4D/4N trip from 21-Feb to 25-Feb.
We are going to Ilocandia by plane via CebuPacific (I know, Goodluck!) we arrive at Laoag Airport at around 06:35pm). We were thinking of going straight to Vigan to spend the night there and go around Vigan in the Morning. Then go to Laoag and probably spend 2 nights there before heading off to Pagudpod to spend our last night before going back to Laoag. We fly back home at around 09:30 pm.
Do you think we would be able to do everything in that tight schedule without having to stress ourselves (we’re on vacation to rest after all)?
Yup I think it’s doable. you get to see calle crisologo in the evening and also in the morning. You won’t be resting a lot because there’s a lot to see in the place especially around Laoag.
I would suggest hiring a DOT-accredited tour guide like Steve to take you around Laoag so you don’t have to worry about the commute.
Leave early for Pagudpud too because there are plenty to see there as well. If you’re going to take the bus to Laoag from Pagudpud, take note that you should leave before dark or else you’ll have a hard time waiting for a bus.
Thanks for your help on this!!! And again, great blog!!! XD
you can also visit http:/isang/osongligaw.blogspot.com for other vacation places. they’re updating the blog regularly and the concept of a travel bear is actually good, too. you can also follow them on facebook. the pix on facebook are really great..
Hi,
I started reading your site last year while researching for our Ilocos trip and the latter helped me a lot in planning our itinerary. We also stayed in Balay da Blas and enjoyed our stay so much. This is long overdue, but let me say thank you for creating a very informative site.
I will again use your blog as guide to our Bohol trip.
Thank you for your comment nina! glad your ilocos trip was a success. Bohol would be easier to plan. have a good trip!
Wow! Great site! Dami ko natutunan..
Our tour will be on Dec. 21. Though matagal pa pero ngayon pa lang nangangalap na ko ng information…
Di kase ako excited…hehehehe!
well done sir!