Can I just say that there’s nothing quite as validating as seeing an itinerary that you made from scratch show up as one of the group tours offered on Metrodeal?
I’m not saying that they stole it from me or something – because they totally didn’t; I’ve never shared the itinerary we used last July when we did the whole Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar adventure – but it is somewhat gratifying to see basically the same itinerary we used then being marketed for 2,799php.
Here’s the link to that particular deal if you’re interested.
Anywho, I figured that it was high time I posted the itinerary in here, if only for posterity’s sake. I spent maybe a couple of evenings working on this and scouring the interwebs for all the tips and tricks.
Bataan 2015 Itinerary
Duration: Early Saturday morning to Sunday afternoon
Mode of transportation: Private car (Kia Picanto and Toyota Wigo for 7pax)
Town of Interest: Bagac, Bataan
Distance: 160 KMs from Taguig to Bagac
* Picanto does 13kms/Liter = approximately 12liters to Bagac one way
Places of Interest:
- Balanga Church
- Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar
- Day tour – 1,200 net/person
- Set Meal (lunch), welcome drinks, guided tour, beach area, 2 tetra-pack juices, 2 bottles of mineral water
- 850 – entrance fee with snacks
- Mount Samat and Dambana ng Kagitingan
- Zero Kilometer Death March Marker
- Filipino-Japanese Friendship Marker
- Pawikan Conservatory
- Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (8.5 kms from Las Casas)
Resort Options:
- Bagac Beach Resort – Queen’s Innn – 3,000 for 8pax
- Fajardo Beach Resort – 3,500 for 6pax
- West Nuk Bataan Resort (Morong) – Nemo/Flipper – 2,500 for 6pax
- Personally I like West Nuk the best out of the three, but it is the furthest resort
Driving Directions:
NLEX – SCTEX – Dinalupihan exit – Turn right on the first intersection to Roman Highway –
Toll Fees:
NLEX – Balintawak to Dau – 218 pesos
SCTEX – Dau to Dinalupihan – 35 pesos’
Suggested Itinerary:
Meet up in Manila (Taguig, wherever) – Drive to NLEX – Breakfast at one of the gas stations and stock up – go to Las Casas for day tour and lunch – exit Las Casas early/mid afternoon – pass by the Death March Marker & the Fil-Jap Marker – Check out Mount Samat for Sunset photo ops – Buy food at the town proper (if we haven’t arranged food packages) – check in at Resort – Sunday – free time/island hopping/chill
Tentative Date: 18 July (unless may lakad na yung iba..? or may bagyo, lol)
Tentative list of expenses (if we go for West Nuk resort) – Fajardo beach resort is literally right next door to Las Casas but it is more expensive.
List of Expenses per head (7pax):
Gasoline 400
Toll Fees 85
Las Casas Tour 1200
WestNuk room 417
Mount Samat Entrace Fee 20
Dambana ng Kagitingan elevator fee 10
Running total of 2132PHP.
Obviously we didn’t get to do some of the things I listed on there – I particularly wanted to check out the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant and even stay in the West Nuk Bataan Resort even though it was the pricier option, BUT, as with most government operated entities, they took literally FOREVER to respond to my email. I even tried calling them to no avail – by the time they got back to me we had already gone to Bataan. Ridiculous? I think so.
We spent around the same amount that the deal on Metrodeal is offering (more in my case because I forked out for the mandatory refrigerator magnet pasalubongs) but if you don’t have a car or are actually too lazy to drive, I’d say it’s a good deal. Keep in mind though that their itinerary doesn’t include food so keep some cash for that.
The table up there was the predicted list of expenses. Here’s the actual damage:
Hopefully you guys find this itinerary helpful, because Bataan truly is one of the more underrated places to visit near Manila. It’s a shame to miss out on what it has to offer.