Happy Tripper

Tripper Tips: Manila Oceanpark

Posted by Carambs

Here are some tips that may be helpful for your trip to Manila Oceanpark.

1) Go there early. We went in the afternoon and there were so many people! Our friends lined up for 45 minutes just to buy tickets. Then we had to line up for around 20-30 more minutes to get inside. I’m not sure if there are less people in the morning, but nothing could be worse than what we went through.

2) Wear comfortable clothes and shoes. I’m not sure if there was no airconditioning or if there was something wrong with it, but I didn’t feel it at all. Bringing a fan will help a lot, I ended up using the flyer as my fan because it was just too hot!

3) Don’t go there hungry. Have a meal first before you go there. It takes a while to go around, and you can’t bring food inside. There was a bunch of unfinished pop corn and sodas at the entrance because people had to leave them there.

4) Bring a camera! There are so many interesting species that you will not see often so it will be good to take pictures. But please, follow the rules and don’t use flash photography. That’s not hard to understand right? I didn’t understand the other people there who had to be reminded so many times!

5) Bring your kids, nephews or nieces. It’s for everyone really but it’s just so amazing to see the reactions of the kids.

Kalesa Ride along Calle Crisologo

Posted by Carambs

I’ve had 2 posts on Vigan already - one on Vigan itself and one on Vigan Heritage Mansion. I just remembered that I have a video of our kalesa ride along Calle Crisologo. Here’s the view from the kalesa, which we rode on our way back to the Vigan Heritage Mansion:

Vigan

Posted by Carambs

My hubby and I went to Vigan last August 25-27, which was a long weekend. To truly enjoy the place, one should allocate at least 3 days for a trip to Vigan, mainly because of the long drive. It is situated north of Ilocos Sur, around 8-10 hours away from Manila via car. The journey from and to Manila lasts almost a day (20 hours) already. So if you go there for the weekend, you will only have practically 1 day to go around.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tripper Tip: Roadtrips 1

Posted by Carambs

Bring a small cooler and fill it up with ice and drinks.  This will be helpful especially for long trips.  No need to wait for stops if you’re thirsty.  Just be careful because you might end up wanting to go to the bathroom in the middle of nowhere.  Stock up on candy and chips as well.

Vigan Heritage Mansion

Posted by Carambs

During our last roadtrip with Vigan as our destination, I wanted to be sure that our chosen hotel wasn’t “spooky”. You see, I’m a scaredy cat. And most of Vigan’s hotels are actually preserved old houses. I researched online, and came across several hotels. We ended up choosing Vigan Heritage Mansion because of 2 reasons - its location, and its supposedly “modern” feel even if it’s a restored, antique mansion.

Location - Vigan Heritage Mansion is literally 10 steps away from Calle Crisologo, the most popular street in Vigan. It is lined with stores that sell Vigan goods such as woven blankets and bags. It’s a short street, so you can easily walk from the hotel to the end of the street and back. But it’s still advisable to ride the kalesa going back, even just for the experience.

Modern Feel - The Vigan Heritage Mansion is an old, antique house built in 1885 and restored in 2003. The paint is new and colorful, but the doors, chairs and other furniture are antique. It is not “spooky”, as with other old houses. The owners were able to achieve a balance of making the hotel accommodating while retaining the things that showed Vigan’s rich culture and history.

We paid P1,500 per night - I think this was a promo rate. This includes breakfast - longganisa or tocino, scrambled eggs, and rice. Unfortunately, the rates listed in their website shows 2005 rates. To inquire, you may contact them through email (inquiry@viganheritage.com) or by calling them in Vigan (+6377) 722-6495 or their Manila office (+632) 410-7955 and (+632) 371-0831.

Subic Attraction Promos

Posted by ordnacin

Greetings from the 20th Ad Congress here in Subic!

Though I’ve been involved in a lot of business and tech events this has been my first participation in a marketing related event. And I got to say you can really tell what kind of event you are in based on the crowd’s appearance. Business related events usually have a lot of older people in suits and barong while Tech event participants are in loose, informal clothing skews younger often already wearing glasses. Meanwhile here at the 20th Philippine Ad Congress you’ve got an eclectic mix of people also in loose/informal but stylish clothing (lots of people wearing shorts with high heels). I also notice there’s a higher ratio of gay to straight men heh ;-).

Anyway if you’re planning on going here in Subic this weekend do drop by the Ad Congress (Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center) as there are several promos to Subic attractions here - entrance is free anyway.

Zoobic Safari - The Only Tiger Safari in the Philippines has a 15% discount off the entrance fee plus free shuttle service if you book at the Ad Congress. Shuttle service is from Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center (SBECC) to Zoobic Safari.

Tropical Ritz Spa supposedly the only five star spa in Subic is offering a free 5 minute on the spot massage, and 10% discount on all their other services.

Ocean Adventure meanwhile is offering 20% discount off the entrance fee.

Note: The discounts are technically for delegates only but the exhibitors will still give you the discount even if you’re not one, which makes sense - why should they turn down business ?