Thursday 28th March – Manila

• Arrive at your own leisure to Manila – Ninoy Aquino International Airport is well connected with, Asia, Middle East and North America. Self-transfer to the Garden Lotus Hotel located centrally in town. Pre-tour accommodation can be arranged for a fee.
• At 6pm you’ll meet your fellow group members in the hotel lobby for a pre tour meeting. Your YTP and Local guide discuss the itinerary and will be able to answer any questions you have regarding the tour.
• Dinner at our favourite Korean BBQ restaurant, here you cook your own food at the table and get to know your fellow travellers before the journey ahead.
• For those inclined we’ll head out for some drinks in Ermita – this district has some of the best bars in Manila.
• Overnight at Lotus Garden Hotel.

Friday 29th March – Angeles: Good Friday!

Morning

• Early morning start, 5.30am we’ll meet our drivers who will take us on a 2-hour drive to the San Fernando Area of Pampanga. Due to the early start we’ll have a packed breakfast to enjoy along the journey – we’ll make a stop along the journey where you can relax and grab a coffee.
• On arrival we’ll head straight to the heart of the Cutud Lenten Rites Festival, one of the biggest and most spectacular festivals in the Philippines. The event starts with devote Catholics self-flagellating themselves which slowly builds up. Here’s a good opportunity to explore the area and follow the journey of the penitents to the mounted crosses – here you can get right close to the action.
• The peak of the live action “show” where Jesus is captured by the Cohors I Sebastenorum (Roman Legion) and taken to the crucifixion site. This goes on until around 3pm, YPT can arrange press passes so that our group can capture prime photos.

Afternoon

• After experiencing the truly passionate festival we’ll head to our bus and find a cool place for a picnic lunch.
• Once we’re ready we’ll start our journey to Angeles City – a former US military base but is equally infamous as the “City of Sin” and the culinary capital of the country.
• On our arrival we can check into our centrally located hotel, with the early morning start it’s a good time to relax and freshen up before we head out for dinner at Rob’s Gastropub complete with its very own British red telephone box.

• For those looking to enjoy a few more drinks we’ll experience the legendary Angeles Walking Street Bar Crawl – it’s defiantly worth seeing the city of sins even if you don’t fancy a few drink!
• Overnight at Angeles City.

Saturday 30th March – Baguio

Morning

• This morning we’ll take things more leisurely, especially after the festival. For breakfast, we have a real treat for you and when you’re in the Philippines you have to try out Jollibee!
• Next we’ll set off for the four-hour drive to Baguio – known as the summer capital of the Philippines due to its much cooler climate (you may even need a jacket at night). We’ll take breaks along the journey and take in the beautiful scenery.

Afternoon

• Once we arrive, we’ll drop our bags off at the hotel and head straight out for lunch at a quirky restaurant serving traditional Filipino cuisines, what makes this restaurant so fun is that you’ll be surrounded by your favourite Disney and Pixel characters.
• Once we’re ready we’ll explore the city on a walking tour, stopping for some liquid refreshments before things start to get weird.
• The Philippines is not only famous for its religious devotees but also how very superstitious they are – so let’s go on a genuine ghost-hunting tour at an abandoned haunted site.
• Our tour will lead us to a wonderful pilgrimage site high up in the city which offers stunning views of the city. Here we can relax and enjoy the sunset overlooking Baguio.
• For dinner we’ll head back to the hotel and enjoy the various cuisines they have to offer – we recommend one of the wood fired pizza. There’s an option to head out for drinks and enjoy the peaceful scenery.
• Overnight in Baguio.

Sunday 31st March – Sagada: Easter Sunday

Morning

• Enjoy breakfast at the hotel, there’s a variety of items to choose from the buffet including locally sourced fresh fruits.
• We’ll set off for 5-6 hour drive to Sagada, this is one of the most famous places in the Philippines. The journey’s filled with rice terraces along the way and we’ll also pass through the highest highway system in the Philippines. What makes this journey so fun is that there are little remote shops selling local produce which you snack on along the way.

Afternoon

• On our journey to Sagada we’ll stop and have lunch, our local restaurant serves traditional Filipino dishes while you wait, check out next doors thrift store which have plenty of second hand retro/antique items.
• Once we arrive to Sagada we’ll be met by our local guide, we’ll head out for the day of hiking around this historic city, with the main focus being on witnessing and picturing the Hanging Coffins, which are unique to this part of the Philippines. Our local guide will give a full explanation and answer any questions we might have – this is one of three places in the world where you can see hanging coffins.
• We’ll also visit the Church of St. Mary the Virgin which was built by American missionaries in the 1904 before we explore the small town – this is a perfect opportunity to buy gifts or just relax in the coffee shop which serves local wine.
• Dinner in Sagada at our favourite restaurant – Yoghurt House, it serves more than just yoghurt!
• After a busy day we’ll check into our rural homestay, with the cooler climate we’ll enjoy some of the locally produced wine in the courtyard and share our favourite travel stories.
• Overnight in Sagada.

Monday 1st April – Currimao

Morning

• Breakfast at the homestay before we head off for the next part of our trip: the 5-6 drive to the beach paradise of Currimao. This is one of the most scenic journeys we take, with us making lots of picture stops to see the rice terraces and mountain scenery, we’ll even stop off for a break at Vagina Falls!

Afternoon

• In the afternoon we’ll stop off in Vigan and sample some of its famous street food this where you can try out a variety of local dishes.
• Vigan is an UNESCO World Heritage Site with its Spanish colonial era churches and streets, we’ll have a short walking tour – depending if our favourite local guide is available. We recommend exploring the old town at your own pace there’s plenty of shops selling local produce and gifts and we’ll make Calle Brewery our meeting point, enough time to have a refreshing beverage.
• Once we’re ready to leave, we’ll head off to Currimao and check into our hotel.
• After a busy day, we’ll head to the beach and have dinner at our favourite BBQ spots and enjoy some locally produced rum. Even late in the evening you’ll find plenty of locals enjoying the beach under the stars.
• Overnight in Currimao.

Tuesday 2nd April – La Union

Morning

• We’ll take the morning to relax and enjoy breakfast before heading off to Batac.
• Once we arrive we’ll do a city tour of Batac – this beautiful city has an interesting former resident for the Philippines as it’s the birthplace of Ferdinand Marcos, a powerful dictator who ruled until he was deposed in 1986.
• Our visit wouldn’t be complete without visiting the Marcos Museum about Ferdinand and Emelda. Unfortunately his embalmed body is no longer here, but it is fascinating and insightful nonetheless.
• Batac is famous for its local sausages and empanadas and we know the best market spot to enjoy some.
• We’ll also check out a few other places such as the Marcos University and Malacanang Palace of the North – the former home of the Marcos family. Ferdinand is still regarded very high, hence the city name “home of great leaders”.

Afternoon

• Lunch at a local restaurant overseeing the Malacanang Palace, what’s great about this location it’s near Ferdinand very own private abandoned golf course, we can attempt to explore the abandoned golf club.
• Next we’ll head to Paoay town for a break – the beautiful town boast Spanish era architecture including the Paoay Church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Once we’re ready we’ll head to the beach, for those inclined, we offer optional ATV driving on the Sand Dunes (extra charge).
• We then take the next part of our journey, the 4-hour journey to the surfing beach town of Urbiztondo in La Union; we’ll make breaks along the way.
• Our hotel will be located with our very private beach, so we’ll make the most of it and have a BBQ.
• Overnight in La Union.

Wednesday 3rd April – Manila

Morning

• For those early risers you can go for a swim in the sea followed by breakfast before we head out for our final leg of the journey – the 4-5 hours journey back to Manila, we’ll make stops along the way to stretch our legs and pick up supplies.

Afternoon

• Along the journey we’ll have lunch at a popular local buffet restaurant they have a great variety of Filipino dishes and can cater for any dietary needs.
• Manila might well be the centre of wealth, business and government in the Philippines, but it is very much a tale of two cities, with the slums that culminate in the rubbish collectors of Smokey Mountain living in abject poverty. We take a very sobering slum tour of Manila with our local guides, who will give a very in-depth explanation about their lives.
• Following the visit to the slums we take a short drive that almost takes us to another universe by visiting the Manila Hotel – the oldest and most deluxe hotel in the city – that also happens to serve great coffee and cocktails.
• We’ll check back into the Garden Lotus Hotel, where our journey began – there’s time to relax and freshen up before we head out for dinner.
• On our last-night we’ll have dinner in Burgos Street followed by a trip to Ringside bar to watch midget boxing, capping off a truly extreme day in the Philippines – please note this is subject to availability.
• Overnight at Garden Lotus Hotel.

Thursday 4th April – Manila

• Relaxing breakfast at the hotel.
• End of tour, with YPT able to offer further transport services, or for those heading onto the next part of the trip, transfer to the airport.
• We are currently looking at adding an extension to this tour. Watch this space!

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