After staying 4 full nights at Las Vegas Lodge, some 1.5kms up from the
center of Banaue town (Poblacion), I transferred (more like, I was taken by the
owner of Las Vegas Lodge) to Wonder Lodge to have a taste of the town center
itself. I was supposed to stay only for
2 days but ended up staying 6 nights, from March 12 – 17, 2014, went to Baguio,
came back to Banaue and stayed for
another week here.
Location – right at the center of the town, it is the very first
accommodation on your left side. I was
told, it's one of the first accommodation built in Banaue town. Stone-throw away from the main market
building where you can find all sorts of shops from mini stores to restaurants,
internet cafes, souvenir shops, a massage parlour and where they hold the
nightly Ifugao cultural show on the top floor.
The lodge is surrounded by several mini stores and bakeshops for your
daily needs, few steps to all transport options – tricycles, jeepneys, vans,
bus terminal is up the hill. It’s right
in the center, literally.
The Building – it’s a 3-storey wide building with some shops on the
ground level. The first floor, that can
be accessed from the ground level through few steps is under renovation (at the
time of writing), repainting going on in preparation for a nice restaurant
where the scattered pieces of nicely carved wooden native furnitures and
ornaments will be displayed. The 2nd and
3rd floor where the actual rooms are located, most facing the main street of
the town center below, some at the backside.
So every day I get to watch all the business, tourists, locals going
about their daily routine. Bring ear
plug if you're a light sleeper, otherwise, get a room at the back side.
The Rooms – like most (may be all) accommodations around Banaue are
basic and simple (except maybe for the biggest place – Banaue Hotel), tourists
don’t spend lots of days in Banaue – it’s a jump off point. My room at the lodge is simple, two single beds,
draped with white bed sheet and blankets. Good-sized room, probably 18sqm, and
then there’s the balcony overlooking the main street below and where you can
smoke. The plus is – there’s an in-room
toilet/shower unlike some accommodations in Banaue with shared bath/toilet.
 |
| The lodge's lobby area. |
 |
| Twin Room. |
The Staff - the owner (Mildred)
welcomed me with a wide genuine friendly smile.
She was so accommodating and lots of funny stories to share. She made me feel so comfortable and “at
home”.
They serve delicious home-cooked very affordable breakfast, lunch and
dinner. Chat with the owner who also
manages the place, and you’ll get a lot of information for things to see and do
around the area. She helped me with
saving cost for my Batad tour as well as ways to see other sights which can be
visited on foot for which some tourists have opted to rent tricycles.
From the lodge, you can possibly (even for the moderately fit) hike up
along the well-paved road (highway) getting to the several viewpoints (about 6
of them) of the Banaue Rice Terraces, about 45 minutes if you want to reach the
last viewpoint (Main) which provides the most stunning views. If you’re lazy or just want to take it easy,
you can rent a tricycle for 200 pesos to go up to all the viewpoints, you can
ask the owner to hook you up with a friendly and efficient driver.
 |
| The owner, Manang Mildred, posing with guests. |
For the amount I paid, with ensuite toilet/shower (bring your own
towels and toilet paper though, and cold shower), a balcony, good-sized room,
nice food, fun stories from the friendly owner and kind staff - Wonder Lodge is
worth more than what I’ve doled out of my pocket which by the way has the
lowest room rate in town, so way more.
The drawbacks – cold shower only and no electrical socket inside the
room. What’s with Banaue and electrical
sockets?
Don't expect too much though, this isn't some star-rated hotel, most
hotels in Banaue are more like Inns and guesthouses, it befitting a small town.
Wonder Lodge = highly recommended.
Price: P300/night, no
breakfast.
Poblacion Banaue, Ifugao 3601, Philippines
Mob.: +63 0920 849 8849
E-mail: banauewonderlodge@hotmail.com
Website: http://wonderlodge.jimdo.com/
0 comments:
Post a Comment