Exploring The Mystical Sagada

6 more hours from Baguio City and you’ll go higher, experience a cooler and more tranquil village surrounded with enchanting mountains seemingly carpeted with pine trees. This majestic place offers a variety of activities for adventurers - from mountaineering, spelunking, rock-climbing to water-rafting or just settle for plain relaxing and sight-seeing. Its altitude accounted for its cool climate but its distance from Manila kept away the weekend warriors. And that is why it’s worth visiting particularly if you have more time. Less crowd, no nightlife, just moments of pure freshness, nature, serenity and excitement.  Fall asleep to the sound of cicadas, then wake up at the crack of dawn, and breathe in the cool crisp breeze. Capture a spectacular milieu during sunrise, the surreal moment with sea of clouds within the mountains. Be fascinated with the mystical coffins hanging on limestone cliffs or be enchanted with the various rock formations in the arcane Sumaguing cave. There are plenty of things to do in and around Sagada, and you’ll surely be coming back for more. Its beauty is a blessing, this place is home.

Getting There:

There are several ways to go to Sagada, and you might want to consider other routes that can get you faster there especially if you don’t have much time. It might just be a little time gap but it will make a big difference. However, if you have more time and want to see more, you can take the Baguio route to Sagada and go back to Manila from Banaue.

Getting around Sagada can be done by foot or by renting a van.

The following are the routes to Sagada from Manila:

Via Banaue

Take a bus direct to Banaue from Sampaloc, Manila via Autobus or Florida Bus Line (Bus Terminals are located in España near UST). Buses bound for Banaue leaves at night (9:00 to 10:00 PM).

After 9 hours, take a jeepney ride from Banaue Market to Bontoc (1 hour).

From the small town of Bontoc, take a jeepney ride to Sagada (45 minutes).

Most of the jeepneys leave early and have last trips until 1pm. The jeepney terminal is not that difficult to locate in the small towns, besides you can always ask the locals if you’re not sure where it is.

Buses back to Manila leave Banaue between 6-7pm (Autobus, Florida and Ohayami)

Via Baguio

There are several bus terminals for Baguio in Cubao along Edsa Highway. You can take the popular victory liner which has hourly trips. Ride the night bus and arrive in Baguio after 7 hours.

You can also take a bus from Baguio to Bontoc if you want to get to Sagada a little earlier. Or skip the transfers and go directly to Sagada from Baguio (6 hours). Buses from Dangwa Terminal have hourly trips to Sagada until 1PM. Walk along session road going to Magsaysay Road near the Center Mall and you’ll find the ordinary buses bound for Sagada, Bontoc and to other northern parts of Luzon.

Either way, it’s a best practice to leave early so you won’t be missing the bus schedules or sitting without a choice at the back which nobody wants to take.

There’s more flexibility in this route because Victory Liner has hourly trips from Manila to Baguio and vice versa. However, be forewarned, other travelers think the same as you so expect a long line of passengers buying tickets. So be really early or better yet, buy tickets in advance.

Notable Things:

The fascinating rock formations in Sumaguing cave

The mystical Lumiang burial cave

Centuries-old coffins hanging from limestone cliffs

The vast sea of clouds within the mountains 

Breathtaking views in Kiltepan during sunrise

The panoramic Echo valley

Rice terraces and mountains along the way, viewed from the jeepney’s rooftop

Budget Matters:

There are plenty of guesthouses to choose from in Sagada, the regular room just normally cost P250 per head. If you arrive in Sagada, make sure to purchase first the small map from souvenir shops (P20) or from the municipal hall as it indicates the guesthouses, attractions, transportation schedules and activities you can choose from. This will really come in handy especially if you’re a first-timer in Sagada. 

Food ranges from P90 - P200, the menu comprises of the usual pork dishes, vegetables, omelets, the good ‘ol Sinigang and other Filipino dishes. Or be adventurous and try the local food “Pinikpikan”, similar to Tinola dish, with chicken and vegetables. However, the poor chicken must be tortured first (beating it with a stick until the blood clots). You should order it in advance due to the long preparation. It will also cost you a hefty price but the dish is already good for sharing. Try this before leaving Sagada, only if you can bear the thought of eating a tortured chicken.

Food can be a little pricey so if you’re not lazy enough, some guesthouses allow their guests to cook their own food.

A big chunk of your budget will go to activities and tours around Sagada. However, the technique here is to be friendly and ask other travelers in your guesthouse to share and join with you in tour packages.

Suggested Activities:

(Inquire at the tourist information for more activities not listed here)

Cave Connection (4 hours) - P800 (2 visitors max) + P400 for each additional visitor

Sugong Hanging Coffins viewpoint

Lumiang Burial Cave

Sumaging Cave

Short Course Caving (2 Hours) - P500 (4 visitors max), P1000 (for 8 visitors), P1500 (12 visitors), above 12 visitors P125/person

Sugong Hanging Coffins viewpoint

Lumiang Burial Cave entrance

Sumaging Cave

Eco-Cultural Tour - P400 (10 visitors max)

Echo Valley Hanging Coffins

Underground River Entrance

Bokong / Small Falls

If you have the map you can pretty much go around Sagada without a guide by foot or by just renting a van, except to the caves of course which you should definitely have someone guiding you inside. Save money by just hitchhiking or walking to Kiltepan Sunrise viewpoint and to Echo Valley.

And for the transportation cost:

(Prices are subject to change)

Bus from Cubao to Baguio - P445

Bus from Baguio to Sagada - P220

Or Bus from Baguio to Bontoc - Around P200

Jeepney from Bontoc to Sagada - P40

Jeepyney from Bontoc to Banaue – P150

Bus from Banaue to Manila - P450

Nuisances and Joy Killers:

If you didn’t manage to arrive early in Baguio’s bus station for Sagada, then chances are you would be taking seats without a choice. If the only available one is the backseat, you are damned. Take it or leave it. The road to Sagada is a continuous spiral up the mountains, which is actually beautiful. The drivers expertly navigate the serpent roads and sharp turns all the way up, and yes, they drive fast. However, the only annoying thing is that if you happened to seat at the back of the ordinary bus, you’ll find yourself always finding something to hold on to for 6 hours straight. Otherwise, get your head slammed to the front sit, or worse, fall straight to the bus floor. As always, be prompt if you want to avoid this situation, or just wait for the next bus. If there is still one available or if it’s not yet full.

There are not many locals traveling to Sagada so you won’t be competing with the weekend warriors. You will find a lot of foreign travelers who have all the time and all the money in the world to stay in Sagada, while local visitors have to rush to go back to Manila for work. With the presence of tourists, some things can be a little bit pricey for the locals who have to pay the same amount. Foods are not that cheap here, restaurants offer dishes that are a little bit expensive for the mere local travelers.  

Adventure packages will cost you a lot of money especially if you are just traveling solo, so the best way is to look for groups you can join with. If you don’t have much time, you just have to choose activities that are worth paying for, like caving or trekking. Skip the tour guide for some other activities that you can safely do on your own.

It’s really annoying to see a local from Sagada throwing a cigarette butt on the road, it’s sad that a simple act like this can ruin the environment in time. You will sigh in disbelief when you see some walls of the caves vandalized by some inconsiderate character, or worse, garbage thrown in between some big rocks inside. Sure there are many signs reminding them not to litter, but perhaps not enough to educate these people. Hopefully, there would be more drives for environmental awareness for both the town locals and travelers.

Posted by MissForlorn, Photos by Peregrine