Showing posts with label Puerto Galera. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Puerto Galera. Show all posts

Monday, August 5, 2013

TBT: Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures - The Morning After

This is the fourth part of our 2-days-1-night Puerto Galera (Mis)Adventures

Good Morning Puerto!


We had an early start to our 2nd (and last) day in Puerto Galera since we slept in early last night. Oldies haha. Morning is one of the most peaceful time that you could swim in the beach since the people are all still asleep and so it’s not that crowded. But, first, breakfast! We ate at “Food Trip sa Galera” restaurant and it has got to be the best resto in Puerto Galera! They serve breakfast 24-hours a day. The food ranges from tapsilog, pancakes, waffles, bacons, daing, basically anything you could think of to serve for breakfast. They also have set meals which is amazing. We really enjoyed our food trip here and if ever I decided to go back to Puerto Galera, it would be because of the food in this place. The bacon is the bomb!

Eat Here!


The Menu


The Menu


Big Breakfast


Almusal ni Boss


Waffle with Bacon and Eggs


Anyway, after breakfast, 2 of us decided to enjoy the beach more while the rest decided to just hang around or explore to find some souvenirs. Our return trip was scheduled at 10am so as to avoid the long queue during the afternoon.

Lesser People at the Beach during mornings


Enjoying a Morning Swim


And so at 10 am with a heavy heart (and a bit of a paranoid mind because of the waves of the beach) we set off back to Manila. Luckily, our return trip was peaceful and uneventful. We again, boarded a bus going back to Buendia which took us around 2 hours travel time.

And this concludes our Puerto Galera (Mis)Adventures during the Holy Week. Overall, if you are planning on going here to relax or just stroll around the beach quietly, DO NOT go here during the peak season. Otherwise, it’s a great place to go to since it’s very accessible. I would recommend going here if you’re with your friends and you just want a place to go to over the weekend. It’s cheap, it’s near, and heck, it’s still a beach!

Read more:
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Getting to Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Arrival at Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Night Life at Puerto Galera
Read More»
Posted by No comments:
Labels:

TBT: Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures - The Night Life at Puerto Galera

This is the third part of our 2-days-1-night Puerto Galera (Mis)Adventures

One of the most popular things about Puerto Galera is the night life. They have rows and rows of restaurants, bars in the beachfront. They have food ranging from rice, ihaw (grilled), nachos, pizzas, etc. You will not go hungry here! Oh, and top it off with a very affordable price range plus some entertainments like a band or a fire dancer, the night life here is amazing.

Night Life!


Unfortunately, I forgot the name of the restaurant we went to. But their food was very nice. We tried the nachos which was superb, several grilled foods, and of course, the famous Mindoro Sling. What is a Mindoro Sling? It’s the most popular alcoholic drink in Puerto Galera. You’re beach trip would not be complete if you haven’t tried this! Maybe it’s the old-fashion in me but I still prefer a bottle of beer over the Mindoro Sling. But it was a good experience trying it out.

What is inside a Mindoro Sling? Here you go:
  • 375 ml Tanduay Premium Rum
  • 500 ml Sprite
  • 1 jigger Grenadine
  • 1 jigger Orange Juice Concentrate
  • 1 jigger Lemon Juice Concentrate
  • 1 small can Mango Nectar
  • Lots and lots of ice!

The Amazing Nachos


After our dinner and drinking session, we went back to our resort and tried out their swimming pool to remove the haziness in our brain which was secondary to the alcohol in our system. After that, we called it a night…at 11pm! This is a sure sign that we really are getting old already hahaha.

Up next, the morning after.

Read more:
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Getting to Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Arrival at Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Morning After
Read More»
Posted by No comments:
Labels:

TBT: Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures - Arrival at Puerto Galera

This is the second part of our 2-days-1-night Puerto Galera (Mis)Adventures

We chose the FSL shipping lines ferry since we know that they have bigger boats so imagine our surprise when we saw our small boat going to White Beach. At that point, I had a strange apprehension with this trip, but carry on we did! Since it was the Holy Week, our boat was brimming with people. And since we left the Batangas Pier at around 3pm, the waves of the sea were crashing like crazy. They were huge! And since the ferry had a hard time maneuvering the waves, it took us around 1 ½ hours to arrive to White Beach. Those 1 ½ hours were spent with us praying like crazy and questioning ourselves why we took this trip haha. This was a huge surprise for us since the first time that J and I went to Puerto Galera, our boat ride was very fast and uneventful. Anyway, after a really long boat ride, we finally arrived at White Beach. And again, since it was the Holy Week, there were a lot (and I mean a LOT) of people! This was really turning out to be a great (mis)adventure haha.

Our Small, Scary Ferry


People-Infested Puerto Galera


People-Infested Puerto Galera


Anyway, we booked a room for 5 at La Solana Suites and Resort for 5,000php/night. Not bad for a peak season rate. The disadvantage was that it was not located beachfront (but it is a short walking distance to the beach) but it was ok since it would be more peaceful considering the many people lurking around at the beach. A van picked us up at White Beach Port and brought us to La Solana Suites. It was a big room, good enough for 5 people. It has free wifi, cable TV, and swimming pool. So it was a really good catch. The staffs were also very helpful and friendly.

Spacious Room for 5 Persons


The Lobby


La Solana Swimming Pool


View from the Top


After depositing our bags to our room and getting ready for the beach, we hurriedly looked for a place to eat since we haven’t had lunch yet. We tried the restaurant at White Beach Resort. The food was OK with a good price range (I guess any food would be excellent if you were as starving as we were haha). We ordered Liempo, Chicken Kebab, Sinigang, and Rice. We also tried the mango shake but it was a bit sour. After that, we trudged on to the sand to look for a space to settle in and enjoy what Puerto Galera has to offer.


Menu of White Beach Resort


Chicken Kebab


Funky-Designed Rice


Mango Shake


"We're ready to eat!"


Puerto Galera beach is not as pretty as say, El Nido or Bohol Beach, but it has its own charm. The waters are very clear with just minimal stones/shells. But again, since it was a holy week, the beaches and sands were really crowded. It’s not an advisable place to go to if you have young children or if your whole family would be going with especially during peak season.

Trying out the Puerto Galera waters


So we just enjoyed our beach swimming and hanging out and bonding until the sunset. By the way, Puerto Galera sunset is amazing! Do not miss it!

Puerto Galera Sunset


Puerto Galera Sunset


Swimming while enjoying the view


Up next, the night life of Puerto Galera!

La Solana Suites and Resort
White Beach, Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines
Contact No: 043-2873146
Mobile No: 0916-4838012, 0917-5620776
Email Address: info@lasolanasuites.com

Read more:
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Getting to Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Night Life at Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Morning After
Read More»
Posted by No comments:
Labels:

TBT: Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures - Getting to Puerto Galera

This is the first part of our 2-days-1-night Puerto Galera (Mis)Adventures

On our first post, I've indicated that we have been travelling longer than we've been doing a blog. So from time-to-time we would be posting a previous travel we've done before. I shall henceforth, proclaim it as "TBT" (throwback travel). Haha. For our first TBT, we would be looking back to our Puerto Galera Adventure (or misadventure) which happened last March 30-31, 2013, which was a Holy Week here in the Philippines.

Puerto Galera is one of the popular tourist spots that is very near to Manila. It is approximately just 2-3 hours away and is very easy to go to. That’s why last Holy Week (March 30-31), my friends and I decided to have a little R & R in White Beach, Puerto Galera. This is my 2nd time to go here (the first being a very memorable trip with J, almost becoming stranded in their island haha), and the first time for some of my friends.

Going to Puerto Galera is easy! Our meet-up place was at Buendia corner Taft Avenua. From there, we boarded the Jam Bus going to Batangas Pier. The fare costs around 150php/person. The trip lasted for around 1 hour and 30 minutes.

There are several other bus terminals you can choose from:
  1. Near Ali Mall, Araneta Center, Cubao, QC
  2. EDSA Corner Kamias Street, QC
  3. Alabang, Muntinlupa City

Upon arriving at the Batangas Pier, go straight to Terminal 3. There are several shipping companies going to Puerto Galera, the major ones being Father and Son Shipping Lines, Minolo Shipping Lines, and Galerian Lines. Since Puerto Galera has 4 major points of entry: Sabang Pier, Muelle Pier, Balatero Pier, and White Beach, before buying a ticket, double check as to where the boat would be docking or if it has another stop to go to before your destination. Sometimes, FSL stops over at Sabang Port before going to White Beach which would lengthen your travel time. Also you could opt to purchase a single trip ticket or a round-trip ticket.

Fares going to White Beach ranges from 200-250php/person for a single trip and 400-450php/person for a round-trip. I cannot exactly recall how much our fare was at that time but I am pretty sure it’s more expensive since it was the peak season. We purchased the round-trip ticket of the Father and Sons Shipping Lines. You also have to pay a Terminal Fee of 30php/person as well as an Environmental Fee of 50php/person before entering the Terminal. By the way, ignore all those ‘kuyas’ getting your bags or pointing to wherever directions or trying to help you out with buying the tickets. If you do get their services, you are expected to tip them, which we did, unfortunately haha.

Here are the schedules and fare rates of Father and Son Shipping Lines and Minolo Lines as of August 2013:

Schedule for FSL:

Batangas Pier to Muelle Port/White Beach Batangas Pier to Sabang Port
6:30 am9:20 am
7:15 am11:15 am
8:45 am2:20 pm
9:35 am
10:50 am
11:30 am
12:35 pm
1:05 pm
1:50 pm
2:30 pm
3:45 pm
4:30 pm
5:00 pm


White Beach to Batangas PierMuelle to Batangas PierSabang Beach to Batangas Pier
6:30 am (Sun & Mon)7:30 am7:00 am
7:45 am (Sun & Mon)10:30 am8:15 am
12:00 pm (Sun & Mon)12:00 pm9:15 am
1:30pm (Sun & Mon)1:30 pm11:30 am
3:30 pm (Sun & Mon)3:30 pm1:00 pm


Rate for FSL

To White BeachTo MuelleTo Sabang
270php/person (one way)230php/person (one way)230php/person (one way)
500php/person (round trip)430php/person (round trip)450php/person (round trip)


Schedule for Minolo Lines:

Batangas Pier to White BeachBatangas Pier to Muelle
5:00 am6:30 am
5:30 am7:15 am
6:00 am7:45 am
6:50 am9:15 am
7:15 am9:45 am
8:15 am10:45 am
8:45 am12:05 pm
9:00 am12:30 pm
10:15 am12:45 pm
11:10 am2:00 pm
11:25 am3:30 pm
1:15 pm4:00 pm
1:20 pm5:00 pm
2:00 pm
2:50 pm
3:45 pm


Muelle to Batangas PierWhite Beach to Batangas Pier
5:15 am6:30 am
5:30 am7:55 am
5:40 am9:50 am
6:15 am12:15 pm
6:55 am12:45 pm
7:30 am2:30 pm
8:05 am3:15 pm
8:20 am5:00 pm
8:55 am
9:30 am
10:15 am
10:45 am
11:10 am
11:35 am
12:00 pm
12:30 pm
12:55 pm
1:15 pm
1:45 pm
2:50 pm
3:45 pm
4:00 pm
4:15 pm


Rate for Minolo Lines:

To White BeachTo Muelle
275php/person (one way)220php/person (one way)


And so our Puerto Galera Adventure begins! Starting with a ‘buwis-buhay’ (life-threatening) ferry ride going to White Beach, up next!


Father and Son Shipping Lines
Mobile Nos: 0933-3400884, 0929-1632252
Email: fslpuertogalera@gmail.com
Minolo Shipping Lines
Contact No: (043)287-3614
Mobile No: 0917-8392680
Email: mslminolo@yahoo.com

Read more:
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: Arrival at Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Night Life at Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera (Mis) Adventures: The Morning After
Read More»
Posted by No comments:
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)