Luckily, my family is always on the go and is always game for some adventure. Yes, they do not care about bumpy rough roads, lengthy boat rides, make-shift overnight camping, etc. Believe me, they accompanied me for more than 9 hours searching for Calaguas Island way back when it was still unknown to many. They also drove that long and winding rough road going to Burot to keep me company. I could say that they are the best travel buddies in the whole wide world. Simply the best!
Anyways, without further a do, let me share our most recent trip.
P.S. Don’t worry, it’s a budget travel.
by Public Transportation (a.k.a. Commute)
Take a bus bound to Alaminos; you may either take Victory Liner or Five Star. Fare is Php393/person. Travel time is around more than 6 hours. In Alaminos City, take a bus bound to Sta. Cruz, Zambales and ask the driver/conductor to drop you off at Dasol, Pangasinan. Travel time from Alaminos to Dasol is approximately around 45 minutes. Fare is Php40/person. Once you reach Dasol Highway, you may hire a tricycle for Php300 good for 2 pax. Take note that the rate is for one-way only and the tricycle ride would take more than an hour.
Make sure to get the tricycle driver’s contact number to schedule your pick after your stay; Villa Balinmanok is far from the city. 🙂
by Private Vehicle
From Manila, take EDSA and drive all the way to Balintawak Exit. Take NLEX, then SCTEX. Once you reach Tarlac, take the road going northwest to Alaminos via Camiling. Before reaching Alaminos town proper, take the short diversion road to Mabini then Burgos. At this point of time, use WAZE. 🙂
Look for the road leading to Villa Balinmanok; it is actually around 32 kms from the main road. This long and winding road is a combination of 90% newly-paved road and 10% rough road.
Travel time from Balintawak Exit to Balinmanok Beach is more or less 6 hours.
Disclaimer: I am not really good with directions but, you’ll get there. Promise!
Balinmanok, at last!
Balinmanok is such a relief! It’s a Batangas, a Calaguas, and a Burot Beach in one. Why? It has the comfort of Batangas (less the noise and crowd, of course), the ruggedness of Calaguas, and the accessibility of Burot. These are aside from the fact that the sand and the crystal clear water are the bomb.
I love the feeling of exclusivity, in a sense that we had the entire Villa Balinmanok to ourselves. The place is not popular as other nearby beaches – and that’s why I love it so much!
It’s a perfect getaway if one wants to relax and have a quiet moment for a while...
Where to Stay in Villa Balinmanok:
Villa Balinmanok is composed of 3 private beach resorts owned by a family. All resorts are nice to stay at with a wide variety of accommodations. We chose to spend our 3 days and 2 nights at Recudo 2 managed by Kuya Willy (09202694783) and Ate Linda (09161668438).
Recudo 2 is at the farthest part of Villa Balinmanok which makes them more secluded. It also has the most beautiful shoreline among the three resorts.
Option No 1. – One-Bedroom-Nipa-Huts
These consist of a bamboo double deck bed, an electric fan, a very small receiving area w/ table, and a common CR. Good for 2 to 3 persons for Php2000 a night.
Option No. 2 – Open Cottages
These open cottages come with day beds and may be rented either for day tour or overnight. Rate is at Php1500 a day/night.
Option No. 3 – Air conditioned One Bedroom Villa
This consists of 1 room with 2 beds (1 single and 1 double-sized bed), AC, electric fan, dining table, own kitchennete w/ stove and refrigerator, private CR. Good for 5 to 6 persons for Php3000 a night.
Option 4 – Airconditioned Two-Bedroom Villa
Rate is Php5500 a night good for 10 persons.
Option 5 – Non Airconditioned Family Villa
This consists of 2 double-sized beds (w/ extra beddings), 2 electric fans, dining table, own kitchen, and receiving area. Rate is Php3000 a night good for 10 persons.
Option No. 6 – Tent
You may either rent a tent or bring and pitch your own tent. Rate is Php150 for a maximum of 3 persons. You are free to use the cooking area and comfort room/shower. Not bad. Not bad at all. 🙂
A total of 4 common bathrooms and shower rooms (they have separate common bathrooms for gents and ladies) for guests in non-airconditioned accommodations including for those who opted to stay in tents.
IMPORTANT!!!
* Electricity is available 24/7.
* Strong mobile network signal including mobile data. Woohoo!
* No wifi available.
* No mosquitoes around. Promise!
* Make sure to bring all the things that you need. Villa Balinmanok is far from any convenience stores or market. Do make sure that you have everything that you need for your entire weekend menu.
* Island hopping is optional. Rate is Php1000/boat which is good for 7 pax. Ideal island hopping is 7AM – 12NN only.
* You may use the grill at the resort for NO CHARGE.
* You may buy fresh catch of fish and squid around 5AM in the morning. The boats dock at the far end of Villa Balinmanok.
* No need to bring your own potable water. Mineral water is available for Php40.00 only.
* Ice is available for sale – Php5.00 each.
* Entrance Fee is Php60.00/pax.
* In front of the non-airconditioned family villa is the most inviting seabed. Trust me!
allow po ba mag walk in ?
Thank you so much sa blog mo it's more reliable than others. Just want to confirm if you still need to pay entrance fee kahit may cottage ka na?
Thanks so much for that great feedback.To answer your question, Yes need pa mag-pay. The entrance fee is more of a maintenance fee of the entire Balinmanok.
pede po mag tent sa beach? how much po?
This Is Ogie Part owner ng Villa…we dont have 3 bedroom for 14k per overnight
but 98% telling its worth it ang rates…and this is our faraway home…
Wala pong restaurant sa resort. Though pwede silang magluto, they really do not encourage it. Mas okay if dala nyo na yung food nyo. You may bring cooler. May ref din naman. Pwede makilagay.
Ay you may contact the numbers na lang.
hindi po ba maalinsangan sa non-airconditioned room kapag matulog?
Hi! Fabulous blog!!!Ask ko lang po, As of today mggkano entrance sa place at ang open cottages ilan ang pwede don and how much. Thanks!
Hi available po ba yung room for 10 pax on april 29-30? And magkano po additional pag may 2 pang kasama?
09750127664 i do really want to go here.. okay nako dun sa maytent 🙂 is it 150 a day? im from pampanga pa.. i do love to travel a lot.. i love nature please someone message me kung sino man malapit or nagwwork sa place na ito.. dalwa lang kami. or maybe ako lang…
very reliable source..thankyou po for your blog po ..but may i just ask how much were the rates po ? 🙂 thankyou
hi, do you have any other options for accommodation in bmk? recudo 2 is fully booked. appreciate your response
Hi. Allowed ba ang walk in? Thanks.
Mabato po ba yung beach or sand pa rin kahit nasa water na? Thank you.
untrustworthy si kuya willy for charging 14k para sa isang house na sabi ng part owner na named Ogie na wala naman pala sila ganung inooffer.
magkano naman po ang entrance fee?????
Don't waste your time and money sa buong Villa Balinmanok nato. kahit Recudo 1 at lalong lalo na sa Recudo 2 na napaka rude ng caretaker na si ate Linda. Isang bagay lang ang positive dito, walang lamok. pero dagsa ang langaw. laht ng pagkain namin within hours puno na ng maggots. saka sana man lang inform nyo ang mga tao na impossible maligo sa beach nyo dahil puno ng bato as in pag apak mo sa tubig masakit. lahat kami may sugat. walang naliligo sa beach nato. Sa mga nagsusulat ng magagandang blogs about sa Balinmanok, misinformation ginagawa nyo, inform nyo naman sila na puno ng bato ang buong shoreline kahit saan ka magpunta. 20 people kami, wala ni isa nakapag enjoy sa beach na yan.
Sir kahit kamaganak mo pa si Kuya Willy and Ate Linda, mas lalong walang papasok sa resort nyo, punung puno na nga ng bato na nakakasugat at basura sa dagat, napaka bastos pa ni ate Linda. We came a long way from this place and expected a little hospitality since we are customers composed of 20 plus people. Pagdating palang namin sinabi na nya kagad na di kami pwede sa mga kubo dahil mababasa kami kaya inooffer nya kagad yung aircon house na 6k na sabi nya STRICTLY for 10 people only. So we had no choice but to get it. sa natitira namin na mga kasama they decided to take the open cottages since isa lang din ang available nila na villa with aircon. 1500 daw open cottage na again STRICLY for 5 people lang. edi kinuha na din namin, the remaining 5 people samin nagtayo ng tent, at first sabi nya free na daw ang pagtayo namin ng tent, nung nakita nya na isa lang ang kukunin na open cottage, she started charging us sa pagtatayo ng tent.. No discount, no nothing. When we told her that we read that the room was just 5500, she replied “NAKU MATAGAL NA YUN ILANG YEARS NA YUNG SINASABI NYO NA YUN”….. So we realized na badvibes talaga si Ate Linda, so we all decided to leave and started packing things up. We left recudo 2. She is so rude, rough as the rocks that fills this beach's shore. Since lunch time na almost at gutom na kaming lahat, we ended up checking in sa recudo 1… the only difference is friendly si ate na caretaker dito and she gave us discounts aside from other perks like lending us monoblock chairs and icebox. Pero resort-wise, parepareho lang sila lahat ng nasa VILLA BALINMANOK, puno ng bato na coral-like sa talim ang beach nila impossible na makapaligo ka…Sa mga Blogger na sobrang positive ang feedback about sa VILLA BALINMANOK, We don't want to think that you guys were paid to do good write-ups. Funny how you all forgot to inform us and include in your blogs that the place is crawling with sharp rocks, maybe we wouldn't have wasted our time and money. Nakakaawa ang mga bata, di man lang sila makaapak sa tubig dahil nakakasugat ang mga bato nyo.
Hi. Thanks for sharing your experience. That would be a great help for everyone including me. FYI. I pay for my travels. ��Been here twice and we enjoyed both trips. Dun sa rightmost part ng recudo 2 sa may malaking bato, dun ang pinakamagandang part. ��
we decided to check out recudo 2 last week with my family. We asked the old lady for the small cottage good for 6 people but she said it was already reserved for the day, so she offered the 6k villa. We were about to unpack things when she told us that only 10 people are allowed to go inside the villa…. means eventhough there's 12 of us or even if the remaining 2 will be using a tent, they cant enter the villa. I mean what the! could there be any consideration since we came a long way from there? after telling us that we need to take off our slippers when we enter the common cr, that's when we decided to leave. We even asked for the owners personal number and she gave us 09202694783 just to find out it's not the owner but it's kuya willy's number. Before we left we asked the people from recudo 1 who that old lady was and we were told that it was ATE LINDA! We checked in at recudo 1 since the lady there (which was also the owner) was so kind to us. While we were at recudo 1, another batch of beachgoers arrived at recudo 2…same goes, they left after merely 15minutes of negotiations with ate Linda. Recudo 2 is really losing customers because of this lady. I encourage you guys to try recudo 2 and get to meet ate Linda, I'm sure you'll have a Blast!
Upon arriving, I admired the old lady for proactively offering the 7k cottage which was for 10 people only. When she learned that we were just to take a couple of open cottages for 2k each, she left us while talking gibberish, went to her verranda and continued what she was doing, embroidering something that seems like a curtain. We tried to look for other people to talk to but this last guy who is seemingly busy chopping firewoods ignored us. We found out that the guy was kuya Willy, the guy we were calling for weeks but refuses to answer his phone. I mean, what's wrong with these people?
Hi Bro…thi is ogie….paki clear 14k na offer kuya willy…salamat…Yes we dont offered 14k in one house sa villa balinmanokPls PM Villa Balinmanok at our fb account help us to understand alright…thank you
There was high tide and low tide…low tide nandyan na yung mabato pero if high tide is mabuhangin naman…most nag enjoy dito mga mahilig sa underwater activities..once ang lugar ay mabato maraming fish ang gusto mag stay…kaya nga yung aquarium we put rocks so that meron silang tirahan and they played if you notice…if you like lahat buhangin or makinis better to go tambubong na after villa balinmanok. Tambubong is public beach and crowded. Here sa villa balinmanok is private resort safe and secured
Mabato if low tide…high tide ok naman…
70 per head and free ang 4 yrs below
Thank you all. If you have concern pls PM Villa Balinmanok at their facebook account, active naman and may agad
Great Day 0927 4698555 look for Mamu, Mamu is the owner of villa balinmanok, the one that your talking about is the care taker name kuya willy and ate linda, if you have question pls call her para walang problema
FYI, 0927 4698555 look for mamu, mamu is the owner of Villa Balinmanok,pwede nyo silang kausapin si mamu sa mga comment nyo, mamu is very accommodate person, the resort is not encourage na mag walk in without any reservation, na experienced ko rin yan kaya much better to book muna para pag dating sa site wala na problema, well standard naman yan gaya sa ibang private resort, let's us understand din mga tao na nasa province minsan nahihiya sila maki pag usap sa mga galing sa city
0927 4698555 look for mamu, mamu is the owner of the villa balinmanok
Thank you for sharing all your experiences here. At least, the other readers (including me) would be aware of these not-so-good instances and hope will be addressed. Villa Balinmanok is a nice place. Me and my family really enjoy going there. And by the way, this blog was written March 2016 and has been updated December 2016 since bumalik kami nung last of November. Luckily, maayos and masaya ang both trips.
See it for yourself. For your money, time & effort to be wasted. Me & my family had been here last week..
Yah its worth it, my kids enjoyed! they always followed clown fish, we went to shipwreck, at first we scared to get there but we did it! a memorable resort and recommended, as a mother the most i liked is the kitchen utensils! the resort lend us for free, except for the GASUL, well still alright we pay only around P200-300 not bad! rather than i bring my house just for cooking, its a far away home, we definitely go back!
permission to post, share ko lang, nung una bad trip! sa layo ng byahe pero pag dating mo sa resort tangal ang pagod, ganun lang ka simple, yung resort ay private pala, malaki yung beach 4 na areas daw kaya exlore galore kami!amaze kami sa lugar kasi safe and kami kami lang parang amin yung beach, salamat sa nag recommend, good timing lang din yung fish vendor sa loob ng resort 2 kilo of pusit 250 lang!! nag stay kami ng 2 days and na extend ng 1 day, basta babalik and babalik and babalik, salamat sa sinigwelas po na libre, sorry po sako yung nakita namin sa likod bahay nyo kaya doon nalang namin nilagay
Enjoy naman di ba? 🙂
Yes! Enjoy kami para kaming bata unahan SA sinigwelas,Akyat sa puno walang paki kahit na Mabosohan! pinili Yung mapupula d namin Alam na madali pala sya mabulok Kaya hawa hawa sila! Hahahahah sayang, anyway a kind of resort is Parang sa Amin, no worries kahit San ka pumunta di gaya SA iBang public resort na magugulo, mga lasing, katakot! Our purpose to get here para ma relax…chilax, feel the sound Ng mga nag splash na tubig bago matulog and pag gising, SA Kubo Lang kami open Yung Kubo but kahit na open sya di ka matatakot na habang tulog ka something happened, no! SA gandang Kong ito! Haha! Take note lang, if you are nature lover dito ka panalo! See you again Villa balinmanok!
Can I share also? nabasa ko lang some of review na maraming seaweeds sa Villa Balinamnok? this is my 4th time to visit sa Resort October, Feb my birthday, and end of May. End of May you are correct maraming sea weeds sa shore hello!! thats the nature! pero sa month that we visited before that well it's heaven! who are you people complaining small things, if you are leaving in the complain zone go to the one na alam mo yung Resort, kaya nga you try see it if you gonna love it, if not then its up to you why you should broadcast and pagbintangan pa yung author if paid blog, well that attitude reflected to you Did you know that? Anyway Chasing Philippines thank you, the owner said let the rainy season pass daw muna, but were planning this weekend sana
Accessible po ba to thru tplex?
Need po b mgpabook bgo po pupunta jan or puwde po kmi mgwalk inn po slmt po ng mrmi
Yes po need mag pa book and reservation…para naka save na sa inyo yung house chosen
yes
Yes naka latag na po yan ang Diving (scuba diving)
DO NOT GO TO THIS RESORT. WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY!!! THE PEOPLE HERE DONT CARE ABOUT THEIR GUESTS' COMFORT AND CONVENIENCE. CHECK OUT THE REVIEWS ON THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE.https://www.facebook.com/Villa-Balinmanok-1781033015542515/