Travel Guide | Ten Things to Accomplish Your DIY Tour in Laguna

Laguna is located southeast of Metro Manila and it is bounded by the provinces of Cavite, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon. The province hugs the southern shores of Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the country and the town is dotted by small lakes as source of freshwater fish and the cascading and towering waterfalls. In addition, the province is surrounded by the longest mountain range, Sierra Madre in the eastern part of the province and it is the home of the mystic Mount Banahaw and the legendary Mount Makiling. As you go around the province, you can appreciate their local crafts such as woodcarvings and papier maches of Paete, kitchenware of San Pablo City, hand-embroidered barong tagalog of Lumban, slippers of Liliw and handmade shoes of Pagsanjan. You can also feel the stylish ambiance of the province by visiting the Spanish-era Baroque churches, welcome arches and monuments, ancestral stone houses and historical landmarks. Also, you can enjoy the genteel lifestyle by visiting resorts, amusement parks and eco-parks.

Don't forget to accomplish these ten things while you are enjoying your do-it-yourself tour in Laguna:

1. Enjoy the excitement in world class amusement park in the heart of Southern Luzon

Enchanted Kingdom (Source: http://www.wikipedia.org)

Enchanted Kingdom is a world-class amusement park located in the Lion City of the South, Santa Rosa. Witness the magic and fun while enjoying the rides and the classy ambiance of the park. Enchanted Kingdom is one of the best venues in having an educational trip and gimmicks with family and friends. I've visited this place when I was in high school. I hope that I will visit this place again.

2. Experience the thrill in the rapids of cascading waterfalls

Pagsanjan Falls (Source: http://www.wikipedia.org)

Pagsanjan Falls is a popular tourist destination in Laguna which gave its town a moniker "The Tourist Capital of Laguna" because of foreign tourists who visited the falls. You can feel the intense excitement while sailing in a boat meeting the rapids and you can see the stunning view of the falls. Pagsanjan Falls is located in the borders of Pagsanjan and Cavinti.

Taytay Falls in Majayjay

Aside from Pagsanjan Falls, you can visit Taytay Falls located in the lush forests of Banahaw in Majayjay, the Twin Falls in Kalayaan, the Buruwisan Falls in Siniloan, and the Bunga Falls in Nagcarlan.

3. Experience the refreshing moments in numerous lakes and resorts in the province

Sampaloc Lake, San Pablo City

Laguna Lake, Paete

Laguna came from the Spanish word which means lake because the province was located beside the largest lake in the country, Laguna de Bay. In addition, the province is dotted with more than five lakes including the seven lakes such as Sampaloc Lake and Lake Pandin in San Pablo City and the Lake Caliraya, a manmade lake in the boundaries of Cavinti and Lucban. In addition, you can enjoy the hot springs in Calamba and Los Banos as well with numerous resorts and pools in every town including Binan (Splash Island), Calauan (Hidden Valley Springs), Splash Mountain (Los Banos), Pangil (Pangil River Ecopark), Liliw (Batis ng Liliw), Nagcarlan (RGO Resort) and Daliwitan Resort and River (Majayjay) to name a few.

4. Taking a glance of our colorful past in different historical landmarks

Rizal Shrine, Calamba

Laguna is a province which is rich in history and glorious past. In fact, it is one of the eight provinces who made a revolution against the Spaniards in 1896, as representation of eight rays of the sun in the Philippine flag. This province is also the birth place of our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal where his ancestral house is located in Calamba.

Nagcarlan Underground Cemetery, Nagcarlan

Another distinct historical landmark is the Nagcarlan Underground Cemetery. This is the secret meeting place of revolutionaries in the Philippine Revolution of 1896 in Laguna. The place is also the burial site of priests, cabeza de barangays and elite Filipinos who lived in Nagcarlan.

Battle of Mabitac Shrine, Mabitac

Other historical landmarks which can be found in Laguna including the house of Paciano Rizal in Los Banos, Battle of Mabitac Shrine in Mabitac, Bahay Laguna in Magdalena, Alberto House in Binan, Plaza Rizal in Calamba and Emilio Jacinto Shrine in Santa Cruz and Magdalena.

5. Visita Iglesia in the ancient Baroque churches in the Loop

St. Gregory the Great Church, Majayjay. It was built in 1571 and one of the National Cultural Treasures in our country.

If we are talking about the Laguna's colorful and glorious past, the province is also famous for its ancient Spanish churches. Different towns starting from Santa Rosa, Cabuyao, Calamba, Los Banos, Bay, Pila, San Pablo, Santa Cruz, Magdalena, Liliw, Majayjay, Cavinti, Pagsanjan, Lumban, Kalayaan, Paete, Pakil and Mabitac have its Baroque churches which was built centuries ago. Laguna is a perfect place for having Visita Iglesia because of its stunning architecture of the church and the solemn ambiance while you are reflecting.

6. Historical glance at heritage town plaza and ancestral houses

Pila Heritage Town

If we are talking about history and culture, there are some towns in Laguna which is famous for its heritage plazas and ancestral houses. During the Spanish era, the church and the town hall are adjacent to each other in the town plaza which represents the unity of Church and State. The houses living near the plaza represent the elite society during the Spanish period. Today, the heritage town of Pila is one of the National Historical Landmarks along with Vigan and Intramuros because of its ancestral houses preserved from Spanish era. You can also enjoy visiting the town plaza of Magdalena as a favorite venue of Philippine classic movies which gives its moniker as "The Little Hollywood of Laguna" as well with the century-old Pagsanjan Arch with its heriage houses surrounding the place.

7. Pinoy shopping in the town of slippers

You can enjoy shopping with our native products in Liliw. The town is famous for its colorful slippers and shoes with its very good quality at affordable price. You can experience the Pinoy marketplace scene in Liliw because you can see a lot of stalls everywhere and different products such as fruits, vegetables, bags, native sweets, baskets and other local products. You can enjoy eating in various fast food chains across the town center.

8. Appreciating the beauty of art in a woodcraft town

Paete is a town known for its wood crafts and its adept woodcarvers. Residents believed that the town has its skilled woodcarvers since the ancient times. When Spaniards discovered the town, they saw a paet (a Tagalog word for chisel), a tool used for woodcarving and they named the town Paete. Today, the town is famous for its woodcarvings and there are many customers are going to this town to buy wood ornaments from woodcarving of religious images, wood statues, papier maches and paintings.

9. Food trip, restaurant hopping and pasalubong shopping

Laguna is also a place where you can enjoy different mouth-watering native delicacies including the fluffy and smooth Puto Binan, the white and creamy kesong puti, the luscious espasol, the sweet and powdery uraro of Liliw, the roasted kinulob na itik and salty red eggs of Victoria, the savory  kaong and macapuno of Alaminos and Majayjay and the fresh carabao and goat milk. You can enjoy restaurant hopping in Laguna namely Kamayan sa Palaisdaan (Bay), Isdaan (Calauan), Cafe Arabela (Liliw), Exotik Restaurant (Kalayaan) and Dalampasigan (Los Banos) to complete your culinary travel experience. As mentioned earlier, you can enjoy shopping in the town of Liliw with their slippers and shoes and in Paete with their woodcrafts, you can do pasalubong shopping in various towns with their respective products. Some of these native products including tropical fruits and fresh vegetables of Magdalena and Majayjay, pandan bags or bayong of Luisiana, silver kitchenware of San Pablo, hand made embroidered barong Tagalog of Lumban, and handmade shoes of Pagsanjan.

10. Mountain hiking

Laguna is a province surrounded by mountains including the legendary Mount Makiling, the mystic Mount Banahaw and the longest mountain range Sierra Madre. You can discover the rich flora and fauna of the province as well with distinct geographical formations.

You can enjoy your stay in this province by accomplishing different activities where you can discover the beauty of nature, the colorful cultural heritage and the eminent history of the province   As a tourist, it is proven that "It's more fun in the Philippines" so let's visit the province in the heart of Southern Tagalog, Laguna.

You can also read my previous articles about my tour in Laguna:

• A Historical Visit at Little Hollywood
• Trekking High to Majayjay: A Highland Town in Banahaw
• From Colorful Ducks to the Heritage Plaza: Discovering the Lakeshore Towns of Victoria and Pila
• Bounties of Nature and History in Laguna Loop: Discovering Nagcarlan
• Walking Tour in the Tsinelas Town of Laguna
• Walking Tour in the Small Town of Woodcrafts

You can visit the official website of the province of Laguna: http://www.laguna.gov.ph In addition you can try to visit this website, Laguna Travel Guide.