This family-owned resort is the perfect place for a weekend getaway with family and friends. It's…read morejust a short 1.5hr-2hrs drive away from Manila, making it very easy to get to. Awilihan can be rented for the entire day or for overnight stays. The place can comfortably accommodate 30 people (max). The rental fee is already inclusive of the use of the house (airconditioned rooms with beds, pillows and showers), the pool, sports facilities (badminton, basketball and billiards) and the use of their pool. You can opt to bring your own food or order food from them for a reasonable fee. The entire place overlooks the Taal Lake and there's always a nice cool breeze, making it the perfect relaxation spot. I have taken my family and friends here and all of them love the place so much. Once you enter, you immediately feel comfortable. The atmosphere is very relaxing and homey and it just makes you want to lounge around. Although there's no beach to swim in, their swimming pool is enticing enough to make you want to jump in one you see it. I love how the whole place is secluded... away from the traffic and the noise of the city. I always recommend this place to my friends and family because you really can't go wrong with Awilihan! It really is paradise!

If I could rate this place a 0, I would. To start off the maintenance is terrible. This "resort" is…read morenot as appealing as the photos show. As well as the workers and owners had the audacity to threaten to MURDER my friends and I when we refused to pay 365 pesos for ONE hour. I definitely don't recommend ANYONE to go here. We were all very scared and worried. We even had to call the cops. They don't deserve to stay in business. CLOSE DOWN THIS RESORT

#FlashbackFriday - Remembering my hometown... and my parents…read more.. This is not a five- or four-star resort for sure, but for the most part, Club Balai Isabel is a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of Metro Manila. I was born in a nearby town not too far from here and I'm proud to be 100% Batangueño. During our last vacation, we booked 4 rooms via Agoda and spent a few days here with my side of the family. Located at the north shore of Taal Lake, this nine-hectare (~ 22 acres) resort offers a photographic view of Taal Volcano (and the lake, too!) (https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/DwZtNGnANNk1FN6jM6QQQw?select=-Ui3uOM6tCEk0OxMOdPr6A). Incidentally, we're talking about the smallest active volcano in the world and the second most active in the country, last erupting on 01/2020. However, there were no evident signs when we went here. With three pools and a variety of water activities to choose from, chilling by the lake and waiting for the sun to rise and set was also an option. It wasn't busy when we arrived, but there was a day when a couple of team-building events were held in both their indoor and outdoor facilities. We watched our kids, nephews, and nieces enjoy a couple of the towable inflatable rides - the "Banana Boat" (https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/DwZtNGnANNk1FN6jM6QQQw?select=32DQ8uoSvx6U3yYXMOf98w) went smoothly while the "Flying Fish" (https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/DwZtNGnANNk1FN6jM6QQQw?select=6qGssjTtOH7v7A5gNpvJlA) barely had liftoff because they were probably too heavy. There were boat tours to the crater which I've done many years ago, but we decided to skip it because it could easily take half a day to complete. With the lake and volcano as our backdrop, we took plenty of photos by the pool next to the restaurant. We had a couple of chairs for my parents and we took turns flanking them. Of course, there were a million scenarios on who needs to be where but the old folks did not seem to mind... eventhough they were baking under the hot sun. A month after our vacation, my father passed. Seven months later, my mother followed suit. They lived together for 51 years, but those seven months were probably too much for them to bear that the One above decided to bring them back together again... for eternity. Club Balai Isabel turned out to be our last hurrah with my parents. While this place will forever have a special place in my heart, I gave it four stars because we did have a pleasurable respite here. The staff were friendly and we did not have any issues with security either. Our rooms had a view of the volcano and the lake so I didn't even have to go far for some perfect photo opportunities. Can't go wrong with an overlook like that...

Beautiful resort with the view of Taal Volcano, friendly staff, great farm to table food, and lots…read moreof amenities for the entire family to enjoy. Definitely a recommended place to visit if your in town.

My family is from Balisong, but moved to the US decades ago. We came to this place to visit family…read moreand stayed at this beautiful hotel. Authentic Filipino heritage is well preserved here from the decorations to the architecture. The rooms are charming and all have air conditioning. The views from our rooms were immaculate. Breakfast buffet with traditional Filipino food was delicious and the service was warm and inviting. The surrounding streets had rows of heritage homes turned into museums. And a short walk to the historic Taal Cathedral built in the 1500s. Visiting this place felt like a stepping into a Time Capsule. Our stay was magical. Highly recommend.

From the owner: Built in the early 1900's, this home was restored in the late 2013, still adhering to the footprint…read moreand Spanish-American Colonial style of the Filipino bahay-na-bato. It was completed on March 9, 2015 and called Paradores del Castillo because of the Spanish practice of transforming old castles, monasteries and historic buildings into government-run luxury hotels. Parar or para means to stop and stay. The Spanish-Filipino surname del Castillo also means "castle". Thus, the hotel's name literally means, "stop at castle." This hotel is located a few meters from the historic "Casa V," the home of the Villavicencio revolutionary figures; the San Lorenzo Ruiz steps leading to the Virgin of Caysasay Church; the Taal Public Market; the St. Martin de Tours Basilica; and the museums on Agoncillo Street. Guests can enjoy the garden with a panaromic view of the adjacent towns of Lemery, Calaca, Balayan Bay, the Pansipit River, and the Virgin of Caysasay Church. "This is our home, our castle, your place in time to make new memories."

75 miles from the International airport, this can be a long drive in Manila's traffic. Once you get…read morethere though it felt like a real slice of hidden paradise. We were greeted by really courteous staff. From the security guard, front desk to the room attendants, it was great customer service. Three meals a day were provided and it was a feast. Usually 4 dishes plus the mandatory rice for each meal was more than enough for us. Which says a lot after a whole day of swimming in the ocean. WIFI was free and reliable around the resort. 2 hours of kayaking came free with our package as well. Accommodations were separate cottages having 1-2 rooms.The rooms were spotless and offered a very nice view of the ocean. There was AC but with the configuration of the windows along with the multitude of trees in the location, you could just leave the windows open and really enjoy the cool ocean breeze. The rest room was shared per cottage but it was well maintained and clean as well. Massages were available in-room. I personally did not avail of it but my sister did and seemed to enjoy it. The beach was clean and the water was very clear and warm. Perfect for swimming any time of the day. Overall, if you want to go to a great beach with modern facilities, it is well worth the road trip.

A suggested reunion place by my niece who was one of the in charge personnel of the recent family…read moreget-together. It was not a disappointing place. We had a enjoyable weekend stay experience. It is a privately own resort in a town known for hot spring. The location is reachable by either private driving or public transport. It is about 45 minutes to hour from my hometown, Binan. Online reservation is welcome ( Google their website) but my niece reserved the place in person. It requested a deposit to reserve the preference date. It has three villas to choose from , has private entrances for each. Villa 2 is reasonably suited for our party of 40. The accommodation aside for its one big adult pool and small kiddie pool with shower and toilet in the area includes 5 average bedrooms with shared shower and toilet for every 2 rooms, has 2 or one double deck queen bed, twin bed and two pull out beds on each room with tv and cable as plus. The large kitchen has stove , refrigerator, water dispenser with one free refill , kitchen utensils as provided that change use. The big dining area and BBQ grill made our dining experience pleasurable. The wide garden area delighted us to fully enjoy the prepared group games. The billiard table , karaoke , big kids yard , darts added to our entertainment . The driveway parking secured our cars plus it's security camera gave us peace of mind. It costed me Php22,000 which is the average cost for 7 pm to 5 pm private resort rental as everyone was saying. Affordable rate for a large gathering. The place is descent, neat and clean. The way I look at it, the place may be not even 5 year old establishment. There was no corkage fee for all the foods and drink we brought in. Provide it is a home cooked meal and hit catered. Curfew hours rule doesn't apply as long as we were considerate of the people of neighboring villas. It was a good decision to spent our family gathering here. They provide only bedding so do bring your own towels and toiletries. Highly recommended for any of your event.

We stayed at Villa 1 last May 6-7, and my family really liked the place. I found the place through…read moreFacebook, and was interested because of the nice photos and good reviews. I was pleasantly surprised that the photos they had online where similar to the real thing. The rooms were spacious and clean, and the pool was well-maintained. Since it is a hot spring resort, the water temperature of the pool was a little bit hot during the afternoon, but it was still tolerable (the kids didn't care, and still swam despite the heat). It was nice for night swimming since it was not too chilly. Overall we were happy with our stay and would recommend it to family and friends.

The rooms are huge and well airconditioned and comes with a tv and a bathroom with decent water…read morepressure. They all have a seaside balcony and has a regular key and a deadbolt. There are not many rooms in the whole resort so you can expect to be helped fast. They accept cash and major credit cards. A HUGE plus is that I checked in at 9am - waaay earlier than regular check in hours obviously and later than the regular checkout time by half an hour or so but since the resort was relatively empty when I stayed, they had no problem with it and did not charge me anything extra. I had also booked it for a day earlier than I meant to, and it was difficult trying to get in contact with them, but I emailed them and they changed it with no hassle as well! There is a decently large staff working the resort and many of them speak conversational english. The dining building has filtered water, tea, and coffee available at all times. They will also serve buffet style lunch or dinner (500-600 pesos) and a la carte smoothies and food as well, and the buffets were hit or miss for me but the a la cartes were great! There are a lot of flies out there so the flies sort of eat the food with you.. you are free to take the food inside to your room though! The staff is also constantly asking to make sure you are enjoying your stay and sort of hovers to check that you dont need anything else. By the water they have a dive shop where they rent out gear and provide boat service. (also great photo op location for the sunset). A downside was that when we I was getting tanks from them, they used tanks labeled NITROX but had regular air. Some of the tanks were not super recently inspected either. No bueno. But we tested it before using it to confirm that it was okay,, but I guess things are pretty lax in the philippines. Overall a great stay!

Because long beach trips are impossible with families with infants, we just settled for a day at…read morethe waterpark with some of our friends last weekend. We had our (una at) huling hirit sa tag-init at WaterCamp Resort in Kawit, Cavite. The place was okay, it was a big waterpark (I like saying that word because it reminds me of the movie Grown Ups) with adult and kiddie pools with slides, and a wave pool. The shower rooms were clean and relatively well-maintained considering there are a lot of people coming there. Guests can choose to stay in tables or cabanas according to their budget and there are several areas for grilling, so families can definitely bring their baon, or order from the restaurant inside (which I wasn't able to try, unfortunately). I liked that the place is very family-friendly; it's ok to swim in t-shirt and shorts (as long as there's no metal) and they're very strict about prohibiting alcoholic drinks in the vicinity. I had a slight issue about breastfeeding my four-month old baby in the cabana, but I'm pretty much used to nursing in public by now. The entrance fee was reasonable (240 for adults, 210 for kids) for the place is big with lots of amenities. My daughter had the BEST time swimming there. She just swam and swam until she was too tired and fell asleep. She was so happy that I think an hour drive going to the place is absolutely worth it.

My college barkada introduced me to the brilliant idea of renting a beach house in Tali and staying…read morethere for the weekend. We would usually scour the internet for great houses that are rented out by the owners, and then we would leave on Saturday morning and head out to Nasugbu. What's great about these places is that they are fully-furnished, and some of them have great stuff, too! I have gone on such weekend trips to Tali exactly six times, and every time, my friends and I have rented a different villa. You know, just to keep things fun and exciting. We have stayed in really creepy and haunted places, and we have also stayed in really awesome, very well-maintained houses. I just love how we don't have to bring anything anymore, since most of the beach houses are fully equipped with great stuff that you can use for cooking. I love preparing food for my friends because I hate seeing them endlessly bingeing on crap food like chips and stale pizza, so we always pool our money, stop by a supermarket in Tagaytay and then shop for an entire weekend's worth of food and groceries. The villas in Tali are usually fitted with nice stoves and a fully-equipped kitchens, so preparing meals in a jiffy is such a breeze. You don't have to worry about food going bad either, since there is usually a fridge where you can keep stuff fresh. Most of the time, though, the best beachhouses are actually still a couple blocks away from the shore, so you would really have to walk or drive just to enjoy the beach. Moreover, there isn't really much of a "beach" to enjoy, because the shoreline is actually pretty short, just a small cove that is partially sheltered by the surrounding bay. It is also advisable to make sure that you have all your supplies and sundries before you even go inside the gated community, because going out for groceries is such a hassle. There isn't any well-stocked store for miles. This is a pretty nice place to just hang out with friends. If you don't have snazzy memberships in nearby Punta Fuego or Pico de Loro (Hamilo Coast), this is not too bad an option if you just want an idyllic weekend getaway.

Tali is a popular seaside resort community in Nasugbu, Batangas, about 2-3 hours away from Manila,…read morejust a short distance from Tagaytay. The place is a private subdivision so you need to have a homeowner with you or at least advisement from wherever you're staying. It's not totally private though! You can go online and just look for beach house accommodations, since many of the residents there already put up their own houses as B&Bs or inns for those who want to go to Tali Beach. It's a really nice place, like how you'd wish it would be if there were beach cities in Manila, hahah. Not overly developed either so it's pretty peaceful. Here, you have a whole village full of summer houses and instead of the regular playgrounds or village parks, they have a beach! However, the beach here isn't exactly fit for swimming. It's rather small, rocky, and full of corals. There's no long, wide stretch of sand where you can lie down and sleep or sunbathe. But they do have gazebos and small open spaces to hang out in with the water splashing about beside you. If you wanna go swimming, better go back to your accommodation. This is why most houses there have swimming pools already. People like to do water sports around there though, so don't be surprised to see boats and jet skis in the houses inside the village. It's also normal to spot people just casually kayaking and standup paddle boarding all around. There aren't really any organized water sports services, you just do it on your own. Of course, there's also the popular Tali cliff jump you have to try at least once! They have great, clear blue waters that you can dive safely into and then you just climb back up easily through the big polished rock boulder beside the cliff area. Just be careful not to touch the sharp rocks/corals by the side of the boulder! Only grab the ropes by the ladder area.

Batangas country club is a beautiful venue in the province. Large well kept landscaped gardens…read morebehind well secured gates. We came in for dinner with no reservations (reservations definitely recommend) and they were almost at capacity. They limit the amount of patrons to 150 on order to provide a pleasurable eating environment. Luckily one of my relatives had some pull and got us a beautiful table in the middle of the gardens. It was a buffet style dinner with a great selection of food. They had had several different cooking stations as well as buffet offering under the rotunda. I enjoyed everything there but nothing really stood out to be honest. It was a nice experience and would definitely come back again.

This place is just unbelievable. I don't know where to begin. First, I was very blessed and…read morefortunate to be able to travel to the Philippines for a momentous occasion...one of my best Friend's birthday. As we approached the gate, we were welcomed with hospitality that I've not quite seen before. The smiles were genuine..and the eagerness to serve...wow! The rooms are nice and spacious and the pools...breathtaking. The grounds are lush and so inviting that I found myself walking through the grass barefooted. Now the party...everything was so beautiful and tastefully done. The food reminded me of a fabulous restaurant back in Los Angeles. Everyone was kind and I just couldn't believe how genuine the mannerisms were. Michelle and Vincent were very attentive to our every need during breakfast. And how can I forget Jhie? She was Amazing!!! Her compassion was seen throughout the evening. To say that this was a very very special place is an understatement. If you ever get an opportunity to travel to Manila, Makati, Batangles...please go. And by all means please stop by the Batangles Country Club. It's a place that you will want to return to year after year after year.