Do not plan your trip here during peak season. That's what my friends and I did since we heard that…read moreit can get pretty crowded, noisy and the water full of seaweed during the summer with it being a public beach. We went here February of last year and it was a great vacation spot to celebrate the start of the year and get away from the hustle and bustle and pollution of the city. It's called "White Beach" but the sand isn't really white. It's more of a beige color but it doesn't really matter because the sand is nice and slopes progressively to the shore. The water is inviting, crystal clear and the waves were big. It was fun to play in and get some exercise at the same time. Not much sea life though so it's more for swimming than snorkeling. It's lovely to walk along the coast and see small coves and cool rock formations as well. My friends sat at a rock formation by the water and it was a great place to watch the beautiful sunset.

Relaxing, hidden, and far away from the hustle and bustle of Manila. Despite the distance, this…read moreresort was worth the 3.5 hour drive from Metro Manila. Crystal Beach is in the town of San Narciso in the Province of Zambales. The resort features air-conditioned rooms, cottages, and beachside camping tents. They also have WiFi in the main area. There are a few bon fire pits and grilling stations for anyone to use. We opted for a day entrance just to experience the food, beach huts, and the sand. The admission fee, parking, and cost of food were very reasonable. The long journey from Manila definitely made us hungry. We decided to try out their restaurant located in the main common area. Seating was easy and we also chose the table closest to the fan for comfort. We ordered sisig, tuna salpicao, halo-halo, rice, and sinigang na hipon. The sisig has a nice mix of crunch with a citrus-pepper marinade. The tuna salpicao was tender and flavorful. The shrimp sinigang, which is a true Filipino favorite, was sour and savory. Halo-halo came last as a dessert. The bowl was filled with various sweet toppings and a generous scoop of ube ice cream. Post lunch coma started to kick-in and we decided to relax in one of the many beachside huts. Beach chairs were available along with the perfect view of the mountains and blue waters. The beach was almost empty and quiet. There are available surfboard rentals and surfing lessons for anyone seeking to ride the small waves. Showers are available near the common area. I would recommend this resort to anyone seeking a tranquil escape.

Very disappointed on this beach..first the sand of the beach is not that clean as you see on their…read morewebsite 2nd price of shake..120 pesos for melon and 100 pesos to mango!!! Any differnce? Cabin itself no restroom, lights need update, outlet for 15 person capacity have 3 electric fan!!! Food is so pricey..restroom is to far for the cabin ..not recommend this beach for my friend

Weekend trips to northern Luzon are among Manileños' favorite quick breaks. There are mountains,…read morebeaches, food, art, culture, and even extreme sports venues that await visitors. For me, one of the most memorable sights here is the blazing sunset found at Urbiztondo beach in La Union. The beach is popular for being a surfing spot, but I bet another major reason why folks like to come here is what they see above the water from 5 PM onwards. The sunset's oranges, reds, and yellows, plus the blue sky above and the water's white foam below makes you believe there is a god and that he is a master painter. It's the perfect backdrop to your last surfing session for the day and a great scene to watch while you're having merienda. Whether you surf or just came from Baguio or Vigan, I hope you can drop by Urbiztondo beach when the sun starts to set and remember why you love being outdoors in the first place.

I always wanted to visit La Union. Me and my family visited this hostel. We got a room from the…read more3rd floor with the ocean view. The best part about the room was the cool breeze from the ocean when you wake up in the morning. The room was super clean from what I remember. I wanted to learn how to surf, but there were no waves where we were at the time. Bummer! The beach was really clean, because people there really do take care of the place. They also have a place with hanging hammock, where you can just relax. Now lets talk about food! Umm.... During lunch we ordered two pizza. I cant remember the name but there were both really good. And on dinner I remember I ordered one pulled pork adobo, beef bowl, and calamari with mojito and Smirnoff mule. Very affordable!! They also have night party events here. So if you are single, start practicing your dance moves and get your groove on. Haha Overall, our stay here was amazing. If I come back home again. I will definitely book a stay here. Super cheap!! I highly recommend this place.

Good day Flotsam and Jetsam! I just wanted to share with…read moreyou our bad experiences at Flotsam. Your guards are too strict in front, especially those in red polo shirt. We paid 5,000 for the VIP table to Miss Jo but our other friends weren't allowed in because they said it was already cut-off. I talked to the head of the guards to just add a fee, but he answered me (CUT-OFF IS CUT-OFF). We asked them where Miss Jo was so we could talk to her to prove that we had paid for the reservation, but they said she had already go home. Is this Flotsam's standard procedure?

CASH ONLY! What a…read moredifference 4 years makes! The last visit wasn't one to be boastful about. It was a sh*t show half the time with our boat's engine dying every ten minutes, and when it did run, the boat moved ever SOOOO slow. I almost made a vow to never stop by here ever again. But with GodNiece's first time in Pangasinan, Hundred Islands was a must go-to for her. With a tad bit of reluctance, we went. I noticed an improvement in the area's overall appearance IMMEDIATELY. Parking was abundant and clean. The welcoming area is beautifully designed which included a pond filled with koi fish and small replicas of the islands. The entry way to the boats even had an arc. It was quite welcoming. The tourist center could use a little work: FIRST: it was CASH ONLY (for everything!) which is a huge no-no for a tourist attraction as famed as this place is. (One would reasonably assume they take cards, right?!) Now, keep in mind that this place is so much more fun when visiting with somewhat of a big party (we were a mere party of 9.) It's a good thing I brought enough cash to cover everyone for everything they need (including activities.) I can only imagine the trouble some people had to go through to go back out, find a bank or ATM that's open and come right back. Oi. SECOND: I had to deal with three different receptionists just to complete the registration process - one to register each individual in my party, one for the fees and boat, and one for the deposit for the trash bags (I'll get back to this last one in a bit.) I don't see why I couldn't just deal with one person for the WHOLE thing. The only reason I can come up with as to why they do this is that maybe the need for a moderator since everything is paid in cash. (There's gotta be liability somewhere, right?) But yeah, It took way too long to just get these done. It's a good thing we were there early Friday morning on a non-peak season. (I can imagine the chaos of the crowd during the weekends, summer or peak seasons here!) It wasn't long before we got on our boat. First stop was Governor's island for the sole purpose of ziplining. (The last time I was here, it was THE only other thing to do other than swimming or snorkeling, and it was a short one at that.) It's a bit of a trek climbing up - the steps are completely uneven and steep. Although the ziplining peeps kept telling us to follow the path to the left, we kinda got lost (and ended up the other way.) We weren't the only ones, so SIGNS might be nice. The view was fantastic, I gotta admit, but dang, that was tiring as hell! But the few seconds ride was WORTH IT. You can see a different side of Hundred Islands' beauty from where you're zipping from. The trek back is just as strenuous (again, SIGNS telling us how to get back would be nice) but also worth it since you get to experience walking on the wobbling bridge. (That was interesting.) Then off to Quezon island where we relaxed a bit more and had lunch. Ziplining is also available (one long, one short) but they aren't as steep as the one at Governor's. We brought our own food and drinks, but food is available on the islant itself. A vendor came up to us selling fresh crabs (small and big ones alike) for a bargain. We had plenty of leftovers to take home. We did a lot of swimming and snorkeling around this area. Beautiful clear waters allowed us to see all the way to the bottom of the water. This never gets old. I was going to suggest going to Children's Island, but we were having such a great time, we just kicked it on this island for the rest of our visit. Oh, except for helmet diving. That was the best way to top off the day. I'm not gonna go into it, I will merely suggest you DO IT! The one practice I noticed with EVERYONE: every person was mindful of their trash. I bought an ice cream from a vendor. He took it upon himself to get the peeled off paper from me and put it in his own trash bag. In all honesty, I did not see one piece of trash anywhere. And the bit with the trash bag deposit? Fill up your bag with as much of your group's crap as you want. Once you return to the main island, they take your filled trash bag away from you AND they will return your deposit. (THIS IS AWESOME!) We all had a great day. I am so glad my family doesn't live too far away from here. I'm definitely going out of my way to come back the next time I come to the Philippines. TIP: Come EARLY. The earlier, the better! There's so much to do! (They also have banana boats and jet skiing now!) Now if only they could figure out a better system of payment (than with just cash) and eliminate the whole "line here, line there" at registration...

I came here with my family at the suggestion of my mom and aunts. We came here pretty early and…read morefor good reason. It gets pretty packed very quickly. There were 18 of us, so we reserved 2 boats. FYI once you get there, be prepared to be bombarded with people trying to sell you things. I already came across some of that that during my trip, however, there's more of it here. They literally come to your car and sell you things: sunglasses, sea shells, hats, etc. and they will follow you around. Granted this is how some people in the Philippines make their living, but I think there has to be some kind of boundary. That's just my personal opinion. The boat ride was not bad and the weather was perfect to visit the islands. We didn't visit every island because my group didn't want to, but we did stop by 2 of the islands.

When I told my friend that my family was going to have a summer trip to Hundred Islands, she kept…read moreon telling me numerous times to go to the Clam & Coral Garden. She was saying how huge and beautiful the clams are and they're just that! My siblings and I loved the snorkeling there and snorkeled until we were tired and hungry. There were fishes in different colors, sizes and shapes. They were beautiful. Don't forget to bring bread so you can feed them and take awesome underwater photos like we did with our GoPro. I also loved that there's a floating roofed rest area/docking area were there were benches to rest on. It also has a ladder so it's easy to access the boat when you're tired. The Clam and Coral Garden is definitely one of the top places to visit when you're at Hundred Islands.

I came here with a group of 10 people. We bought our tickets online to save a total of P500. The…read moreprocess was worth it since you're saving a good amount especially if you're going with a group. You don't even have to print anything, just bring your confirmation/reservation number. When you come in, you'll have to do a quick orientation just to find out the rules and regulations. They won't allow you to get life-vests without taking the orientation. We bought half day tickets and It was perfect. On to play, it was hard but super fun. I fell several times in the water, but their lifeguards are there to save you and lift you back to the inflatable. The lifeguards are awesome. They would show you how to do it to get through an obstacle. Overall, we had an amazing time. Tips: bring your own food. They said no outside food but everyone brought their carts full of food. The food places inside is horrible, they have a big menu but very little availability.

We visited during the opening day by availing 2-hour pass online. It was a strategic option to…read moretravel the night before and book an overnight stay in a nearby hotel. The duration of our pass is from 8:00am-10:00am avoiding exhaustion of summer heat. We get to go back to our hotel for quick naps and shower before lunch. MISS: Subic waters is not as clean. The shower areas and cabanas inside the resort is at the sand area, it is better to book hotels outside if prefers to stay overnight. HITS: safety measures are presented at the beginning of the session. Life vests are provided. Inflatable obstacles can be really challenging, it's best to wear action-ready swimwear. All-day pass will work for adventure seekers and athletic ones otherwise, 2-hour access is fine.

great place to unwind and friendly people…read more a lot of stores and restaurants and of private resorts around.