Last weekend, my friends and I took on the daunting challenge of going to Sagada. An extended weekend trip to Sagada is already a packed schedule but this trip (my 19th) was even going to be shorter. This was my shortest trip to Sagada – a trip that would require traveling time of 23 hours and a total staying time of just over 25 hours in town.

Despite the short time we spend in Sagada, it was still very enjoyable since the drive itself was quite an experience. The road to Sagada takes drivers and passengers alike through different topologies and landscapes that Luzon has to offer. Starting from the urban jungle of Manila, to the well paved North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), the vast plains of Bulacan and Nueva Ecija, the winding roads of Dalton Pass and the mountainous terrain of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), the 440-km drive sure takes one through a mini tour of the country’s largest island.

Since I mainly traveled via public transportation to Sagada and most of the traveling happens at night, I’m not really that familiar with the route. Luckily, my friend purchased the Papago Philippines app on the iPhone. With little research on possible routes, we trusted the app to show us the way and amazingly, through all the weird side roads and haystack-blocked paths, we were able to reach Sagada. The app was so impressive that all the major gas stations and banks were even plotted accurately on the app. It was so detailed that hotels in Sagada even showed up in the display. This app deserves a review and we will be coming up with one in the near future.
We took the Eastern route – the side that goes through Banaue and Bontoc. The Western Route is the one that passes the major hub of Baguio. (more…)

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Dalton Pass is the mountainous stretch of road that separates the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya. People going to Sagada via Banaue or Bontoc will pass through this route. My friends and I took this route and we ended up getting stuck for over three hours. This had us behind schedule by almost four hours when it was all said and down. Instead of arriving in Sagada by around 9AM, we ended up arriving in Bontoc (still an hour away) at noon.

There seems to be major road repairs ongoing at Dalton Pass. I suggest that you take the other route (the one that goes through Baguio) to avoid inconvenience.

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We’ve written on this topic extensively, but I think this post needs a bit of revisiting. We have notes on Baguio, Banaue and Bontoc.

1. Which one is the best option?

If you’re coming from Manila there are four factors that you have to consider

• Do you want to arrive early in Sagada? If you’re going via Baguio, the earliest you’ll arrive in Sagada is around 1130 AM.  This is because the first Lizardo Bus leaves Baguio at around 6AM. Going through Bontoc will allow you to get to Sagada relatively earlier – even before 9AM.
• Do you want to see Banaue? Banaue is on the opposite side of mountain range relative to Baguio. Banaue is on the eastern side of Luzon while Baguio is closer to the west coast.  Baguio and Banaue are actually 8-9 hours apart so this is a major consideration if you’re thinking of a non-circuitous route.
• Do you want more flexibility with your bus schedules? Simply put, there are more buses from Manila leaving for Baguio. There are also seven buses leaving for Sagada from Baguio. Contrast this to just ONE bus nightly from Manila to Bontoc and Banaue.
• Are you going to be comfortable staying in the same bus for 12 hours? The Bontoc bus takes 12 hours so you’re in for a long trip. If you’re comfortable sleeping in buses, this should be a good option since this is an all nighter. You will need to take a jeep from Bontoc to compete the trip (30-40 minutes). The Baguio-Sagada route cuts the trip into 6-hour halves – six hours each on two buses. (more…)

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The short answer to the question “When is the best time to go?” is “any time when it isn’t raining too much”. Sagada is a good trip all-year long as long as the weather cooperates, really but since Sagada is in the middle of Luzon, there are micro climates that makes the weather a little bit harder to predict.

I’ve been to Sagada almost all months of the year and this is how I felt about it:

January

The first month of the year is probably one of the best times to go. January usually isn’t peak season for tourism so you’ll the town to yourself. The weather is still cold so the early evenings and nights can be quite an experience. From what I remember, it rarely rains during this month; if ever, it would only be in the afternoon.

February

This month is a lot like January but the big clincher here is the town fiesta during the first week. It’s a big local celebration so it would be a good idea to check it out to see another side of the town’s personality.

March and April

It gets hot real fast. I personally don’t like the summer months for two reasons – the amount of people in town usually doubles or triples instantly and the weather just becomes too similar to the warmer parts of the country. The road to Sagada gets a bit too dusty and it will be a challenge to people with asthma.

May

I’ve been to Sagada three times during May and it’s a mixed bag. The other two trips were unremarkable and very enjoyable weather-wise, but the latest one (2008) was absolutely rained out. It could be a bit risky.

June and July

The Aguid village near the Bomod-ok Falls (Big Falls) usually close the trail to the waterfall around this time. The exact date of closure is NEVER known in advance so you could be missing out on your chance to check out the waterfalls. The rains start to get more regular around this time and in this region, rain equals landslides. These roadslips can certainly slow down your transit time – especially from the Baguio side.

August, September and October

This is typhoon season. Fortunately, Sagada has not been heavily damaged by the last two super typhoons that has hit the area (Megi 2010 and Parma 2009). The towns around Sagada were devastated though and it made traveling to the area next to impossible. Power could also be unavailable in town during times of severe rains and typhoons. I went to Sagada August last year and the Baguio-Sagada trip that was usually 5.5 hours ended up being longer than 7 hours due to road repairs. It’s frustrating because the section that usually gets bad rock slides is in the barangay of Gonogon – just 40 minutes away from Sagada.

November

It starts getting cold around this time. Late November is a really good stretch to consider going – there aren’t a lot of people in town yet and the weather is probably as perfect as its going to get.

December

Early to mid December is a lot like November but a little bit colder. Late December is awesome if you like being in large groups. The annual bonfire activity is held every December 28 and its easily one of the biggest parties that the town hosts every year. If it’s okay for you to share a packed town that’s filled to the brim, December is the perfect time to go. I’ve gone the past three years and it’s been nothing short of a great experience.

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