This is probably the question that I get asked the most via e-mail. How  many days should one spend in Sagada to make the trip worth it? Of course, the answer would differ from person to person who has been there, but if you were to ask me - me being a generally laid-back guy who’d like to commune with nature from time to time — I’d say five days would be the  optimal time. Keep in mind though that you’ll be arriving at noon of Day  1 and you’ll be leaving at 1 PM of Day 5 at the latest. In essence, it’s just four days in Sagada.

Of course your schedule would depend on following factors:

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If you’ve done a decent amount of reading and research, you would know by now that there’s no way that you could go to Sagada on a day trip. The travel time from the other heavily traveled towns and cities (Banaue and Sagada) makes it virtually impossible to make much in 24 hours - the trip back and forth would take 24 hours! Buses leave Baguio at 630AM and the earliest it arrives in Sagada is around 1PM. Since the buses from Sagada to Baguio, you only have a little over a day to experience Sagada.

Given this predicament, here’s my buzzer-beating, not-a-dull-moment itinerary to make the most out your tight schedule:

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Since a lot of our readers are requesting for a sample itinerary, I thought of sharing mine. This is quite a compacted itinerary since I have no liberty of spending a much longer time there due to my busy work schedule. Nonetheless, I find the itinerary just perfect (for me).

Day 1

2230H: Departure from Victory Liner Pasay

Day 2

0350H: Arrival at Victory Liner Baguio/Taxi to Dangwa Terminal
0400H: Arrival at Dangwa Terminal/Breakfast at Mang’s Cuisine Dangwa
0530H: Departure of Lizardo Bus to Sagada
1115H: Arrival at Sagada
1145H: Lunch
1300H: Spelunking - Lumiang to Sumaguing Cave Connection
1700H: Finish Caving
1900H: Dinner

Day 3

0630H: Breakfast
0730H: Trek to the Big Falls (via Bangaan Rice Terraces)
0830H: Arrival to the Big Falls
0930H: Trek back from the Big Falls
1030H: Back to the starting point of Big Falls trek
1130H: Lunch
1300H: Rock Climbing
1500H: Tour Echo Valley and Underground River
1700H: End of Tour
1900H: Dinner

Day 4

0630H: Breakfast
0700H: Departure from Sagada to Baguio
1300H: Arrival at Baguio/Lunch
1400H: Shop and Some tour of Baguio
1800H: Departure from Baguio to Manila

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It’s one of the things that I’m asked the most about Sagada. Most people who have been to the mountainous regions of Northern Philippines could attest that the temperature could get as cold as 20 degrees lower than the national average - about 8 to 9 degrees Celsius — but that’s only because they’ve been to places like Baguio City (arguably, the most visited city in the Cordilleras). Sagada is no different. It does get fairly cold especially during early morning and late night. It does get real hot at noon so don’t have any delusions that it’s going to be cold all day. Despite the colder temperatures, high noon still means tropical-zone-hot so plan your activities in a way that would allow you be in the shade by noon time.

A light jacket is enough to keep you warm during the cold days so don’t bother bringing bulky winter coats. Most people would be seen walking around in a shirt, pants and some sort of windbreaker or sweater.

For cave exploration: It’s recommended that you get something that you can move well in. It could be anything from a comfortable pair of jeans, board shorts or sweat pants. Most people go spelunking in their flip-flops since there are parts that actually require you to go barefoot.

For the Big Falls (and other hikes): wear a shirt and comfortable pair of pants. You may be walking across patches of thorny shrubbery so you might as well play it safe. Make sure that you’re wearing shoes that could take the abuse of walking on rough terrain for hours on end.

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Another option for Manila based tourist bound to Sagada is to take the Manila-Banaue-Bontoc-Sagada route. The entire trip takes more or less twelve (12) hours. Manila to Banaue is a nine (9) hour bus ride that passes through Central Luzon provinces of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya all the way to this town in the province of Ifugao . From Banaue bus terminal, a short tricycle ride will lead you to the town proper where the buses to Bontoc pass. Banaue to Bontoc is a two hour ride along Halsema highway, and Bontoc to Sagada is 45 minutes on a jeepney.

The journey is quite exhausting as it involves four transfers, not to mention that the busses are not as comfortable as those going to Baguio. If you are unlucky (like me), you will spend the entire travel time in the aisle seat. But it is advisable for those planning to go in the world renowned rice terraces of Banaue and Batad. (more…)

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