Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
gorging on. It's clearly signposted off the main road.
Daily
10am-7pm.
Rowena's
152 Barangay San Francisco (on the Santa
Rosa road)
T
046 860 2481,
W
rowenas-tarts-tagaytay
.com.
Delicious
buko
pies; stop by for blueberry or straw-
berry cheese tarts, or the classic
buko
pie (around P170
each), plus excellent coffee.
Daily 8am-6pm.
Sonya's Garden
Barangay Buck Estate, Alfonso
T
0917 532 9097,
W
sonyasgarden.com.
If you're not
staying the night (see p.113), drop by for lunch or dinner:
daily set menus cost P683 (breakfast is P500 for non-
guests) and include delights such as pasta with sun-dried
tomatoes and banana rolls with sesame and jackfruit for
dessert. Book ahead.
★
2
Lake Taal and Talisay
The country's third largest lake, awe-inspiring
Lake Taal
sits in a caldera below Tagaytay,
formed by huge eruptions between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago. The active
Taal
Volcano
, which is responsible for the lake's sulphuric content, lies in the centre of the
lake, on
Volcano Island
. The volcano last erupted in 1965 without causing major
damage, but when it blew its top in 1754, thousands died and the town of Taal was
destroyed; it was rebuilt in a new location on safer ground an hour by road from
Tagaytay to the southwest of the lake (see p.112). Before 1754 the lake was actually
part of Balayan Bay, but the eruption sealed it from the sea, eventually leading to its
waters becoming non-saline. Today it's still very active, and the island is occasionally
closed - check the
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology
website
(PHIVOLCS;
W
phivolcs.dost.gov.ph) for the latest updates.
The departure point for trips across the lake to the volcano (see box below) is the
small town of
TALISAY
on the lake's northern shore, some 4km southeast of Tagaytay.
This is a much more typical Filipino settlement, with a bustling market, fishermen
doubling as tourist guides and nary a fast-food chain in sight.
VOLCANO ISLAND
Visitors to
Volcano Island
often get ripped off by local “guides” but it's easy to avoid making
the same mistake; the only price you need to negotiate is the
bangka
to take you out to the
island and back (plus the tricycle/taxi fare to the dock). They cost around P2500 (good for 5-6
people) if you arrange one independently, though it's possible to negotiate down to P1500 if
it's not busy, and can be arranged at the waterfront market in Talisay, or at any of the resorts
(see p.116);
Taal Lake Yacht Club
(see below) is also a dependable choice.
Guides
will charge
another P700 or so to take you up to the main crater (and even to cross on the boat with you),
though the trail is easy to follow and you do not need one. On the island is a small information
o
ce where you must pay an
entry fee
of P50. There's also a basic restaurant, with vendors
selling overpriced drinks.
The principal highlight on the island is the walk up to the rim of the 1.9km-diameter
Main Crater Lake
, where you can look down onto tiny Vulcan Point island (“the island on
an island”); the lake itself is usually off-limits, depending on current PHIVOLCS warnings
(see above). You can ride a
horse
up to the top of the crater for an additional P450 - most
tourists do this because of the heat, but the trail is not di
cult for anyone in reasonable
fitness (and the condition of the horses is pretty appalling). The trail can be dusty, however,
so bring a scarf for your mouth or buy a mask on arrival (P20). If you're staying the night by
the lake, your hotel can arrange all this for you, with food and refreshments included,
typically for P2000-3000 per person. There isn't much shade on the island, so don't go
without sunblock, a good hat and plenty of water.
With an early start (boats usually run from 7am), you can climb to the Main Crater Lake and
be back in Talisay in time for lunch (the hike takes around 30min depending on fitness level;
the trail is around 2.3km with a height gain of 200m). If you want to spend more time on the
water, make for the
Taal Lake Yacht Club
, about 1km east of Talisay (
T
043 773 0192,
W
sailing.org.ph/tlyc), where you can rent sailing dinghies (Toppers from P1200/day) and
kayaks (P750/day).
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP
MOUNT PINATUBO
P.123
; CRATER LAKE, TAAL VOLCANO; BAHA NA BATO HOUSE, TAAL
P.116
>
