Choosing our accomodation for the overnight stay in Batad Village was really not that hard, my internet research showed one place where they had an unobstructed view of the rice terraces and that was Hillside Inn. And i'm telling you, the view was PRICELESS.Once we decided with Hillside Inn, next thing we did was contact Ms. Maya Addug through her cellphone +63917-7574411 and +63908-6012888. Ms. Maya actually is based here in Manila, but all reservations are coursed through her. They require our room charge to be deposited to their account, which in this amounted to Php400.I kid you not, it was just Php400 for an overnight stay. But before i placed my deposit to their account, i had to ask Ms. Maya if it was possible to give me the room with the best view, which i believe should be the one with a corner location, and she readily agreed. Hillside Inn is probably the cheapest accomodation i have encountered in all my travels and yet it gave the best view among them all.Here are the photos of Hillside Inn of Batad.
Hillside Inn is just a few steps away from the Batad Tourist Information Center.A humble structure with a magnificient view.Hillside Inn is a 4-storey structure where the 3rd level is the dining area, while the rest are for accomodations. Our room was located in the 4th floor and nearest to the terraces.
A closer view of the entire structure.
This was the inner dining hall in the 3rd level.
PRICELESS...
Imagine eating here.
The hallway going to our room.
Finally, our room. Not much but we didn't pay much too. =)
Upon arriving, we had lunch and tried their vegetables which i know they grow abundantly here. The view just really added to the flavor.
As wifey was busy ordering lunch, just saw this scene as i was passing by and couldn't resist to take the shot.
This was lunch, veggies with rice and corned beef with rice and omellete.
The trek really took its toll on wifey. Slept like a baby.
View from inside our room.
Took this shot as we were about to go the following day. Just couldn't get enough of it.
Here are some scenes along the path going to Batad Village. 30 minutes would be a doable time to reach the village if you were to go at it without stopovers, 45 minutes would be the normal time on average speed. We made it exactly one hour after we left the Saddle but these were due to numerous stops for wifey's rests and the photo opportunities.But check out what you might miss along the way if you didn't make those stopovers.
As long as there was a semblance of a wooden structure with roof, wifey found the reason to take a rest. Wasn't that bad resting here since we got to see the art souvenirs the locals were offering.
Stopping to smell the flowers. Wouldn't get tired of such images.
If you think, we didn't rest here, well you thought wrong. Now even without a roof, it was enough reason to well ... rest yet again.
Halfway there.
Other trekkers just kept passing us by. Wifey reasoned that it's because they were much younger than we are.
Just wondering what's keeping them from making the whole area a terraced rice field? Wouldn't it be more spectacular if they did?
Spotted this woman checking out the rice fields.
Finally, we reach the Saddle, the jump-off point for the trek down to Batad Village. It is the spot where you try to catch your breath from that brain-shaking bumpy ride. Here you get to enjoy some refreshments, souvenirs, rent walking sticks and get some rest before starting the one-hour trek to the village. Some jeepneys are waiting to be filled up by locals and tourists alike before heading to Banaue town. The jeepney drivers charge tourists 5 times higher than the locals, so don't be surprised if you encounter it, that's just the way it is. Let these photos describe what The Saddle looks like.
The white specs in the lower middle part of this photo is the start of Batad Village. The trek downhill going there took us exactly one hour but with several stopovers along the way. That's why make sure you're a little fit for the trek if you're planning to go to Batad.
This guy turns out to be looking for passengers along the trail from Batad Village. If they see some potential passengers, especially tourists, then they'll wait for them even if they need to wait for an hour.
Some rice terraces can already be viewed from the Saddle.
There are two routes to take from the Saddle, we took the stairs going down and took the trail going up. There's really not much difference as to the length of time if you were to take one direction over the other, but if you're not fit enough, it is best to skip the stairs going up since it's really a steep climb.
