Top 10 Places to Go in Laoag City (Part 1)

Laoag City Tourist Spots

Laoag City is the capital city of the Province of Ilocos Norte. Some of its popular tourist spots are as follows:

1. Ilocos Norte's Provincial Capitol
2. Aurora Park
3. Museo de Ilocos
4. Laoag City Hall
5. Tobacco Monopoly Monument
6. Sinking Tower of St. William Cathedral
7. Fort Ilocandia
8. Malacanang of the North
9. Ilocos Norte Convention Center
10.Lapaz Sand Dunes

For this page, I will be posting about the 1st seven spots, and the rest in a subsequent page .^_^

The 1st 6 spots are just within walking distance so all you need to do is to ride a tricycle to any one of them, then just walk on from there.

Ilocos Norte's customized tricycle

Ilocos Norte Provincial Capitol

The capitol is, of course, the seat of the provincial government of Ilocos Norte. It is located in JP Rizal Street, Laoag City. Just in front of it is the scenic Aurora Park and the Museo de Ilocos.

Aurora Park

What I like about the Aurora Park is its location. The picturesque town plaza is just in front of the Provincial Capitol, the Laoag City Hall, the Museo de Ilocos, and just a short distance away from the Sinking Bell Tower and St. William's Cathedral. Also, it is just beside SM Mall. It is also where the Tobacco Monopoly Monument stands.

Below is a view from the park of the Ilocos Norte Provincial Capitol.

I love this fountain! :D

                                                                             
                                   Museo Ilocos Norte

Too bad for us, we were not able to visit this museum since it was still closed during the time that we were there and we had to move forward to visit other places. Also known as Gameng Museo, this museum showcases historical artifacts and other articles descriptive of the Ilocano culture. It is open from Monday-Saturday starting at 9 am to 5 pm.

                                     Laoag City Hall
Just on the other side of the town plaza is the Laoag City Hall. I really dig its brick walls! The building itself is quite small, just commensurate I guess with the average number of transactions.

                                                            Simple yet beautiful

Tobacco Monopoly Monument

        As stated in WikiPilipinas, the Tobacco Monopoly Monument was a landmark constructed at the foot of the Marcos Bridge, over the Laoag River, which commemorates the lifting of tobacco monopoly in the Philippines in accordance to the royal decree of June 5, 1881 of King Alfonso XIII in 1881. It was built in gratitude for the said King whom without his order, will not end the agonies of the Ilocanos who are forced to plant tobacco. The tobacco monopoly was established in 1782 by Governor Jose Basco y Vargas by virtue of the royal decree of February 9, 1780. It aimed to bring in large profits for the government and make the Philippines the leading tobacco producer of the world. Although it was abolished during the incumbency of Governor Fernando Primo de Rivera in 1881, tobacco remains to be a major cash crop in the province. 

Just in front of the monument is a very big LAOAG sign which changes colors from red, to green, to pink, to blue, to white, etc. 

Sinking Bell Tower

     What's unique about this belltower is its far distance from the St. William's Church since belfries are usually near, if not connected to the church building. As the story goes, this belltower sank and is still currently sinking (approx. 1 inch per year) because it is said to be constructed on a sandy foundation which could not support its very heavy weight. Although a part of it is already underground, it still looks quite gigantic.  Yet, it continues to be functional until today, to signify the start of masses.

The different facades of the tower

This side has an orange-y tint on its walls

This is the side facing the street leading towards the church

St. William's Cathedral

     After checking the belfry, we went to the Cathedral next. The Italian Renaissance designed church was built in 1612 by Augustinian friars and has an Earthquake Baroque style. The original church was constructed using lime mixed with molasses big stones, gravel, and sand. 

Fort Ilocandia

      As claimed in its website, Fort Ilocandia is the only 5-star deluxe resort hotel in northern Philippines sprawling over 77 hectares of land amidst gentle sand dunes and pine forests with a 2 kilo-meter sandy beach facing the South China Sea. It is located in the heart of the city of Laoag and the province of Ilocos Norte. The resort is a complete service complex resort hotel. It’s a 10 minutes drive from Fort Ilocandia Golf & Country Club at Paoay and from the Laoag International Airport.

For the next part of our Laoag City Tour, just click on this link Top 10 Places to Go in Laoag City (Part 2).
Also check out other popular destinations to go in Ilocos Norte:
Top 4 Places to Visit in Paoay, Ilocos Norte
Top 11 Tourist Spots to Visit in the Northern Part of Ilocos Norte

Day 3: El Nido, Palawan (Tour B)

3rd day of a 3-day sequel featuring Tour B as follows:

1. Entalula Island
2. Cadugnon Cave
3. Vigan & Snake Island
4. Pinasil Island & Cathedral Cave  


1. Entalula Island     

      The Entalula Island was the first stop we had for our third day. The rock formations were really beautiful. One can only imagine what eruptions or quakes occurred that could have produced those bizarre forming rocks. 

2. Cadugnon Cave

   We had to pass thru a hole just big enough for a person to fit in order to enter into the cave. It is believed that this cave had been used as a burial site during the Neolithic Period.

Onward to the cave...

View from the entrance of the cave

Rock formations at the outer portion of the cave

 My mom and office mates while waiting for their turn to enter the cave

My mom and dad crawling into the small hole

This is the sight we saw upon entering but then you have to go up a steep slope to go to the other part of the cave.

Posing by the mickey-mouse-like hollow formation

3. Vigan & Snake Island

       The Snake Island is called as such because especially during low tides, a snake-like formation of sand appears which connects the island to the mainland. It was high tide though when we went there but the connecting part is still visible since it comprises the shallow part between the islands. We also trekked towards the peak of the hill to have a better view of the magnificent scenery below.

Me posing with the long sandbar as the background

4. Pinasil Island & Cathedral Cave
    The Pinasil Island is much visited because of its Cathedral Cave which is called as such because of its dome like structure resembling that of a cathedral. Although we did not enter the cave, it can actually be accessed by the use of smaller boats. Watch out though for bats and sea snakes which are said to abound the area.

The Baywalk: Last Stop of Puerto Princesa Tour

    We paid only Php1,500 (for the van with driver) for a half day tour of Puerto Princesa. Since our group had around 10 members, it only cost Php150 per person. The tour was already inclusive of the ffg places:

1. Palawan Butterfly Ecological Garden and Tribal Village

2. Iwahig Penal Colony and Farm

3. Crocodile  Farm & Nature Park

4. Mitra's Ranch

5. Baker's Hill

6. Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral

7. Plaza Cuartel

8. The Baywalk

The Baywalk

The Baywalk in Puerto Princesa is somewhat a cross between the Burnham Park in Baguio and the Baywalk in Roxas Boulevard facing Manila Bay. Like the Burnham Park, there are lots of bicycles and pedicabs for rent, and people are allowed to tour around the place using these bikes. And just similar to the Baywalk in Manila Park, both consist of a seaside promenade overlooking a bay.

    We had fun biking but I guess it can also be annoying to people walking and having activities of their own as they also have to watch out for pedicabs approaching.

    I was not able to catch a picture of the sunset but this is really a nice spot for viewing it, and enjoying the cool sea breeze.

     There is quite a number of food stalls and semi-restaurants in the place including those which offer crocodile meat sisig.

   Here is a picture of our group while waiting for our orders to be served. The place is really well lit during the evening.