My best friends from high school and I had been planning an out-of-town trip since forever. After much deliberation, we have finally settled on a destination, Bolinao and Alaminos, Pangasinan. We gathered all we could from this thing called the internet and have planned our own DIY trip.

Day 1 Bolinao, Pangasinan

We arrived in Bolinao's Five Star bus terminal at 4 in the morning. The bus ride from Pasay was long and bumpy and did not allow for a good night's rest. We ended up taking a 2-hour nap at the terminal before starting the day's adventure. After the short shut-eye, we hired a tricycle for the much-awaited tour.

A map at the terminal

Resorts and contact #s

St James Parish Church

A 5-minute tricycle ride away from the Five Star bus terminal, the church built out of black coral stones has definitely earned its spot on the list as the first place to visit.

Bolinao Falls

The 19km ride to Bolinao Falls lasted for almost an hour on a tricycle. It was difficult trying to hold on at the back of the tricycle because of how rough the dirt roads were. When we arrived, we were covered in dust. From the parking lot, we walked a bit towards the Bolinao Falls #3.

The path toward the falls

The falls isn't impressive in the dry season

But the water is still so crystal clear and refreshing!

We visited Bolinao Falls #1 but were too tired to go for another dip. We satisfied ourselves with a group pic and went on our merry way.

Bolinao falls 1

Enchanted Cave

The Enchanted Cave resort is one of the most interesting resort I've visited. This is made by how the whole place is covered with fossilized corals.

The place is perfect for a photo op!

The cave itself is not too interesting. There is a small pool for swimming.

The way to the cave

Enchanted Cave

Hammocks for chilling

Did I mention the fossilized corals?

Cape Bolinao Lighthouse

The panoramic view is amazing!

Patar White Beach

Before the trip, we reserved a cheap room at some resort. When we arrived at Bolinao, we discovered that the resort we booked a room in was very far from Patar White Beach. Thank heavens there was no reservation fee. So what we did is that we searched for available rooms at the beach. We got ourselves an air-conditioned concrete room (as opposed to a closed nipa hut). It isn't by the beach front but we liked it because it was quiet. The beachfront was noisy and crowded.

La Parola air-conditioned room

low tide around sunset

Sunset skies are the prettiest

Some rock formations at Patar White Beach

We weren't able to swim much because it was starting to get dark. We got to sit by the shoreline and chat for a while. I like how the sand is fine enough to not hurt your butt when you sit.

Day 2 Alaminos, Pangasinan

We contacted the same tricycle driver we hired for our Bolinao trip. We left the inn around 7:30 am and found ourselves in a van headed to Alaminos 45 minutes later.

A van to Alaminos. Gets full of passengers pretty quickly

When we arrived in Alaminos, we hired a tricycle driver to bring us to Lucap Wharf. But not before buying ourselves lunch and some fruits for sustenance.

Alaminos City Hall

Hundred Islands Tour

It was around 10-ish in the morning when we got there. Lucap Wharf was unexpectedly a long way from the town proper. When we got there, all the boats were out on the tour. We got frustrated because we weren't informed right away that the reason we were being made to wait so long was because there was no available boats. We would've understand since we arrived so late in the morning. If you plan on going, be there at around 6-7 in the morning. Our tricycle driver said they'd accept reservations but if someone else comes before you, they'd prioritize them. So basically, a first-come, first-serve kind of service.

Lucap Wharf

Also, there was a couple who wanted to share a boat with us. The flyer our tricycle driver gave  us said a small boat could carry 1-5 persons so we agreed. Unfortunately, the boat guy didn't so we had to go our separate ways. When we finally got on a small boat, I realized that there was no way 5 persons could fit in it. Not even four. I just wished they didn't advertise falsely.

The rates as of April 2016

Way too tiny for five

The way our boat guy rushed us throughout the tour disappointed me very much. I was too exhausted with everything to argue.We were back in Lucap Wharf and ready to go home by 4 pm. We saw the couple who wanted to share the our boat earlier and found out that the islands there boat guy brought them to were way more interesting. They were also able to snorkel for an hour and a half! I only got to do so for around 20 minutes. I have never been so heartbroken from a tour before.

Governors Island

Cuenco  Island

Bat Island. I have never seen so many bats before!

Lots of people at Quezon Island

Snorkeling area near Quezon Island

Giant clams are everywhere!

I have no idea what those are. Maybe for growing Corals?

A closer look

A lovely day for island hoppping

Our tricycle driver arrived and brought us back to town. We had dinner at McDonalds. Honestly, our first decent meal in days. We rode a bus heading back to Cubao and arrived around 12 in the morning. That concludes our DIY trip to Bolinao and Alaminos!