Aside from the usual "beat the heat" summer mantra, why do families really go to the beach? To have fun, of course! But there is one other reason you might have missed: hitting the beach is not all about swimming. It's to relax and unwind. However, most popular beach resorts today are crowded and humming with all sorts of fun activity. This is especially true during the summer season. Not that we're complaining, but various families, especially the moms and dads of the world, have various tastes when it comes to beach resorts. Many parents going to summer excursions are, more often than not, dead-tired and sore due to their humdrum routine in the city. We can't blame them to look for some quiet time in beaches.
We were very fortunate to have experienced this rare kind of solemnity in Virgin Beach Resort in Barrio Hugom, San Juan, Batangas.
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| Little Juanito welcomes you all to Virgin Beach Resort! |
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| Towards the northeast. |
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| Towards the southwest. |
Located in San Juan, Batangas, Virgin Beach Resort is one of the most well-known self-contained beach establishments in the province. Actually, San Juan became a popular tourist destination in Batangas mainly because of its top-rate white-sand beach located in five contiguous barrios: Hugom, Laíya Aplaya, Laíya Ibabao, Baluarte, and Imelda. Together, these five barrios share what is probably one of the country's longest, white-sand beaches which extend all the way to the Municipality of Lobô to the southwest. And despite the fact that this long coastline is shared by the above-mentioned five barrios, people still call it Laíya Beach probably because a large chunk of it belongs to both Laíya Aplaya and Laíya Ibabao. But Virgin Beach Resort is located in Hugom.
We visited the resort during Mómay's recently concluded 11th birthday last May 13. We left Pacita Commercial Complex in San Pedro Tunasán, La Laguna at half past midday via van (only ₱100 per person) and reached Lipâ, Batangas in only an hour because we used the Southern Tagálog Arterial Road. From Lipá City's old town proper, we rode a jeepney going to San Juan (fare: ₱58.00). Travel time from Lipá to San Juan was about an hour and a half. We had a brief lunch at a local Jollibee outlet before taking another jeepney near the public market which took vacationers to the municipality's famed beach resorts (fare: ₱50.00). The traffic-free trip from the town proper to Laíya Beach is more or less half an hour. The journey to the beach features a relaxing view of San Juan's pastoral scenes.
Upon checking in, we chose a bamboo cabana, a thatched-roof hut made of bamboo. It had two queen-sized beds, en suite private washroom, and a spacious veranda with a bamboo sofa overlooking the sea. A wind chime hanging above the sofa produces sweet timbres whenever sea breeze blows.
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| The place where we stayed overnight... |
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| ...fronts the sea. Thesmaller parasols are in front of us. |
We were so thankful that this time around, the resort wasn't fully booked. You see, it's my family's second time in San Juan (personally, it was my fourth). Six summers ago, we went to Laíya Beach for an overnight fun (Juanito was then a month and a half old). The jeepney driver helped us in choosing a beach. He recommended Virgin Beach to us. Yeyette went inside the resort to inquire. Unfortunately, but they couldn't accommodate us anymore because all the cottages/rooms were already filled up (they call their cottages cabana, casita, and parasol). So we ended up at a "Class B" beach.
We still had fun nonetheless. However, Virgin Beach Resort lingered in our minds, especially to Yeyette's because she caught a glimpse of the place. Other than that, we heard from a friend who had been there how classy the beach looked, and that privacy was of utmost importance. And then we saw the witty flick "Here Comes The Bride" (not my idea) a year later wherein a significant part of the movie took place at the resort. We were mesmerized by the beauty. The movie was indeed the last straw. We promised ourselves to go back Virgin Beach one day.
And so came May 13, Mómay's birthday. It was a long overdue visit. Still worth all the wait! Here are some of our Day 1 photos (click here for more):
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| Crystal clear takes on a new meaning here! |
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| This is Junífera Clarita's second time to swim in the beach! |
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| It was a wavy Wednesday afternoon! |
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| Our sumptuous dinner is served at the Pavilion. |
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| The Pavilion at night. All meals here, both international and local cuisine, are served buffet style. But when the number of guests fall below 40 (like during our visit), plated full course meals are served instead. Such meals consist of an appetizer salad, soup, choice of main course with pasta or rice, dessert, and free flowing coffee during meal hours. |
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| "¡Despertaos!", Junífera Clarita seems to call out to her mamá, ate, and cuyas. |
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| Batangueño sunrise. |
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| Early morning swim, taken just a few minutes past six. |
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| Yeyette enjoying the serenity of the sunrise. |
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| Stolen shot, enjoying the summer heat! |
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| Beach addict! =) |
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| The beach and its surroundings are filled with several varieties of fruit-bearing trees and flowering plants, many of which are older than the resort itself. The "virgin" tag to this place is indeed apt. |
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| Breakfast time! |
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| What we had for lunch. |
Virgin Beach Resort truly exceeded our expectations! We had a virginal experience, so to speak. The waters are clean and clear as a mirror, the air all around is fresh because of forest mountains nearby. The staff is proactive and so courteous to the point of shyness. The food at the Pavilion is of hotel quality. And the best part of our two-day stay there? We had the beach all to ourselves! Because May 13 and 14 were weekdays (Wednesday and Thursday). That's probably one reason why the only souls we saw there were ours! Our kids had so much fun frolicking in the white sands of Laíya Beach!
Last but not the least, me and my wife experienced the peace and serenity that we were looking for in a beach. Virgin Beach Resort values not just fun but solemnity, to soothe the tired soul as one gazes to the pacific sky and sea. This place has since become my wife's favorite beach getaway. And our kids are raring to return. So don't be surprised to find us here again one day. ¡Hasta la vista!
