An excursion to Tagaytay featuring: View Park Hotel (Blogapalooza 2013)

View Park Hotel is located right in front of Picnic Grove. You won't miss it.

Hello bellas! Tagaytay is a very interesting place, with attractions such as the cool weather, the buko pies, Taal Volcano and many more. On December 8 (Sunday), I went on an excursion to Tagaytay and it was a wish come true because I've been dying to travel to unknown places by myself since I was in college, and then maybe setup camp on the side of a street overnight. View Park Hotel was one of my destinations for heading there, and I first met them during the Blogapalooza 2013 event on November 16. I wrote down a journal and some of you might find it helpful if you're also going to commute-ment to Tagaytay.

1045H - Left home heading to Ali Mall in Cubao
1210H - Wala nang bus going to Tagaytay dun sa Ali Mall; from EDSA, boarded bus to Starmall
1240H - Arrived at Starmall
1300H - Van departs for Balibago
1342H - Van arrives at Tagaytay-Balibago jeepney terminal
1352H - Jeep heading to Tagaytay departs
1500H - Arrived at the Tagaytay City Market; ride another jeep heading to Picnic Grove
1506H - Arrived at View Park Hotel
1630H - Finished my to-do list and dining experience with View Park Hotel
1735H - Arrived at Tagaytay Econo Hotel by foot (Mt. Taal view)
1818H - Passed by some flower shops along the highway (forgot to note the name)
1630H - Arrived at Tagaytay Rotunda by foot, boarded bus for Baclaran in front of McDonald's
2130H - Arrived at EDSA-Baclaran
2215H - Light dinner at McDonald's Taft-EDSA branch
2330H - I'm home! And still shine-free thanks to Garnier 8-Hour Shine-Free Lightening Cream =)

Your commute-ment to Tagaytay

As I was already in Mabuhay Rotonda in España/E. Rodriguez Sr. waiting for a jeep, someone approached me and had been harassing me to pawn a ring he found (w/ P50k price tag in place). I divine this is big trouble (madalas may ganyan sa area na yan) and just called the guard dun sa KFC to intervene. While I was able to get to Ali Mall without trouble, it seems the bus to Tagaytay does not have a terminal there anymore. Good thing I remembered there are also FX's heading to Balibago in Starmall, which is just one bus ride away from Cubao. The day is saved! (Btw, sabi nila best to take the ones that pass through SLEX than Dasmariñas to avoid traffic jam.)

Excited much, I'm here in Ali Mall na... where's that bus???

Awww... wala na dun, so I ended up taking a ride in Star Mall.

20 minutes of waiting in the queue isn't long...

Next na kami!

At least the air-con has some air to spew if it isn't cool

From Starmall, it takes about an hour for the FX to reach Balibago Market. Get off from there, and behind the market is a jeep terminal heading for Tagaytay. Once you board the jeep, it's another hour of ride until we get to Tagaytay Market. Behind the terminal where we drop off is a waiting shed, where you can wait for a jeep heading to Picnic Grove. Then it's only about 5 minutes before finally arriving on the destination.

Just arrived at the Balibago Market

Behind Balibago Market is the terminal for jeeps heading to Tagaytay

Fare is P40

Once you're in Tagaytay Market, there's a waiting shed beside where you drop off.
You can catch your next ride heading to Picnic Grove (jeep on the left). P8 lang.

After about 5 minutes, I was already in the Picnic Grove area.
Hindi ko napansin lumampas na pala, just a few meters away. (That's View Park Hotel on the right with green signage.)

Here is Picnic Grove, and View Park Hotel's just in front. You won't miss it like I did...

At the View Park Hotel

On arrival, I was accommodated by Ms. Violy and Mr. Servie for a tour around the hotel. View Park Hotel opened in 2007 because the owner had been getting alot of inquiries whether they have any accommodations for tourists and guests. The Main Building and houses Deluxe Rooms (P3,500 for 2 pax). The second building was constructed on 2008 and houses the Standard Rooms (P2,000 for 2 pax, P2,800 for 3 pax). Their Standard Rooms are very popular since it's usually the couples and those that need overnight stay that book with them. Their most recent building was built in 2010 and houses the lavishly generous Presidential and Executive Suites (price is volatile but averages at P15k).

Generally, each room consists of hot/cold shower, safety vault, minibar, cable TV and beds. Deluxe Rooms can accommodate up to 4 persons and are very popular when there are events. Their rooms consist of Moroccan style which gives it an exotic ambiance whenever a guest checks-in. It can either have 1 single queen-sized bed or 2 single beds good for 4 persons. Customers can add P800 per additional bed.

From the Presidential Suite

Dining Area from the Presidential Suite

Pantry Area from the Presidential Suite

Presidential Suite bed

Presidential Suite bath tub and shower

Presidential Suite lavatory

Presidential Suite view from the balcony.

View Park Hotel has several function rooms throughout the property and each can accommodate up to 150 pax. It comes with a free-flowing coffee, candy and pen and paper. Screen is provided, but guests may have to rent the projector at P2,500 per day. They have Boutique A which can accommodate 50 persons, and Boutique B which accommodates 30 persons.

This is an open-air area which makes it a great stress reliever for the guests.

To keep things lively, guests can chill and enjoy the acoustic nights that they offer every Saturday. Another perk to look forward to after events is that View Park Hotel raffles a free massage service as a token of appreciation. If you're feeling a little stressed especially from work or ailment, you can benefit from their expert massage for individual and couples, which start at P499. View Park Hotel also came up with several promos such as: Perfect Barkada 10, Family of 5, Rain of Shine, Instagram Photos, and P1,000 off from Deluxe and Premium Rooms.

At the entrance to the massage

Massage for couples

This holiday season, View Park Hotel is hosting its first sponsorship to a charity in need. This year, they will be making alot of kids from the Special Education Center as the Gift Giving activity will be held on December 20. In addition to that, guests who check in will feel very proud that part of their payments made to the hotel will be donated and they can also choose to bring gifts for donation.

Thank you so much to everyone at View Park Hotel for their warm accommodation. It was a pleasure to meet you there! After the tour and interview, they surprised me with their specialty Adam's Burger (worth P180) at the Red Lemon Grill. This is a very hearty meal and if you're gonna have this, I swear you're gonna love it! It consists of a very meaty patty, a generously thick slice of cheese that melts in your mouth, freshly sliced tomatoes, and green leafy lettuce. The result is an explosion of flavor in your mouth. To accompany your Adam's Burger is the salted french fries. Their other popular meals are the Club Sandwich (P180) and Tuna Sandwich (P150).

After the visit

After the visit, I wanted to just walk all the way to Tagaytay Rotunda (2 hours) so that I could see places along the way. Although it was already dark, I eventually came upon the sight of Taal Volcano which was very thrilling! Too bad I can't really get any closer. Along the way, there were at least 4 Colette's that I could recall, and by the 3rd shop napabili na din ng buko pie (P160).

I had my burger wrapped for takeout, save it for later

Nagutom na me while walking, time to unpack the sandwich.

That's one whopping super-meaty sandwich!

Wooo! Enchanted Kingdom, gusto ko sana pero next time nalang.

The view of the Taal Lake from here is very... cute =)

Breathtaking! I wish there's a way to get closer

The wind won't let my hair be

All the fog that beautifully envelops the buildings from my view adds a sense of mystery to Tagaytay

Hayz, malapit na sa wakas

So there, finally reached Tagaytay Rotunda, and a little more walk toward McDonald's are the bus with 'Coastal Mall' and 'Baclaran' signages. I took the Baclaran bus and it took 3 hours to reach Baclaran/EDSA. But before I could catch a ride in EDSA-Taft, nag-light dinner muna me: Chicken Fillet w/ Rice, Regular Fries and Sundae (totals P104).

This is what I call a 'light dinner'

This day was also a great chance to test Garnier's 8-Hour Shine-Free Lightening Cream so the only makeup that I was not wearing was foundation and powder. At the end of the day with a few blots here and there, my face was really shine-free (oil-free) even if it had some sweat running down once in a while.