Sagada is a scenic town nestled in the Mountain Province in Northern Luzon of the Philippines. For those coming from Manila and the rest of Luzon, it’s one of the best destinations you can travel to purely by land (no air or sea travel involved). The roads leading up offer the most spectacular view of mountains and cliffs. Once you get there, you can enjoy the cooler climate because of its high elevation and soak in the well-preserved culture of the Cordillera region.

Where exactly is Sagada?

Sagada is a town in the Mt. Province about 391 km or a 10-12+ hour drive from Metro Manila via Baguio, La Trinidad, Bontoc Rd, Halsema Highway and the Mountain Trail.

Why it’s great for riders

If you want a long ride from Manila with great views through the mountains and lots of twisties, this is a good choice. While you can sleep on an overnight bus or van trip to get there, getting there by motorcycles offers a long and satisfying road trip. Combined with stays in Baguio City and La Union, which are along the way there and back from Manila, this route offers a complete vacation getaway showcasing some of the best of the Northern Philippines.

Baguio, Sagada and La Union are all tourist-friendly destinations with lots of accommodations, dining options and tourist spots for sightseeing.

Our previous trips here back in 2006 and 2013 involved long and bumpy bus rides. Though we rented motorcycles once we got there to ride to Banaue and back on a day trip, I’ve always wanted to ride all the way up from Manila. But my motorcycles aren’t exactly fit for long rides. I’ve actually been planning to get an upgrade, but since Kymco lent me a new unit of theirKymco Like 150i with Noodoe Navigation for a long-term review, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to test it out.

Last February 2019, we finally had enough time to visit when Art got a leave from work. Here’s what I can share from our ride that might help others plan their trips.

Route Map for Road Trip (small displacement bikes)

While some riders opt to ride all the way up to Sagada in one go, those riding smaller displacement bikes like scooters can’t pass the expressways (NLEX, TPLEX). In the Philippines, only motorcycles with 400 cc displacements and up are allowed to use these highways. It’s a highly discriminatory rule. Don’t get me started on this. I’d probably travel more to the North by scooter if not for that stupid rule. FYI, there’s a maximum speed limit of 100 km/h on expressways even for 400 cc motorcycles which scooters are also completely capable of achieving if there’s no traffic.

If you’re taking small displacement bikes, the most direct route means you will have to slog through the Service Road getting in and out of Metro Manila which involves passing through highly congested towns in the CAMANAVA area (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela), roads being dug up, lots of trucks and very slow public transport vehicles blocking the main road. The traffic was pretty bad in the portions of Malabon, Malolos, Calumpit and only got better once we got to Pampanga and Tarlac.

An alternative route is to pass the Del Monte-Norzagaray Road leading to Angat and San Rafael in Bulacan, though other riders warn that a lot of trucks also pass there. Just plot your route on Googlemaps and click the “Avoid Highways and Tolls” options.

Experienced riders suggest leaving very early in the morning (like 3am) to avoid the traffic. But if you’re like me who doesn’t like driving at night for safety, the horrible traffic is something you’re just going to have to deal with before you get to the good part. To make the trip more manageable, I suggest you split the ride by spending the first night in Baguio City before riding up to Sagada, which will take roughly 10 to 12 hours coming from Manila. Instead of riding back straight, we made a detour at the surf town of La Union.

Ideally, you will want to spend at least 4 days for the ride or more to enjoy sightseeing around Baguio, Sagada and La Union. But you can cut this shorter if all you want to do is ride. Part of my goal for this ride was to visit craft beer destinations up North that I hadn’t been to yet. After a long ride, all you want to do is chill out and drink good beer and these three destinations offer that.

• Day 1: Quezon City – Baguio City, Benguet (259 km)
• Day 2: Baguio City, Benguet – Sagada, Mt. Province (154 km)
• Day 3: Sagada (free day; optional)
• Day 4: Sagada, Mt. Province to San Juan, La Union (167 km)
• Day 5: San Juan, La Union to Quezon City (322 km)

Major Towns & Pit Stops

Coming from Quezon City, our first major stop after 4-5 hours of riding lunch at Max’s Restaurant in Plaza Luisita, Capas, Tarlac. There are lots of fast food options to choose from here and secure parking areas for the bikes. Before that, we passed through some scenic spots in Pampanga with a view of Mt. Arayat National Park and welcome arches. After passing Pangasinan and La Union, we finally arrived in the province of Benguet!

Day 1: Baguio City, Benguet

There are several options to get to Baguio City from the highway, but the two main routes are Kennon Road or McArthur Highway. We decided to pass Kennon Road, which at the time was one-way going up. This route has less traffic and you get views of the Benguet marker, the Lion’s Head and Kennon Road Viewpoint which as a nice view deck overlooking the road. However, this route is sometimes closed due to landslides. We reached Baguio City around 4:00 pm but passed through a lot of high-traffic areas and one-way roads just to get to the hotel.

• Start point: Quezon City
• End point: The Podium Boutique Hotel, Baguio City
• Route: EDSA – MacArthur Highway / Manila North Road / R-9 and Kennon Road
• Type of road: Moderate to high traffic + long highway stretches
• Stops: Max’s Restaurant Tarlac (lunch), Capas Municipal Hall, Benguet welcome arch, Lion’s Head, Kennon Road Viewpoint
• Travel time: 7-8 hours
• Kilometers traveled: 259 km

The Podium Boutique Hotel

We stayed overnight at The Podium Boutique Hotel along the McArthur Highway, which has comfy rooms, an amazing view, secure parking area for bikes and an in-house restaurant and craft beer bar. So you don’t have to go far to eat and drink given the traffic.

Their standard room is equipped with 1 Queen size Bed, Cable TV, High-speed Internet Connection and Jet powered Hot and Cold Shower. It’s good for 2 pax with free breakfast.

No downpayment is required to make reservations. I just messaged them on Facebook and emailed and they were very accommodating and confirmed reservation details by text message.

Podium Boutique Hotel. Km. 4 Ben Palispis Highway, (Formerly Marcos Highway), Baguio City. Contact numbers: 0999-9928006, 09178528006
(074) 442-7250. Rate: Php 2,380 net/night. Website:
www.thepodiumboutiquehotel.com. Book hotel rooms here.

Hoka Brew

Podium Boutique Hotel’s in-house restaurant called Hoka Brew specializes in craft beer, coffee and grills. They serve craft beer on tap from Bulul Brewery and Cerveza Sagada here.

Hōka Brew is the brainchild of a couple of architects and designers. The restaurant is very airy with wide windows offering a great mountain view.

They also have an “Eat all you can! Drink all you can!” Mongolian buffet of unlimited fresh Baguio veggies, meat selections, squid and shrimp balls, eggs, rice and noodles plus a wide array of sauces for only Php 275.00. The complimentary breakfast of mountain rice and Baguio longaniza is pretty good too.

Baguio Craft Brewery

For hopheads, no trip to Baguio City is complete without passing by Baguio Craft Brewery whose flagship beers are inspired by Ifugao mythology.

They have a lot of craft beer varieties on tap to choose from including a Strawberry beer and Zigzagger (Triple-Hopped Double India Pale Ale) and wide menu of meals and appetizers like crispy dinakdakan. You can also buy bottles and cans of craft beer for takeout here.

Baguio Craft Brewery is just walking distance from the hotel so there was no need to drive. We only stayed one night in Baguio and had to wake up early for another long drive so we didn’t drink too much.

If it’s your first time in Baguio City or are staying longer, there are a lot of other things you can do there.

READ MORE: 10 Things to Do in Baguio City

Day 2-3: Sagada, Mt. Province

From Baguio City, we proceeded up to Sagada in the Mt. Province on the second day of our ride passing La Trinidad and Bontoc Rd/Halsema Highway. Halsema Highway itself is an amazing and beautifully scenic route with breathtaking mountain views and lots of twisties.

Along this route, you’ll pass by (formerly) the Highest Point in the Philippine Highway System in Atok, Benguet, the Mountain Province welcome arch, fields of lettuce growing by the roadside, beautiful scenery and winding mountain roads.

Because of a landslide, the Sabangan stretch was closed so we had to make a detour through Abatan Road and Bauko. We also accidentally passed through the steeper backroad (South Road) that passes Sumaguing Cave before reaching the town proper of Sagada.

• Start point: The Podium Boutique Hotel, Baguio City
• End point: Sagada Forest Lodge, Mt. Province
• Route: La Trinidad – Bontoc Rd/Halsema Highway – Abatan – Bauko – South Road
• Type of roads: Mountain roads, LOTS of twisties, some steep sections, gravel roads due to road constructions, moderate traffic in small towns
• Stops: 2nd Highest Point: Philippine Highway System, Mt. Province marker (for coffee), random roadside views
• Travel time: 5-6 hours
• Kilometers traveled: 154 km

Sagada Forest Lodge

While in Sagada, we stayed two nights in Sagada Forest Lodge & Restaurant, a quaint and quiet lodge located in the outskirts of town. It has a gated semi-flat area to park motorcycles. The lodge has its own restaurant and is about a 5-8 minute walk to Sagada Cellar Door.

They have several cozy rooms in the lower ground floor area. Our had its own CR and a common sala, fireplace and outdoor fire pits looking out on rice terraces and pine trees We were the only guests so we ended up having the whole place to ourselves. It was very peaceful and quiet. We felt like we were in our own private cabin in the woods.

Sagada Forest Lodge & Restaurant. Danonoy, Sagada, Mountain Province. Contact: 0928-2778510, 0977-7217061. Rates: P400 per person per night or P800 for 2 pax. Facebook Page: Sagada Forest Lodge & Restaurant

Find more accommodations in Sagada here.

Misty Lodge Cafe

There are lots of places to eat in Sagada but we went back to our old favorites like Misty Lodge & Cafe which serves pizzas, burgers, platter meals, breakfast meals and drinks.

Salt & Pepper Diner

Another place you can try along the main street of Sagada is Salt & Pepper Diner which serves local specialties like Dinakiw (grilled pork belly), Rosemary Inutom (baked chicken) or Mushroom Inutom served with potatoes.

Sagada Cellar Door

One of the best places to relax after a long ride with beer is Sagada Cellar Door, a microbrewery within a forest that serves craft beer infused with local ingredients! Check out my full review and more photos in the link above.

We spent an extra day in Sagada just taking it easy and chilling out. If you plan to do any tours there, please read my separate post on new rules and tours.

READ MORE: Things to Do in Sagada: New Rules & Tours (2019)

Day 4: San Juan, La Union

After the beauty of Halsema Highway, I really wasn’t expecting much from the ride going down to La Union, but it ended up being one of my favorite parts. Before heading down, we stopped for photo ops at Ampanga Heights, a small cafe and souvenir shop that offers amazing views of Kiltepan Peak.

The winding mountain road in Cervantes and Suyo which are part of Ilocos Norte was also stunning.

We passed through beautiful mountain roads and hardly encountered other vehicles. We didn’t really make good time because I kept wanting to stop to take photos. I mean, just look at that! The scenery was overwhelming. The road looks like a Great Wall down there.

We eventually made it back to the National Highway and our hotel in time to catch the sunset. Estimated travel time should have only been about 5 hours but we made lots of stops, which were totally worth it.

• Start point: Sagada Forest Lodge, Mt. Province
• End point: Vessel Hostel, San Juan, La Union
• Route: Tagudin – Cervantes – Sabangan Road – MacArthur Highway
• Type of roads: Mountain roads, LOTS of twisties, downhills, long flat last stretch
• Stops: Ampanga Heights, Bessang Pass Natural Park, random roadside views
• Travel time: 6-7 hours
• Kilometers traveled: 167 km

The Garage, Vessel Hostel

There are lots of accommodations, roadside inns, beach resorts and artsy hostels to choose from in the surf town of San Juan, La Union. Book budget-friendly guesthouses in La Union here.

I booked The Garage at Vessel Hostel, where you sleep inside a Volkswagen van in a garage, for the novelty factor and because I wanted additional non-motorcycling material to write about. The Kombi is good for two people and is fitted with a ½ HP window type AC, a twin bed for two, a locker, night lights, curtains, and has Wi-Fi.

I personally found the unique set-up and “van life” vibe really cool and cozy, but it’s probably more ideal for couples or friends on a chill weekend vacation rather than tired riders just looking for a place to crash for the night. The sleeping area can be a bit cramped for taller guys.

The Garage, Vessel Hotel. Urbiztondo, MacArthur Highway, San Juan, 2514 La Union. Rate: Php 2,900 per night with complimentary continental breakfast for 2 (full payment required to reserve). https://vesselhostel.com/

Gefseis Greek Grill

We didn’t stop for lunch during the ride, so we had late lunch at Gefseis Greek Grill, a beachside restaurant offering a taste of authentic Greek cuisine.

Curious Creatures Taproom

There are a lot of food parks and food hubs now in San Juan. We checked out Great Northwest where you can find Curious Creatures Craft Beer.

Too bad they were all out of Surftown La Union Blonde Ale. I asked the bartender if they had empty bottles just for photo ops, but they didn’t 🙁 They had other beer variants on tap though.

If you’re staying longer in La Union, check out my other post of things you can do there.

READ MORE: 10 Things to Do in La Union

Day 5: Back to Manila

So after that amazing ride and all the beautiful scenery, we made the mistake of driving back to Manila on a Friday through rush hour traffic. If I could repeat this ride, we should have left much earlier or stayed an extra night in Angeles City in Pampanga then driven back Saturday morning instead. We tried to take an alternate route through San Rafael, Bulacan to avoid traffic but had to double back. Apparently the road we were told to pass by my navigation system had closed so we had to backtrack and ended up on the Plaridel Bypass Road.

• Start point: Vessel Hostel, San Juan, La Union
• End point: Quezon City
• Route: MacArthur Highway / Manila North Road / R-9 – Plaridel Bypass Road – EDSA
• Type of roads: Long flat highways, moderate traffic in small towns, terrible traffic in last stretch approaching Manila
• Stops: Lunch in Tarlac, View of Arayat, gas stations
• Travel time: 9-10 hours
• Kilometers traveled: 322 km

Man, that last very long stretch of traffic going back beside hordes of trucks, clogged roads, and flooded streets because of a burst pipe almost ruined the memory of the great ride. I didn’t bother taking any photos anymore there. Though I love using the scooter for city driving, I can see why riders invest in bigger displacement bikes just so they can use the expressway.

If only I could skip the getting in and out of Manila section and start the ride somewhere in Tarlac or Pampanga, I’d be riding here every weekend. I thought we’d be home by afternoon, but it was almost 9:00 pm by the time we got back. But the important thing is we got home safely. Overall, this was one heck of a ride and I’m glad to have finally ticked this off my bucket list.

Based on Googlemaps estimates, total distance should be about 902 kms but this doesn’t account for going around Sagada to eat, backtracking, detours to load gas, etc. The Kymco Like odometer reading shows that we covered more than 1,000 kilometers during this ride. Achievement unlocked!

• STARTING ODOMETER: 1312 km
• END ODOMETER: 2353 km
• TOTAL: 1,041 kilometers

Thank you to Kymco Philippines for lending me the All-New Kymco Like 150i. Check out my review of the bike here.