Wazzup Pilipinas!
Experience Mediterranean-themed accommodations at Eagle Point Resort in Anilao, Batangas!
Situated at the tip of Calumpang Peninsula in Batangas, the beach and dive resort is right smack in the middle of thirty diving spots! There's even a couple of diving spots directly at eyesight infront of the resort itself. Their restaurant, called Eagle Nest, is overlooking the diving site of Anilao and Balayan Bay.
We were fortunate enough to be among those who got invited for a few days of stay at the resort. But unfortunately we could only stay for an overnight due to our busy schedule (mainly a dinner with the ambassador of Qatar). We couldn't also bring our entire family of five (two adults and three kids) since two of our three kids have school activities (photo shoot session for graduation year book pics since one is graduating from college and another one from senior high school) even on weekends. Thus, there were only three of us who got pampered by the opportunity to experience all the resort could offer. Together with my wife and youngest child (bunso), we were off to another memorable adventure.
After 4 hours of travel from Pasig City, we arrived at the resort a few minutes before 10 am. We took Grab ride (P400) from our home in Pasig and took the bus from Buendia JAM Liner bus terminal (P157 per person) going to Barangas. We got off at the diversion grand terminal in Batangas, then took a jeepney ride (P40 per person) to Mabini market. From the market, we rode on a tricycle (P350) going to the resort.
Since we've seen images of the resort from their Facebook page, we thought we were not going to be surprised anymore. But we were wrong because the actual place is a lot more enchanting when personally experienced.
I'd love to post each photo of the yummy dishes but that would already put this particular blog post lengthy so just check out photos of each from our album on Facebook.
Since the resort offers lunch from 10 am to 2 pm, we decided to have lunch already so we could check-in at our rooms afterwards. So we left our bags at the reception for safekeeping while we dined at Eagle Nest, the only restaurant they have at the resort.
My wife is more likely to choose the healthy options so she would normally order the veggie dishes like salads, while my son prefers the American type like "pasta, burger and fries" type of meals. I'm more of the seafood lover so those are the first dishes I look for in a menu whenever we visit restaurants. I ordered for prawns - always my favorite wherever I go. We also prefer to choose the dishes that we rarely eat (if there are some available), but would pick first any of the comfort foods if everything is familiar.
Drinks (fruit shakes) and desserts (highly recommended is the Calamansi Pie) would always be a part of our every meal.
The room given to us has two comfy beds, and the usual LED TV with cable connection, a phone, cabinets, a chair and table, a toilet that comes with a faucet and shower, and a veranda (with two chairs and a table) overlooking the sea including the saltwater pool that is used for diving lessons.
Aside from the towels, they provided toiletries like soap, shampoo, conditioner and toilet paper, but no disposable toothbrushes and toothpaste, cotton buds, shower cap, etc. However, it was never a problem with us since we always bring our own toiletries because we are rarely satisfied with the free toiletries provided by hotels and resorts.
Going further down underneath the Eagle Nest restaurant is the helipad and docking area. You'll quickly guess that is a helipad because of the bigger letter H encircled....and beside it is the docking area where boats of different sizes dock.
Our first impulse is to take a selfie with the helipad signage underneath us. We believe it was a great shot since we got so many Likes when we posted it on social media. Though some of our friends thought we took a helicopter ride. Lol!
Going further, there were also some boats parked at some areas of the resort but we were not sure if they were still operational or working. Of course, more photo ops followed.
We decided to go back to our rooms when it was about to get dark so we could spend at least an hour swimming in the pools before having dinner which starts at 6 pm. Too bad we forgot our charger for our GoPro Hero, thus we couldn't get shots in the pool. Such a shame to leave the charger back home.
We also checked if the sunset settings at the resort would give us some good shots.
Dinner means ordering a different set of dishes compared to what we had for lunch since we would like to show our readers as many possible choices available in the menu of Eagle Nest. My wife ordered "Bulalo" served in a traditional pot because she was in the mood to sip some beef broth, while I ordered Gambas eventhough I wanted to order the prawns again. My son ordered carbonara and clubhouse sandwich. A couple of additional dishes were ordered for sharing.
Of course drinks and desserts will never be forgotten to complete the meal. We were not too eager with the desserts maybe because we don't normally eat heavy during dinner time - we practically skip dinner every night. My son went back to our room before the desserts got served so we just had the fruits delivered in our room so we could eat them while watching TV.
The reason I get fat is because I get to eat up all the left-overs since I don't want to waste food...hehehe
While we were about to finish dinner, the staff already asked for our preferred meals for tomorrow's lunch at their private island called Sepoc Beach. It was just a 15 to 20 minutes boat ride from the resort and an ideal place to eat anything that's grilled. This is probably why all the choices were mostly combinations of any two grilled seafood, chicken, or pork matched with either pancit canton or mixed vegetables, and in season fruits.
Spent the rest of the evening admiring the night view from the pools before going back to our rooms to watch TV. We dozed off immediately and woke up early since the boat ride for Sepoc Beach is scheduled at 7 am.
Activities that could be done at Sepoc Beach includes kayaking, snorkeling, hiking (towards the back to see Sombrero Island or upwards to a small hill to see the top view of the beach), teambuilding, ..... We also saw a volleyball net,....and with the big enough roofed facility, you can do almost any activity including a wedding - which has been done already.
When we saw the WELCOME sign made out of stones neatly arranged along the shore, we thought it was for us...hahaha... But it was actually for a tech company that was having their teambuilding there.
I will never get tired of eating barbecue or grilled, may it be fish or meat, or even vegetables and my favorite corn...Well, we don't have corn here though. They cooked our order for us. What you see on the grill are the meat for three orders.
VIP lunch spot at the island's tower! The best seats in the island. Later some other guests arrived, then two bigger boats carrying a company who are having their team-building at the island. I believe this is a lot better than having to fly out of Metro Manila because you don't get to spend much on transportation expenses. Air fare are more expensive compared to hiring vans to take you to Batangas, then the boat rides to Sepoc Beach.
We were actually still full from the buffet breakfast we had at the resort, but the grilled seafood calls out to us. Eat us, eat us, eat us!!! We were just a bit disappointed of getting only pineapples and watermelons for fruits. I prefer mangoes, dragon fruits, grapes or melons. But those fruits are understandably more expensive so it was fine for the price of the meals at around P500 per person.
Nikki informed us that celebrities would go to the island for the privacy that it offers. That's something valuable for them so they could take complete rest without having to worry with so many photo ops or selfies with fans. Maybe they would rent the island for themselves so they could spend an entire day minding nothing but the sun, sand and sea.
Honestly, my wife was too afraid for us to leave the safety of the shore, so we had to kayak just near...so freaking near I was laughing my heart out because I was such an obedient husband. Lol!
As mentioned, there is a huge enough space for a big group to have the island as a private playground for activities like teambuilding or retreat. There are facilities that you can use already like the tires for obstacle course, ...just using creativity, you can make it an ideal place to spend a weekend bonding with your colleagues, or play all day because there's even a net for volleyball.
The overnight stay was naturally not enough to experience everything. You really need to stay longer to maximize the possibilities.
The one thing we missed is the actual diving lessons (going underwater) so we settled for just a basic tutorial from the resident divemaster so our readers could appreciate an introduction discussion about the basic requirements in diving.
Our final activity was to do a video interview of the General Manager of the Resort. It is best to hear what he has to say to appreciate the basic information about the place. The interview took longer than expected but it just about sums up most of the answers we were looking for.
Going back home was at around the same vehicles with lower rates but we took the ALPS The Bus bus going back to Manila instead mainly because it was the first bus we saw leaving from the grand terminal already. We got off along EDSA near Crossing or Greenfield District where we took a taxi cab to our Pasig residence.
Photos and videos are being uploaded on our Facebook page and YouTube channel as we write this article.
Maybe we could go back to the resort during summertime to totally immerse ourselves with the complete experience, and hoping we could finally be complete as a family by then. After all, the General Manager did say we are welcome to return for a second-time adventure at Eagle Point Resort.
Would we recommend the resort to our readers? Definitely without any doubt!
Since we've seen images of the resort from their Facebook page, we thought we were not going to be surprised anymore. But we were wrong because the actual place is a lot more enchanting when personally experienced.
I'd love to post each photo of the yummy dishes but that would already put this particular blog post lengthy so just check out photos of each from our album on Facebook.
My wife is more likely to choose the healthy options so she would normally order the veggie dishes like salads, while my son prefers the American type like "pasta, burger and fries" type of meals. I'm more of the seafood lover so those are the first dishes I look for in a menu whenever we visit restaurants. I ordered for prawns - always my favorite wherever I go. We also prefer to choose the dishes that we rarely eat (if there are some available), but would pick first any of the comfort foods if everything is familiar.
Drinks (fruit shakes) and desserts (highly recommended is the Calamansi Pie) would always be a part of our every meal.
The accommodations comes with free breakfast and access to a private beach and pools! Therefore you need to pay additional for lunch and dinner where cost would depend on your meal preferences.
After lunch, we proceeded directly to our rooms to unpack our stuff and get a few minutes of rest - which turned into an hour since the ambiance and air-conditioning in the room is very conducive to sleeping. However, my son was busy playing games on his tablet since there was no free wi-fi Internet in all the rooms. You have to pay extra to get a 24-hour access to the Internet.
The only free wi-fi Internet access is at the Eagle Nest restaurant area. Thus, the restaurant area was the only place where we could post on social media or check our e-mails unless we want to pay. But we opted not to avail the service since it was just an overnight stay. No big deal at all, but it would have been better of course to include the Internet access as a complimentary to the accommodation. That way, we could have posted more about the place while we rested on our beds or before sleeping at night.
The room given to us has two comfy beds, and the usual LED TV with cable connection, a phone, cabinets, a chair and table, a toilet that comes with a faucet and shower, and a veranda (with two chairs and a table) overlooking the sea including the saltwater pool that is used for diving lessons.
Aside from the towels, they provided toiletries like soap, shampoo, conditioner and toilet paper, but no disposable toothbrushes and toothpaste, cotton buds, shower cap, etc. However, it was never a problem with us since we always bring our own toiletries because we are rarely satisfied with the free toiletries provided by hotels and resorts.
After resting, we finally went around the resort to take photos and videos. Starting with what I would like to call the "double-decker" pool which has a slide starting from the first pool above, going down to the second bigger pool down below. I believe this is the first time we've seen a pool setup like this. According to their Marketing staff, they have other pools at another area of the resort but were currently under renovation so access to them were closed.
Then we proceeded to the saltwater pool. It is filled with some sea creatures and deep enough to simulate diving in the sea. Right beside it is the diving quarters which was close when we got there.
Going further down underneath the Eagle Nest restaurant is the helipad and docking area. You'll quickly guess that is a helipad because of the bigger letter H encircled....and beside it is the docking area where boats of different sizes dock.
Our first impulse is to take a selfie with the helipad signage underneath us. We believe it was a great shot since we got so many Likes when we posted it on social media. Though some of our friends thought we took a helicopter ride. Lol!
Going further, there were also some boats parked at some areas of the resort but we were not sure if they were still operational or working. Of course, more photo ops followed.
We decided to go back to our rooms when it was about to get dark so we could spend at least an hour swimming in the pools before having dinner which starts at 6 pm. Too bad we forgot our charger for our GoPro Hero, thus we couldn't get shots in the pool. Such a shame to leave the charger back home.
Dinner means ordering a different set of dishes compared to what we had for lunch since we would like to show our readers as many possible choices available in the menu of Eagle Nest. My wife ordered "Bulalo" served in a traditional pot because she was in the mood to sip some beef broth, while I ordered Gambas eventhough I wanted to order the prawns again. My son ordered carbonara and clubhouse sandwich. A couple of additional dishes were ordered for sharing.
Of course drinks and desserts will never be forgotten to complete the meal. We were not too eager with the desserts maybe because we don't normally eat heavy during dinner time - we practically skip dinner every night. My son went back to our room before the desserts got served so we just had the fruits delivered in our room so we could eat them while watching TV.
The reason I get fat is because I get to eat up all the left-overs since I don't want to waste food...hehehe
Spent the rest of the evening admiring the night view from the pools before going back to our rooms to watch TV. We dozed off immediately and woke up early since the boat ride for Sepoc Beach is scheduled at 7 am.
We had breakfast as early as 6 am since we don't want to be late for our boat ride. It was only that morning that we found out we will be the only passengers, aside from Nikki, the Marketing person of the resort, and the two boat operators.
When we saw the WELCOME sign made out of stones neatly arranged along the shore, we thought it was for us...hahaha... But it was actually for a tech company that was having their teambuilding there.
I will never get tired of eating barbecue or grilled, may it be fish or meat, or even vegetables and my favorite corn...Well, we don't have corn here though. They cooked our order for us. What you see on the grill are the meat for three orders.
VIP lunch spot at the island's tower! The best seats in the island. Later some other guests arrived, then two bigger boats carrying a company who are having their team-building at the island. I believe this is a lot better than having to fly out of Metro Manila because you don't get to spend much on transportation expenses. Air fare are more expensive compared to hiring vans to take you to Batangas, then the boat rides to Sepoc Beach.
We were actually still full from the buffet breakfast we had at the resort, but the grilled seafood calls out to us. Eat us, eat us, eat us!!! We were just a bit disappointed of getting only pineapples and watermelons for fruits. I prefer mangoes, dragon fruits, grapes or melons. But those fruits are understandably more expensive so it was fine for the price of the meals at around P500 per person.
Nikki informed us that celebrities would go to the island for the privacy that it offers. That's something valuable for them so they could take complete rest without having to worry with so many photo ops or selfies with fans. Maybe they would rent the island for themselves so they could spend an entire day minding nothing but the sun, sand and sea.
Honestly, my wife was too afraid for us to leave the safety of the shore, so we had to kayak just near...so freaking near I was laughing my heart out because I was such an obedient husband. Lol!
As mentioned, there is a huge enough space for a big group to have the island as a private playground for activities like teambuilding or retreat. There are facilities that you can use already like the tires for obstacle course, ...just using creativity, you can make it an ideal place to spend a weekend bonding with your colleagues, or play all day because there's even a net for volleyball.
When we returned to Eagle Point Resort, that's the time we finally had an opportunity to talk to the divemaster and get at least some Diving 101 tips.
The overnight stay was naturally not enough to experience everything. You really need to stay longer to maximize the possibilities.
The one thing we missed is the actual diving lessons (going underwater) so we settled for just a basic tutorial from the resident divemaster so our readers could appreciate an introduction discussion about the basic requirements in diving.
Our final activity was to do a video interview of the General Manager of the Resort. It is best to hear what he has to say to appreciate the basic information about the place. The interview took longer than expected but it just about sums up most of the answers we were looking for.
Going back home was at around the same vehicles with lower rates but we took the ALPS The Bus bus going back to Manila instead mainly because it was the first bus we saw leaving from the grand terminal already. We got off along EDSA near Crossing or Greenfield District where we took a taxi cab to our Pasig residence.
Photos and videos are being uploaded on our Facebook page and YouTube channel as we write this article.
Maybe we could go back to the resort during summertime to totally immerse ourselves with the complete experience, and hoping we could finally be complete as a family by then. After all, the General Manager did say we are welcome to return for a second-time adventure at Eagle Point Resort.
Would we recommend the resort to our readers? Definitely without any doubt!
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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