Your trek through the Ifugao mountains begins at the town of Kinaking. You stop by the Banaue Rice Terraces view deck on the way there. You hike 4 hours to Cambulo, the first Ifugao village. The rice terraces of Cambulo are characterised by their pyramid-like appearance, with the terraces cut almost 360 degrees around the mountains. From Cambulo it is another 3-hour hike to Batad, famous for its amphitheatre of rice terraces. The night is spent at a village inn with a spectacular view of the terraces.

In the morning you hike 3 hours to visit Tappiyah waterfalls and explore the village and rice terraces of Batad. After lunch, you hike 3 hours to Bangaan, the final village of your adventure. On the way, you pass through more rice paddies and see picturesque villages and rice terraces in the distance. you reach Bangaan in mid-afternoon and drive back to Banaue to get some well-deserved food and booze before catching your evening bus to Manila.

At around 4am you arrive at the same bus station where your trip started.

agada is a municipality in Mountain Province, Philippines. Apart from its hanging coffins, it’s known for its caves, waterfalls, limestone mountains, and hill-tribe atmosphere. Due in part to its remote location in the Central Cordillera Mountains, it was left relatively untouched by conquistadores during the Spanish era. A Spanish mission wasn’t founded in Sagada until 1882, resulting in one of the few places in the Philippines that’s preserved its indigenous culture with little Spanish influence.

omod-ok Falls is also called the Big Falls because, well, it is definitely bigger than Bokong Falls, another popular waterfall in Sagada. Hidden deep in a valley, it takes an hour to two to get here by foot from the main road (and that’s just one-way). Bomod-ok’s cold, cold water cascades from the top of a beautiful naturally contoured cliff to a pool below, forming a 200-ft column of water and wonder.

The Blue Soil Hills is probably one of Sagada’s best kept secrets. It’s tucked within the mountainous terrains of thousand old limestones. As its name suggests, it is a roll of hills in a lovely colour of faint blue no bigger than a square kilometre surrounded by towering pine trees. This stunner is evidence that despite Sagada’s quick rise to fame instantly becoming a tourist hubspot, there is still a less explored place up there where you can enjoy a time of peace and quiet.

The Cave Connection Tour starts at Lumiang Cave, a burial site where hundreds of coffins are stacked as part of the local tradition. At the mouth of Lumiang, we were gathered around our tour guides from SaGGAs (Sagada Genuine Guides Association), who briefed us on what to expect inside and how to make our tour easy, enjoyable, and above all, safe. Around us were some broken coffins and human remains, which were all cluttered by an earthquake several years ago, according to the guides.

One of the artistic expression of the of the locals of the Sagada can be seen on their pottery. Emotions and artistry are passed on from concept to their hands and to the clay and finally the artwork. Each of the pottery depicts various concepts and refinement of each of its complex designs are visible and unique among one another. Sagada Pottery is located along Sagada's West Road and is about two kilometres from the town centre. The hut to where they express their masterpiece is surrounded by pine trees thus such conceptualization of each of the final product is due to the intricate influence of nature.