What to do in Batanes: Going around South Batan

Day 2 in Batanes was for my South Batan tour. I asked Kuya Toto, who was also my tour guide for the North Batan tour, to pick me up at 10:30 am because I wanted to spend some time with my "housemates" and bike around Basco in the morning. I bought a 3-in-1 coffee from Marfel's  mini honesty store for P8 and ate the bread that I brought with me from Manila. Then, I rented a bike at Marfel's for P25 per hour and went around Basco. When I got tired, I decided to have an early lunch at SDC.

We started our South Batan tour at 10:30 am. Kuya Toto tells me that South Batan would take longer than the North Batan tour. I told him that my only request is that we catch the sunset at the Marlboro Hills, like what we did at Vayang the day before. Still blessed with a beautiful weather, we went on our South Batan tour and here are my favorites.



Paderes Point and Cliff Road


Chawa Viewing Deck

I love these benches! You can sit here while taking in the view of the ocean and the hills. Kuya Toto tells me that a lot of tourists stay here at night for star gazing. I'll definitely do this next time.

Mahatao Boat Shelter Port

This is where they keep the boats during typhoons. I love that the water is so green! 

Honesty store

True enough there was no one inside. Here, you can buy coffee, bread cup noodles, etc.

Alapad Hills and Rock Formation

Isn't that picturesque?

A beach along the way

I forgot the name of the beach! You'll pass by a lot of beaches in your South Batan tour. Most of the beaches are empty. The sand here is not white and fine but the water is very clean. Kuya Toto also tells me that it has a great view of  the sunset. Too bad I didn't have a lot of time to explore the beaches! 

Racuh a Payaman aka Marlboro Hills

And one of my favorites in the South Batan tour - The Marlboro Hills. Too bad we were too early for sunset but the view was so relaxing and breathtaking. The sun was up when we arrived but I did manage to go around to get a 360 degree view of the place. Cows roamed. Hills rolled. Waves drifted. The whole picture was so pretty! 

Mahatao Tayid Lighthouse

And this was my favorite! Aside from it is a pretty sight, Kuya Toto and I had a nice conversation about Ivatan culture and life in general. There's an area at the lighthouse base where you can sit and converse right in front a herd of cows and the vast ocean. We talked about his family, life in Manila, Ivatan food, and many more

I learn from my guide that college students in Basco go to school at 4 pm and come home at 9 pm because they help their families at the field in the morning. 

Batanes travel kit

Also sharing with you some tips from my Batanes trip.