Philippines – Emerald Terraces of the Cordillera

The highlights

• Intramuros Kalesa Ride and San Agustín Church

  A guided tour of Intramuros, Old Manila's walled city, includes a kalesa (horse-drawn carriage) ride through streets laid out by Spanish conquistador Miguel Lopez de Legaspi. The baroque church of San Agustín — the oldest in the Philippines — is a UNESCO World Heritage Site declared in 1993. The route also passes Rizal Park, where national hero Dr. José Rizal was executed.

• Batad Rice Terraces Amphitheatre Hike

  A local jeepney carries travellers to Sadel, the jump-off point for the hike down to the terraces of Batad, which form a dramatic amphitheatre shape. The hike follows narrow, steep paths to reach the terraces and continues to an Ifugao village where most people still live a traditional lifestyle. Near the hotel in Banaue, a further village maintains the practice of keeping and preserving the bones of ancestors, wrapped in indigenous weaving.

• Hapao Rice Terraces and River Views

  A jeepney ride brings the group to the Hapao rice terraces, where stonewalled paddies are bisected by the sparkling water of the Hapao River. The walk crosses the terraces for a close-up view before passing through a local village to see traditional houses and meet residents. The return route includes viewpoint stops and a call at a local market.

• Sagada Hanging Coffins and Burial Caves

  The Alpine village of Sagada is reached via the Bontoc Museum, where Cordillera exhibits and a reconstructed outdoor Bontoc village reveal the region's traditional architecture and way of life. In the afternoon, ancient burial caves are visited and the unusual hanging coffins of Echo Valley are viewed. Overnight is at Masferré Country Inn.

• Colonial Vigan Kalesa Tour and Heritage Architecture

  Vigan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the oldest surviving Spanish colonial city in the Philippines, formerly known as Ciudad Fernandina. After a traditional Ilocano lunch at Café Leona — housed in a historic Vigan building — the group boards a kalesa for a tour of well-preserved old brick houses (bahay na tisa). Visits include the Burgos Museum and the historic Syquia Mansion, with an evening light and sound performance in the main plaza.

• Paoay Church and Laoag Exploration

  A detour to Laoag includes a stop at the fortress-like Church of St. Augustine in Paoay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, before visiting Museo Ilocos Norte in the former Spanish colonial tobacco factory. The itinerary also covers the Abolition of Tobacco Monopoly Monument, St. William's Cathedral and its Sinking Bell Tower, and the Malacañang of the North — the former lakeside residence of ex-dictator Ferdinand Marcos in Ilocos Norte.