Bahong Rose Garden: Rose Capital of the Philippines (La Trinidad Benguet)

I've been to Baguio City numerous times and yet, there's are still places around the Benguet area where I still have not visited and one of those it the Bahong Rose Garden or Flower Farm.

Barangay Bahong is found north east of the very popular tourist destination La Trinidad Strawberry Farm.   It is around 4 kilometers away from La Trinidad Municipal Hall.  From the main road, we followed the sign leading to a narrower road.  The steep and muddy road that offered a beautiful valley-side scenery led us to the small town of Barangay Bahong which comprises of 5 sitios: Sadag, Central Bahong, Anoding, Ma-e and Tomay.

But, turns out Bahong Rose Garden or Flower Farm is empty when we visited.  I can only think of 2 reasons why that would be so.  First, is because it is more challenging to reach by commute.  It is not even found on Google Maps. And second, we went there on a late afternoon in May.  While, the peak of the flower season is from November to March.  This is where 80% of the flowers from Manila are from.  So I can only imagine thousands of flowers blooming here during the flower season.

The caretaker was so nice to tour us around.  I think the land mass is so big but we were only shown a few areas where there are flowers.  At first, we couldn't spot any roses.

But as we went further, we look at what we saw.  Roses are usually red but here they come in various hues. 

I rarely see yellow roses...

and white ones.

I found the pink ones lovely too. 

But, it wasn't just the roses that made me and my companions smile. 

It was the first time in my life that I have seen flower fields.  It's so beautiful!  My friends and I couldn't help play around in the field.

Of course, we took a lot of photographs of ourselves being surrounded by the flowers.

Some of them have already bloomed.

While some of the buds are yet to bloom.

Overall, we Travel Tripsters enjoyed the fun brought by the natural beauty of nature at Bahong Rose Garden.

Tip: As of 2016, there is now an ordinance requiring tourists to register at the Barangay Bahong Tourism Office to pay for an environmental fee of 20 php/head (local) and 50 php/head (foreigner) and tour guide fee (for a maximum of 10 persons) of  200 php/ tour guide (local) and 300 php/tour guide (foreigner).
 

Bahong Rose Garden or Bahong Flower Farm
Address	Barangay Bahong La Trinidad Benguet
Budget Per Person	20-50 php/head + guide fee 200-300 per tour guide (maximum of 10 persons)	Bahong Rose Garden Map
Payment Options	Cash
Operating Hours	Monday to Sunday: (even holidays) 7 am-3pm
Reservation Required	No
Contact	(63947) 821-4555

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La Trinidad Strawberry Farm, Strawberry Taho and Strawberry Ice Cream

Last October, we Travel Tripsters visited the La Trinidad Strawberry Farm.  But due to Typhoon Pedring,  all the harvest was destroyed so we did not see any strawberries.  Luckily, we were invited to join the Baguio Bliss 2012 event of Eurotel where our hosts Ivan Aoki and the Eurotel team brought us to see the famous La Trinidad Strawberry Farm once again.

Jollibee Billboard Greeting You When Nearing the La Trinidad Strawberry Farm

 

For buses and vans, you can park your vehicles at the Strawberry Fields Marketing Center.  There are also shops there that sell native products and pasalubongs.

We were fortunate that it was a cloudy day when we came.  It was not sunny or moisty.  We Travel Tripsters were so happy to see so many strawberries. There were other plantations for other vegetables as well.

You can pick strawberries in the field and pay 200 php a kilo for the strawberries you selected.  We were to lazy so we opted not to.  We were already contented just by looking at them.  I was delighted to see Strawberry flowers turn into Strawberry fruits.

The farmers were busy minding there own business.  I guess they are used to tourists passing by the farm.

Blueberries (100 php/3 pack)

Right at the middle of the field, there is a stall selling strawberries at 90 php per kilo.  They also sold blueberries at 100 php per pack of three.   We bought some.  We ate them as a snack.  I also brought some home and we used it as cereal toppings.  =)


Strawberries

Strawberries (110 php/kilo)

Strawberries (110 php/kilo)

When we went there last October, strawberries cost 200 php per kilo.  Now the small ones cost only 110 php per kilo while the big ones were being sold at 120 php.  

Strawberry Taho

Strawberry Taho with Honey (20 php)

Strawberry Taho with Honey (20 php)

Fellow Travel Tripster Kurt bought some Strawberry Taho with Honey for me and our friend Chinchan from Juanderfulpinoy.com.  It had fresh strawberries, strawberry syrup for taste and coloring and honey to sweeten the taste.

Strawberry Taho (20 php)

We also bought another Strawberry Taho from Manong.  Manong has been selling Strawberry Taho for a long time in the area.  Manong believes in good luck.  He told us that he dangled the flowers in his taho container because the Feng Shiu said that flowers will bring him luck this year.  It must be true judging from his almost empty container.  Manong's   Strawberry Taho uses Strawberry Jams.  Notice that the Strawberry Taho is darker in color than the other one?

Strawberry Ice Cream

 

Strawberry Ice Cream (20 php)

The first Strawberry Ice Cream we bought was lighter in color with strawberry chunks.  I love ice cream so I loved this.  However, Kurt thought it was no different than other strawberry ice creams.

Strawberry Ice Cream (20 php)

I tried another Strawberry Ice Cream.  This time it was darker in color but no strawberry bits.  

Pasalubong Stalls

There were many Pasalubong Stalls on the side of the road.  Kurt and I haggled to buy some key chains there.  

La Trinidad Strawberry Farm		La Trinidad Strawberry Farm Map
Entrance Price Per Person	FREE
Payment Options
Business Hours
Reservation Required
Contact
Other
La Trinidad Strawberry Farm Address
La Trinidad Benguet, Philippines
Transportation to La Trinidad Strawberry Farm
Taxi, Jeepney, Bus

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Bell Church: Taoist Temple Hidden in Baguio City

We were fortunate that the Eurotel Team (see separate entry) brought us to the Bell Church in Baguio City near the borders of La Trinidad.  The temple was quite hidden so we would not have known it if not for them.  

Travel Tripsters Kurt and I were awed by the beautiful structures of the Taiost temple.  We couldn't stop taking pictures as we slowly went upward to admire more of them.

They were a lot of water lilies.  It is so heartwarming to see them.

The Bell Church itself is well-guarded.  Cameras were not allowed inside.  There was also a care-taker who warned people who made noise inside.

Although Travel Tripsters Kurt and I were a bit tired and wanted to rest.  We decided to journey on to the top because they was a sign that says "Bawal Magdate dito" (No dating here).  We were afraid we might be misunderstood to be dating if we stopped at that spot. =p

This was the last building located at the top.  The top view only allowed us to see the houses on top of the Baguio City hills which they call santorini.  

Overall, the Travel Tripsters both agree that the Bell Church  as a Taoist temple is a great way to appreciate the culture and structures in relation to Taoism.  Remember to visit with respect.  =)

Bell Church		Bell Church Map
Price Per Person	FREE
Payment Options
Reservation Required	No
Phone
Other
Bell Church
Border of Baguio City and La Trinidad, Benguet
Transportation to Bell Church
Taxi, Jeepney

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