Ever since my traveler friends and I traveled to the town of Calayan in Cagayan (where our travel group called Shembot Squad was formed) back in March 2016, we’ve been thinking of going to other places in the country that are considered off the beaten path. We’ve been to one the following year – Balabac in Palawan – and it was another very memorable experience for us. Imagine having campfire in a beach with probably the finest sand you can ever experience, some of the clearest waters you can ever swim in and the clearest skies you can ever look at. It took a while before we could experience another one in our bucket list, Palanan in Isabela.   

How to go to Palanan?

The easiest way to go to Palanan is via plane. If you’re traveling from Manila, you can ride the plane going to Cauayan. Then from Cauayan, you can ride the plane going to Palanan. Mind you, though! You have to reserve your plane tickets in advance because the land planes that travel to the remote town of Palanan can only carry about 10 people or less. So the demand can be so high, especially with people who live in town.

Another way to go here is via boat. Head to Dilasag, Aurora where boat rides going to Palanan are available. According to one blog, it would take approximately eight hours to go to Dilasag from Santiago, Isabela via bus. Add another hour if you’re coming from Cauayan. From Dilasag, ride the boat going to Palanan, which would also take eight hours. There are also boats en route to Palanan from Dingalan and Baler.

Others say you can also reach Palanan via land travel, but you’d have to hike the Sierra Madre side of San Mariano, Isabela. Another option is by riding the motorcycle via rough road from Ilagan to Divilacan/ Maconacon. From there, take the boat ride to Palanan.

When is the best time to visit Palanan?

The best answer here is during summer, as you’d experience hot, sunny days – the time when people can really appreciate the beauty of Palanan’s beaches, blue lagoons and other natural wonders! Be mindful of weather predictions before going here, though. We visited on April 2022, supposedly at the height of summertime, but we still experienced drizzly mornings and rainy nights! Thankfully, these rain showers usually stopped in the morning and we were able to visit Palanan’s travel spots!

What to visit in Palanan?

Here are just some of the beautiful places you can visit in the town of Palanan in Isabela. I will take note here of the areas where you can visit these travel spots so you can plan accordingly. 🙂

Bilay Makadawi

If you’re looking for a beautiful getaway place in Palanan, this is the place to be! I couldn’t believe at first that there’s a resort like Balay in this faraway place, but it’s all true! Donning wooden bungalows and tree houses, the resort is located at the foot of Sierra Madre, which is why it’s surrounded by a lot of flora like coconut trees. In its front is the white sand beach of Ducotcotan, which actually extends its sand inside the resort premises.

Bilay Makadawi’s name is Paranan (the language of people in Palanan). Bilay means “tahanan” (in Tagalog) or “home” (in English). Madawi means “to catch a fish.” Therefore, Bilay Makadawi means “a home to catch a fish,” which perhaps took inspiration in the livelihood of many people in the area.

According to their Facebook page, Bilay Makadawi is “a residential villa that allows homestay accommodation with genuine rustic beach life and indigenous yet comfortable living.” I can attest to this, as even though the whole barangay where it is located doesn’t have hydroelectric power source, it has solar panels that convert energy from the sun for electronic use such as light bulbs. They also have a generator, which allows visitors to charge their phones and other electronic gadgets. Visitors also have access to fresh water that comes from the springs of Sierra Madre through the showers and faucets of their own rooms. Regarding food, visitors can ask for assistants to cook for them (with ingredients either the visitors would bring on their own or the assistants would buy in the stores near the resort). Here’s a word of advice, though. Should you decide to avail their food services, be mindful of what you indicate that they cook for you. Prices of the food there are expectedly high since the resort is far from the town proper.

Anyway, the resort covers a large area filled with Instagram-worthy spots! Their amenities, albeit simple, are exquisite and beautiful. I hope you’ve enjoyed the pictures I’ve taken around Bilay!

When you’re near Bilay Makadawi

Ducotcotan Beach

Its name means “to sink,” which just signifies how fine its sand is! It was described as a beach with sand so soft the feet of the people who walk in it tend to sink. This is the beach that is in front of our homestay, and really, what soft sand it has! Just look for a good location to take your photos because a lot of boats being used for transportation and fishing are docked here, that is, if you don’t want to include them in your pictures.

Dumagat Village

One group of the indigenous people who live in the Sierra Madre mountain range is the Dumagat. When we first visited their village, we were able to talk to their chieftain, Sir Jimmy. He said their livelihood includes fishing and farming, especially of root crops. He also mentioned the number of households they have in the community (22) and the number of children (80). I asked how young do people marry in their tribe and he answered as early as 15, as long as the parents of the young are up for it. He said that they have a tradition in their tribe in which the males serve the family of the female for months before they can accept his offer of marriage.

Diago Beach

The Dumagat Village is near the Diago Beach, which is actually pretty similar to Ducotcotan Beach in terms of whiteness and fineness of sand. However, this beach is far quieter and more tranquil than the said beach. It’s also a sight to see at low tide! Plus, you can still hear the raging waves even from afar. A quiet, still life is what I can think of upon going here in this beach.

Tide Pools of Palanan

The tide pools that we witnessed in Palanan are just some of the prettiest we’ve seen there! Just take a moment to look at these pictures!

Palanan Lighthouse

According to ibiblio.org, Palanan Lighthouse is located on Palanan Point, which marks the entrance to Palanan Bay. To the geography junkies, take note that Palanan Point is the easternmost point on Luzon’s northeast coast!

Bakawan Stretch

Located in Bgy. Culasi is a stretch of mangroves that tourists can visit. You’d have to ask for your boatmen to take you here if you really like to visit.

When you’re in town (Bgy. Centro East)

Blue Lagoon

Located in Bgy. Villa Robles, the Blue Lagoon is one of the must-visit places when you decide to travel to Palanan. It is as enchanting as it looks: its bluish, crystal clear waters lure both the eyes and the mind. Nobody knows how deep it is, though, our driver/guide said that there was a team of foreigners who went to Palanan before and brought with them some instruments, probably to conduct a study about the lagoon.

Flip, one of my Shembot brothers, wondered why there were not a lot of locals in the lagoon even though it was a Sunday. In fact, there was only a group of kids who were enjoying jumping and swimming in the lagoon’s refreshingly cool waters. Yes, we were expecting a lot of visitors when we went here, but I’m just grateful that it was sunny that day because we get to see the astonishing beauty of the lagoon! It was only a bonus that it seemed like we had it all just for ourselves.

St. Mary Magdalene Church

The Church of St. Mary Magdalene is a church of the Diocese of Ilagan in Bgy. Centro East, Palanan, Isabela. Upon checking their Facebook page, I’ve learned that the parish is led by Franciscans. Its youth group is also quite active! Visit the church when you’re in town and be calmed by its solemn and quiet atmosphere.

Aguinaldo Shrine

Palanan is best known as the place where Emilio Aguinaldo was captured by the American forces (U.S. Army-recruited Filipino soldiers and their American officers) during the final chapters of the Philippine-American War. This conflict between the two countries began when the United States refused to acknowledge the Philippine’s declaration of independence from Spain, which annexed the latter to the former via Treaty of Paris. It was in 1902 when the U.S. officially declared the end of the said war, but many Filipino forces continued to battle the American forces way beyond that year.

The shrine that serves as an important historical marker was built in 2001, a hundred years after Aguinaldo’s capture.

SHEMBOT SQUAD’s REUNION AFTER A TWO-YEAR TRAVEL HIATUS BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC!

It has been a tradition of my travel barkada, the Shembot Squad, to visit places we haven’t explored together before. It started when we visited Calayan Island in the province of Cagayan back in 2016. This was where we got stranded for 4 to 5 days! In all honesty, being away together from everything back then was what made us really bonded. We talked day and night, played games, visited beautiful travel spots, and feasted with whatever food we had, from lobsters (when we still had a lot of budget) to noodles (when we were already running out of budget haha). We came to know each other a little better, until we chose to be together even after.

It’s been six years and by God’s grace, we’re still going strong. We have visited various places in and out of the country since then – Balabac, San Vicente and El Nido in Palawan, the provinces of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, the countries of Southeast Asia, among others. We’ve hiked mountains, got muddy and drenched in waterfalls, surfed the waves of the ocean, had food trips, road trips, bad trips, you name it. Haha! But we try to enjoy ourselves and the trip every single time.

While not all of the Shembots were able to go in the beautiful town of Palanan, we still got to experience it like no other. Aside from going to some of the most stunning travel destinations in this part of the world like the fine, white sand beaches of Ducotcotan and Diago, and the astonishing waters of the Blue Lagoon in Bgy. Villa Robles, we’re able to visit the nearby Dumagat Village and do some outreach activity and voter education. We believe our hearts are in a good place when we did this, as part of our advocacy to reach out and make change.

***

Anyway, I hope I got to inspire you to travel here in Palanan. It’s gonna take you some time to go here, but I promise it’ll be worth it. Plan ahead and go on an adventure here!