Bus to, and accommodation in, Banaue Christmas Day
Replies: 4 - Last Post: Dec 8, 2012 7:43 PM Last Post By: trigger_elf
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Bus to, and accommodation in, Banaue Christmas Day
Like everyone else, we are making the most of our Christmas break to travel around our new favourite place in the whole world, the Philippines!Quick question - it is difficult to pre-book the Manila-Banaue night bus from Australia (what can I say; I have an aversion to Western Union) - could we reasonably expect to secure a seat/s on the 25th Dec Ohayamitrans bus (Christmas Day) without a reservation? Is there more than one company we could try if the bus is full?
We plan to head up on the 25th, go to Batad on the 26th, go over to Sagada on the 27th and then back to Manila during the day on the 28th (quick trip, I know, but we love to keep moving).
I wasn't going to book accommodation for Banaue/Sagada in advance either.... will we end up without a bed this way? (kinda fitting though really - you know, with it being Christmas day and Jesus being born in a manger because all the rooms were full... anyway, I digress!)
Thanks for your words of information and wisdom!
1
Hi Im not sure if you can book your tickets ahead (since I seldom travel by bus here in PH) but all I know is it gets too crazy during Christmas season to travel up North and buses become really really limited that people end up staying for more than a day in bus stations. Whether they book ahead or not. Sad but true :(But with bus companies, you can check them out to this site:
http://www.saggas.net/2007/06/how-to-get-to-sagada-from-manila.html
It's been written years ago but majority of the info are still current. Hope this helps. Have a safe trip! :)
3
Hmm, that's a shame. But if the buses are going to be unreliable I think I will have to go back to my car-hire option. Will it be crazy for the entire christmas/new year period? We are in the Phils from the 24th to the 6th Jan and were going to try to fit Donsol and Coron in too...4
Not really. Best avoid these dates to be in the road though: Dec. 23-26 and Dec. 30-Jan 1. Christmas is the most important holiday in the Philippines and people usually spend their holidays in the provinces or Manila where they can spend the holiday with their loved ones. So going to and fro outside Manila can be really crazy during this season. Driving your own car is highly recommended (to avoid the hassle of waiting in the bus stations but hopefully you're not too tired to do this) but just add 2-3 hours on your travel time as traffic gets really crazy going out of Manila. But once you're out of Manila, you should be okay. For your flights, it is best to book ahead and try to be early in the airports much as possible.
