Sagada's most popular attractions are the hanging coffins of Echo Valley: some are centuries old, while others are only a few years old. Most are high up…
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Sagada
Sitting among mist-shrouded mountains, tiny Sagada is the closest thing the Philippines has to a Southeast Asian backpacker hub, yet it's possible to find tranquillity along its many hiking trails and get your adrenalin pumping on adventures in the depths of its caves. There's a mystical element to this village, a former refuge for intelligentsia fleeing dictatorship: the centuries-old coffins high up along limestone cliffs lie close to the sky, and days and nights are peaceful thanks to the lack of tricycles or much other traffic.
If you're lucky, your visit will coincide with a begnas (traditional Kankanay community celebration), when women wear tapis (woven wraparound skirts) and older men don G-strings and gather in the dap-ay (outdoor patio); chickens are sacrificed, gongs are played and general merriment ensues. Sagadans are of Applai (northern Kankanay) ancestry and their native language is Kankanay.
Explore Sagada
- EEcho Valley Hanging Coffins
Sagada's most popular attractions are the hanging coffins of Echo Valley: some are centuries old, while others are only a few years old. Most are high up…
- LLumiang Burial Cave
Lumiang Burial Cave is a 10- to 15-minute walk south of the main village, towards Ambasing, well signposted along the left-hand fork in the road. Steep…
- SSumaging Cave
The exhilarating Sumaging Cave, or Big Cave, is the most popular of Sagada's caves. Its immense chambers are home to other-0worldly rock formations with…
- DDemang
South of the centre, the small village of Demang is now a barangay of Sagada but was the area’s original settlement and remains Sagada’s cultural and…
- GGanduyan Museum
This small museum is packed with an anthropologist’s dream of sculptures, jewellery and other Kankanay artefacts. Be sure to chat to the owner, the son of…
- EEcho Valley Lookout
You'll pass the Echo Valley lookout on the way to the Echo Valley Hanging Coffins. You'll probably hear people shouting into the valley before you get…
- BBesao
Hikes from nearby Besao are less busy than those around Sagada, but they don't feature any coffins and you'll need determination to tackle them. Jeepneys…
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Sagada.
See
Echo Valley Hanging Coffins
Sagada's most popular attractions are the hanging coffins of Echo Valley: some are centuries old, while others are only a few years old. Most are high up…
See
Lumiang Burial Cave
Lumiang Burial Cave is a 10- to 15-minute walk south of the main village, towards Ambasing, well signposted along the left-hand fork in the road. Steep…
See
Sumaging Cave
The exhilarating Sumaging Cave, or Big Cave, is the most popular of Sagada's caves. Its immense chambers are home to other-0worldly rock formations with…
See
Demang
South of the centre, the small village of Demang is now a barangay of Sagada but was the area’s original settlement and remains Sagada’s cultural and…
See
Ganduyan Museum
This small museum is packed with an anthropologist’s dream of sculptures, jewellery and other Kankanay artefacts. Be sure to chat to the owner, the son of…
See
Echo Valley Lookout
You'll pass the Echo Valley lookout on the way to the Echo Valley Hanging Coffins. You'll probably hear people shouting into the valley before you get…
See
Besao
Hikes from nearby Besao are less busy than those around Sagada, but they don't feature any coffins and you'll need determination to tackle them. Jeepneys…
Guidebooks
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