Weekend at Island Cove Cavite

Weekend at Island Cove Cavite was a definitely a break from office. It's very near from Manila but you won't feel any sign of the buzz and stress of the metro. I've never been in a place that has very very friendly and accommodating staff(they'd greet you along the way and if you ask questions, you'll surely get coordinated answers). Plus, it's huge resort that offers so many activities, but doesn't include seawater wading. I know, you thought this was a secluded island resort...I thought the same thing when I first heard it from a friend.

You can get there from Makati in about 30 minutes, without traffic, taking Cavitex(Manila-Cavite Expressway) toll. After passing the toll stations, halfway along the long bridge, you'll see the resort on your right, but look for the next left turn right after the bridge that will lead to U-turn road to the resort gates.

From the gates, you won't see the water or the hotel right away, just the entrance bridge to the island. So you'll have a lot of walking to do, or request a free ride from their electric trams. From and to any point in the resort, you can ask any personnel, waiter or receptionist for the tram service to pick you up. We headed to their hotel lobby then to our 2-bedroom cabana. The Cabana is beautifully designed bungalow with 2 bedrooms(1 with queen bed, the other room with 2 single beds), with sala and dining room. Everything's airconditioned within the cabana, complete with a personal fridge, bathroom(shower and toilet - no bathtub), and LCD TV with cable channels. I'm not sure if the management had set the cable in bad reception to encourage outdoor activities, but all I get was antenna-like picture for HBO or any channel. Not something I would really complain about, we were all so eager to go outside.

They have the Oceania water park(shown below). Shot was taken in the morning and we were lucky to have it all alone for the next hour. Apart from this huge pool, we saw another pool near the Cabanas, and 2 more kiddie pools near Oceania.

At night, from the hotel, you can request the tram for a ride to the Fishing Village, a whole network of native cottages standing in bamboo bridges and stilts. We had a sumptuous seafood dinner, and after that, we headed to the Bayside bar overlooking the Cavitex and Manila night skyline. We were early at the bar and there were only few people, but an hour, a live band came(you can request songs from classic to Lady Gaga hits). After a couple hours, we decided to go back our rooms. we just called the waitress and the service tram was there in about five minutes to take us back to the hotel.

In the morning, I woke up early, and spent about 45 minutes at the gym. For hotel guests, they only charge 50php per visit. After that we rented a bike and went around the area, found out that they have Animal Island(mini zoo), an area for paintball, shooting range, billiards, KTV and a lot more activities that you can handle in one day.

Canyon Cove Resort, Nasugbu, Batangas

Last time I went to Nasugbu was 2 years ago, when our office team decided to take an overnight break there. We passed by Punta Fuego and stayed at Talisay. I’d say, Nasugbu has one of the beautiful beaches to go to, right outside the metro, private beaches, but one should prepare good budget for it.

And so this summer, the first beach I laid my feet on was on the sands of Canyon Cove, Nasugbu. I was thankful that one of our friends had a van we can rent for the weekend. Took about 3 hours from Ortigas to the resort, and we  had taken a bus, it would have taken 4 or more hours due to stopovers.

When I stepped out of the van, I can’t see any sign of any sand or beach, but I can smell the sea. At first I was a bit devastated when I saw some unfinished villas at the side of the cliff, already consumed by moss and vines. Made me think, how old is this resort?

But to my relief, we entered the building in front of the parking lot and found out that the beach was just right on the other side. The reception area was elegant, but a bit crowded; we heard there was a group holding their company outing there. Eager to feel saltwater on my skin, we checked-in at our room.

The room was excellent, clean and well maintained; studio with balcony at the 4^th floor, with a gorgeous view of the whole resort and the sea. I reminded myself that this wasn’t just like any other beach resort where you’ll get a basic room with your bed and shower.  The studio room we got had a queen bed, flat TV, mini fridge, electric kettle with coffee cups, and vanity table with mirror. The bathroom was complete for me, with separate shower and bathtub, vanity kit and hairdryer. The best part was the small bed by the huge glass window facing the sea. I told myself, if I were going to design my own house, I’ll have one like that, a comfortable mini bed with great view, perfect as a reading nook.

Looking out the balcony we saw that there were a lot of people at the pool.  Canyon Cove’s popularity have grown over the years, with a day pass, complete facilities for the family and easy travel from Manila, I shouldn’t expect this to be a secluded resort.

The next day, as expected, everyone was asleep and wasted from the night party, the whole resort looked like a deserted place.

Here's the true color of the sand. 

We envy this guy for having such an easy job in a resort like this. Just clean the beach, run this about twice in the morning, and he gets to stay in this place.