Batangas: A Weekend Wind Down in Balayan

Balayan beach in Batangas
Balayan beach in Batangas

It’s one of those trips that I just said yes without knowing exactly where I was going. I was yearning for a downtime after a somewhat busy week that I was ready to escape anywhere. It was an invitation to check out a resort in Batangas but I only knew of the details that day when I got into the car onto a road trip down south. We were going to Balayan, a town virtually out of the radar among four of us in the car. So following a crudely drawn map, a series of instructions and some pictures  landmark as puzzles, we rolled on with a sense of adventure to find the resort named Blue Dolphin.

Blue Dolphin Resort
Blue Dolphin Resort

Marc, Gail and Nina are no strangers as they had been travel companions to Palawan, particularly Coron and El Nido. Welcome new travel companions were Cedric and Patricia who convoyed along with us on this road trip. Of course a road trip wouldn’t be complete without interesting stops. For this one particularly Bag of Beans in Tagaytay for lunch where we plotted out routes and plans B and C if we get lost on a large family-sized mushroom and steak pie.

The airconditioned room good for 4pax
The airconditioned room good for 4pax

Balayan, Batangas can be reached via a 3-4 hours drive from Manila. There are 2 ways to go there, via Cuenca or via Tagaytay. We went through the Tagaytay route, familiar for us and recommended by the hand-drawn map. GPS directions aided us to reach the town but the specific directions on sheet lead us to the resort deep in the outskirts along Balayan Bay.

Massage at the open air garden
Massage at the open air garden

Blue Dolphin Resort is one of the very few resorts in this area. Its a vacation house turned to a resort with well-secured walls and the beach just a hop away its gates. The beach is black and rough but the water is clear. If it’s not your fancy, the resort has a nice dynamic shaped pool with depths ranging from kid-safe to beyond adult heights of 6 feet.

Karaoke entertainment
Karaoke entertainment

Since this is a converted resort, it has a homey feel of being guest in a friend’s house. Rooms are well-kept, large and basic. No cabinets here to hang clothes or state of the art equipment but there are air conditioned and fan rooms a karaoke machine near a gazebo near the beach. There are no ensuite toilet and bath inside the rooms but there are plenty outside and all of them are kept clean and nice. Guest here must bring in their own food since there is no in-house restaurant here and the nearby eatery option is about 15 minutes away to the town center. Kitchen facilities can be used though for a minimal fee.

Afternoon at Balayan Bay beach
Afternoon at Balayan Bay beach

Blue Dolphin Resort is really ideal for a group escape. Family and friends can have a good time here just lazing around the wide open garden facing the sea. Believe me the breeze is so conducive to just chilling out. It is also good for corporate getaways where team-building activities can be done in the garden. While I think it’s a great place to do nothing, it’s not for people looking for solitary moments as getting here can be quite tricky if you don’t have your own transpo. But for big groups, it would be perfect since you can secure the whole resort for P20,000 a night otherwise rooms vary from P2000 to P4000. I did enjoy my stay here in Balayan especially the poker, karaoke night  and splashing in the pool since I was with a group.

Blue Dolphin Resort
www.bluedolphinresort.net