Ilocos Diaries: What to See in Pagudpud

Pagudpud is a coastal town in Ilocos Norte and it's an hour away  from Laoag City. It was also our last stop during our 3 city tour of the North.

Aside from Saud Beach, I listed down the places we visited in Pagudpud from my most to least favorite. Here goes:

1. BANGUI WINDMILLS

It's a must to go to the giants fans of Bangui when visiting Pagudpud. It's the first wind farm in the Philippines and the largest of its kind in South East Asia.  The project provides 40% of the electricity needs of Ilocos Norte. 

2. PATAPAT VIADUCT

The Patapat Viaduct is 4th longest bridge in the Philippines. Known as the French Riviera of the North for the beautiful coastal drive, it's a winding bridge hugging the cliffs of the Northern Cordillera Mountain Ranges. 

3. BLUE LAGOON

Compared to Saud Beach, Blue Lagoon has a shorter shoreline but has calmer waters. It's also prettier and more scenic in my opinion with its deep blue waters and powdery sand. I would have loved to have taken a dip at the Blue Lagoon but we didn't have time.

4. KABIGAN FALLS

Kabigan Falls which is about 80 feet high, is surrounded by lush forest and drops to a concave basin.

Having a guide is required to trek to the falls because it's easy to get lost in the jungle.

The hike is supposedly just 30 minutes but it took us 45 minutes to get to Kabigan Falls. Here are the scenes we saw along the way.

How I wish I hitched with this vehicle as I was very very tired from all the walking.

When you see this bridge, the end is near!

My picture doesn't do this falls justice...

Swim at the refreshingly cold waters of the falls as a reward for making it!

5. BANTAY ABOT CAVE

Bantay Abot means a mountain with a hole. The hole in the middle of the mountains came about as  waves crashed until it was wrecked in a huge tremor in the ‘80s.  

6. TIMMANGTANG ROCK

Timmangtang Rock is a bell-shaped rock covered with vegetation. The only reason why we went to Timmangtang Rock is because it was in the same area as the Blue Lagoon. No reason to go here really because it's just a giant rock.

Overall. I enjoyed Pagudpud for its small town charm and it being devoid of commercialism even though it's one of the more popular destinations of the North.

Ilocos Diaries: Saud Beach Resort in Pagudpud

For our one night in Pagudpud, we stayed at Saud Beach Resort, supposedly one of the best resorts in the area.

It  was the biggest resort along Saud Beach and was fronting the beach...

Saud Beach

but the water stains in our room made me a non-happy camper. In hindsight, we should have requested to change rooms.

Quadruple Room

There's not a lot of restaurants in Pagudpud, so we ate at Saud Beach Resort's restaurant morning, noon, and night. 

American Breakfast (180php)

Ilocandia Breakfast (190php)

Choose from the seafood selection because the seafood dishes we tried were all fresh.

Sizzling Squid (280php)

Grilled Fish (280php)

Liempo (245php)

Talong (100php)

Adobong Sitaw (140php)

Shrimp Broccoli (280php)

When staying in Pagudpud, be prepared to rough it out as the resorts don't offer the usual comforts that we expect from the more commercialized and developed resorts of Boracay amd Cebu. 

Saud Beach Resort is located at Bgy. Saud, Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. For more information, call (632)9212856 or click here.