Pal Express and Sky Jet are the only two airlines that flies from Manila to Basco in Batanes which we all know doesn't come cheap. And one way of cutting your expenses is to find cheap accommodation. Fundacion Pacita is the only hotel in Batanes and costs around PHP8,000.00++ per night. I did a mock booking and found out they require a minimum of two nights stay. I cannot afford a night in that hotel, neither the minimum two nights, good thing that cheap accommodations/ home stays aren't hard to find in Batanes.
From recommendations by friends who've been to Batanes, I finally decided to book two nights in Marfel's Lodge located just near the airport. They offer free transfer to and from the airport, but you can walk because its just too near.
We stayed at the main house which has two floors. The first floor is where the living room with television, kitchen, dining area, a mini honesty store and restrooms are located. The house has two restrooms for each of the two bed rooms. You can also cook your own food in the kitchen and you can use the utensils for free. Just wash it properly after use.
First Floor:
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| Living Room |
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| Dining Area & the mini honesty store |
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| Kitchen |
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| Those doors are the rest rooms |
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| mini honesty store |
At the second floor is where the two rooms are, there is also a balcony where you can just sit, share stories with your house mate, or take a coffee or have your breakfast.
Second Floor:
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| right outside our room |
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| Balcony |
Our room has two beds, good for 4 pax. Has air conditioning and electric fan so you can choose, but with a different rate.
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| Room |
On our second day, our house mate already left for their flight back to Manila, so, we had the whole house to ourselves. At night we watched television while enjoying our snack, we shared stories on how our tour went. We really felt like we have a vacation house in Batanes. We really felt at home. The house is so clean and the people are so nice. They made sure that we are okay during our stay. Especially during those times that there's no electricity, the generator is not yet fixed on the main house so they put an extension cord from the other house to ours so we could use the electric fan and charge our phones. Simple things which we really appreciate.
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| Dios Mamajes, Marfel's Lodge |
We enjoyed all these amenities, an air-conditioned room for ONLY PHP1,800.00 per night for the three of us. So, if you're looking for a place to stay in Batanes, I highly recommend Marfel's Lodge. You won't regret it for sure.
