Parenting Archive

My thoughts on parenthood, and what it's like to be a mom in the Philippines.

Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Review

My first time to write Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Review.

That was not our first time in Bataan (related story: Overdrive: Bataan-Pampanga) but it was our first time to look for a resort, on a HOLY WEEK! Well, it was just Holy Wednesday so our hopes are high. We started from Bagac town then to Montemar area then last stop at Las Casas, all resorts were fully booked! So much for impromptu resort hunting!

Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Review

We end up staying in Cabanatuan. We were trying to book a room at Acropolis (related story: Acropolis North Water Camp and Country Club Review) kahit ayaw ko ng bathroom nila, fully booked din! There was a room available in Microtel (another related post: Short Review of Microtel Cabanatuan) but we end up checking Harvest Hotel first, the husband liked it, check in na agad agad.

The hotel is new! It only opened last December and still on soft opening.

Firs impression: The website could use some tweaking.. ang bagal! People from Hospitality Innovators Inc please take note.

Next impression.. I love the pool! And the room! and the food! and the staff!

Let’s take this Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Review one step at a time, shall we?

Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Rooms. I love the room where we checked in. It’s big and spacious. It comes with a queen size bed and when two extra bed was added, the room is still spacious. I can’t help but compare with Microtel where 2 queen bed room is only half the price, though. Anyways, here is the photo of our room and the bathroom:

We got a suite for 4500 PhP (soft opening price) + 2 extra bed which includes breakfast, we paid half the price for the extra bed (extra bed price is 1000 PhP). We paid 5500 PhP for the room + 4 breakfast.

TV with CIGNAL Digital TV.. makes me want to subscribe to Cignal when we move to our new house! Below that table is a mini ref.

Photo of the restaurant that served buffet breakfast during our stay. Buffet breakfast is priced at 400+ PhP per head. The buffet table includes cereals for kids, assorted breads, assorted fruits and 3 viands.

Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan serves the famous Cabantuan Longanisa.. it’s garlicky and very tasty! If you love your longanisa on the salty side, this one’s for you! (sana lang may kasamang kamatis for the real authentic Novo Ecijano experience)

Day 1 buffet choices: Beef tapa, Sardines, the super duper tasty Cabanatuan Longanisa (asan ang kamatis?!?)

Day 2 buffet choices: Bacon, Daing na Bangus, Chicken Sausage

SO that’s the reason why this hotel is priced as such.. the food is really good.. specially the pandesal and the longanisa! and the staff is very accommodating, courteous and eager to serve.

The only reason that we would not go back at this hotel is the lack of adjustable vanity mirror in the bathroom. For someone with an eye problem like me, mahirap mag make up when the mirror is not this (as in this) close to my face (related story: Taal Vista Vanity Mirror). So if you want to see me on your hotel again, FYI, pakipuno ng salamin ang dingding! Just kidding! Bumili na ako ng handy mirror pagdating na pagdating namin dito sa Pasig.

More pool photos for Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Review

See how shallow the kiddie pool is? Sati’s not afraid to swim by herself! The kiddie pool and the adult pool is only separated by a small division..

The part where the kids are sitting is the small divider of the two swimming pools.

No worries letting the boys swim by themselves.. not just because they knew how to swim but the pool was only 4 feet deep.

TRIVIA: This is the only hotel in Cabanatuan City with a grand staircase. If you are planning to make a gran entrada for your events specially wedding and debut, Harvest Hotel is the place to be. Inquire directly at the hotel for Harvest Hotel Cabanatuan Wedding Package.

Our New Wedding Rings From Zoey.PH

We wanted to move the date 2 months later due to financial constraints but we have to get married before my tummy starts showing signs.. Signs that my mother would not like.. So it was set, March 8, 2003. We got the cheapest “formal” looking clothes we could buy and the cheapest wedding ring that could fit into our fingers. I did not even wore a make up and the bouquet I was holding was a makeshift one. We rode a tricycle on the way to our “venue”. If you could call it such. It was an open restaurant, and we only used half of it, while half was business as usual. We had audience! And the judge, we got him for a discount!

Life was not really easy back then.. So you can imagine that just after our first year anniversary, our wedding ring is already on its way to the pawnshop. Then it was gone, I’m sure it is still about the lack of money why we never bought our rings back.

12 years after… life’s not as difficult as it was but we’re raising 4 kids. Feeding them and sending them to school. We travel from to time and let the kids have fun. One thing though, we never really got the chance to replace our rings. When you have kids, most of the times you put your needs at the the bottom of the list. Fellow parents can relate for sure.

So when Zoey.ph asked me to check out their wedding rings, I said YES! YES! (mala proposal eksena.. sorry! my imagination went wild!)

We got the Frosted Silver Titanium Wedding Ring which is on sale right now at Zoey.ph. From ₱7,980.00, buy the wedding ring for only ₱3,999.00.

When the ring arrived, comes the big wedding ring question: Where to put the wedding ring? Left or Right?

A few readings suggest that the wedding ring should be on the ring finger of the the left hand. It was believed that on this finger, a vein runs that is connected to the heart. Vena Amoris, a Latin name which means vein of love.

But some readings also suggest that it should be on the right hand. This suggestion comes from a verse that says the right hand is the “good and blessed side”. Friends from instagram confirmed this:

Ours would be on the right hand.. because we’re Pinoy! And you know what it means when it comes to the comfort room (Bidet? What Bidet?).

Kidding aside, because we believe love is not about the heart but about the brain, we’re putting it on our hand.

When we started dating, the husband said that love is a decision. Being 18 and soo inlove, I always tell him that it’s not. Love is.. well.. love is a feeling. Or so I thought. After years of being together (and so many arguments) I finally understood what he means by that. So this time, I’m putting my wedding on my right because loving him is the best right decision I made.

Zoey.ph is the Philippines most liked online Jewelry shop. Zoey.ph brings unique jewelry designs, matching the latest trends to the Philippines market. They offer wedding rings, engagement rings and men’s rings.

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Hotel Luna Review

Vigan is now named as one of the 7 New Wonder Cities of the World and if you are planning to visit Vigan anytime, I suggest you book a room at Hotel Luna.

Hotel Luna is located a few steps away from the famous cobblestone street, Calle Crisologo. The perfect place to relax after a day of touring Vigan or walking the famous calle.

This is the entrance of the hotel. The hotel is fairly new but the design matches those of the old houses in Vigan. Upon entrance, you’d be impressed how the hotel maintains the “old” aura. Even the Hotel rooms have the ancestral feel, bathroom included!

This is the lobby of the hotel. With this architecture, it’s not too hard to imagine your receptionist to be in her Maria Clara dress. As you enter the hotel, you’ll notice the many artworks displayed in almost every corner. There are paintings, sculptures and art installations to marvel at.

The left and right view outside our room.

And this is the view from outside our room (view below). The pool area is quite small but the kids had fun in the pool. I had fun too.. and you know it means big. I didn’t worry that much though the pool was 4 feet deep. Sati and Chico just stayed at the pools steps. The kids also had fun with the waterfalls effect on the right side of the pool (the one that is not in the photo) and the changing pool lights.

As I have mentioned in my Vigan post (read: Vigan Travel Experience), we had a corner room at Hotel Luna. Our room was really big, spacious and very homey. I love that it is carpeted. I have a thing with floors.. and any carpeted floor is my new bff.

Here’s the photo of the room:

See how big it was (the glass door over there leads to the bathroom). Not in this picture is the vanity area and coffee table.

This is is the bathroom..which was a bit cramped. I actually had a problem with the sink being that near the toilet bowl.

the other side is the bath area..

And this is the fun part! Imagine an ancestral looking hotel with this kind of technology inside the bathroom!

Cool di ba? San nakakabili nito? Gusto ko din ng ganitong high tech sa banyo ko haha

More room photos..

We only got to try their breakfast and we’re more than satisfied with the food displayed..

But more than the food, it was their staff at Comedor that is worth mentioning. They are very attentive and courteous and very helpful too!

As mentioned in their website, Hotel Luna is the first and only museum hotel in the Philippines, indeed they are. Although I cannot vouch for the fact that they are the only museum hotel, I can attest to the fact that Hotel Luna is really a museum hotel. Every corner is a place to admire.

At the right side of the hotel lobby is a grand staircase that leads to a grand sala where most art installations and paintings are located. This is also the part of the hotel where the Executive Suite is located.

Our overall experience at Hotel Luna is excellent . And my kids said we should go back at Vigan and stay again at Hotel Luna.

For that trip, I bought two hotel vouchers from Deal Grocer. A night stay at Double Queen Deluxe (with breakfast for 2), for less than $100 USD or 4000 PhP. I booked the room via email and Hotel Luna was very prompt in answering my inquiries and booking my reservation.

Hotel Luna is located at Luna Street, 2300 Vigan, Ilocos Sur

Accommodations vary from Queen Standard, Deluxe, Double Queen Deluxe, Executive Suite to Loft Suite. Accommodation price starts at 3000+ PhP