Patar White Beach

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Patar White Beach - Brgy. Patar, Bolinao, Pangasinan (Day 1)

From our short stopover at the Cape Bolinao Lighthouse, we proceeded to the end of the road where a sign says “To Patar White Beach.”

I suddenly felt nostalgic when I saw the shabby parking space and entrance to the resort. The place reminded me of those summer outings from Papa’s office where he used to take us. We would ride on those big government buses together with other employees and their families. Tired from bumpy ride, we would all jump from our seats excitedly, alight from the bus wide-eyed and be greeted by somehow rundown look of the resort.

Patar White Beach has an old appearance and yet that rustic feel is I guess what makes it bewitching. We entered through a bamboo fence with wooden posts and right away faced the nipa cottages. Kids running around, a man with bulging belly carrying a rice cauldron, an out-of-tune woman singing along the blasting Aegis song from the Videoke, girls combing hairs clad in wet t-shirts and shorts. You know the usual swimming attire of Filipinos. Truly, it was very provincial!

But am telling you, the sands of Patar White Beach is simply arresting! This is a short stretch of beach with crystalline white sands dotted with homey bamboo cottages.

We were hoping to finally find accommodation and rest. It was hot and we were dying to try the waters. Sadly though, the bamboo hut for rent was worth P2,000 for an overnight stay. It was very simple, walls have gaps, the door couldn’t even be locked, no fan, no bed and we have to lie down on the bamboo flooring. The comfort room is 25 meters away. My lakwatsa buddies didn’t find those convenient.

We left the place and went back on our track. We passed by Treasures of Bolinao, I guess the best along the stretch. We asked about their rate before we had this trip and they charge kinda high but still reasonable if you have a budget, I think they have their own pool. We’d like to think of ourselves as budget travelers so we brush off anything expensive hehe. Other places you might see there are Rock Garden Resort, Celeste Sea Breeze, and other small lodges.

Luckily, Bing’s Beach Resort has an extra room. Bing’s is on the left side of the road going to Patar White Beach. It’s row of wooden cottages cannot be missed. The main building houses their restaurant, shop, store, kitchen and dining area, and air-conditioned room upstairs. While the outpost cottage is comprised of at least eight fan rooms with shared hallways at the front and back.

Rate for an overnight stay is P1,500. Room was clean, there was one bed, a fan, clean comfort room and windows with a view.

We were six adults and one kid and it’s perfectly okay to squeeze ourselves in one room. Unlike some lodges that have strict policies on number of guests in a two-bedroom or four-bedroom rooms. We rented extra mattresses at P50 each. Anna, Glenda, Glenda’s kid bro Jed, Gie, and I shared the room while Gie’s brother JC and their driver Danny slept outside the room. We were indeed lucky to get the room at the end of the hall so we get an “ownership” of the wide veranda with a hammock.

In the afternoon, clad in our sexy (naks!) but not skimpy swimsuits, we headed to the beach across Bing’s.

It was shocking! Bolinao beach along the stretch of lodges is not worth swimming in. We walked to about 50 meters of ankle- to knee-high seawater swarming with starfishes and sea grass.

Jed was crying hysterically of fear. Because I didn’t know how to call the starfishes at first and yelled “waah jellyfish! This is dangerous” And seven-year old Jed jumped into Glenda’s waist and refused to walk into the water again. Hahaha, ye sorry, my mistake! Even if we corrected ourselves and said “Jed, those are starfish, they’re safe.” No, he refused to be taken down from his sister.

We got to the point where boulders of rocks separate the wild waves of the sea from the stagnant seawater. Definitely not advisable to swim in this area, unless you’re a strong swimmer in deep and open seas. So we marched back into the annoying starfish-infested water.

We went back to Bing’s and wondered where the heck people swim in this area?! And we realized that visitors have to drive to Patar White Beach to swim. What a hassle, since most lodges are about 15-20 minutes drive away from that beach.

So off we went again to Patar White Beach. We got there at 5pm. Ahhh, deliciously cold water. We swam till 7pm. The air was really chilly by then. How nice it would have been to set up a beach bonfire and have some games. But sigh, our lodge is 15 minutes drive away and we were getting hungry.

We went back to Bing’s and ordered dinner from the main house. They served us rice, steaming sinigang na baboy and chicken. We paid P540 only for everything including chilled drinks. For seven persons with healthy appetite, now that’s a great value for our money!

In the morning, we left early at 5:30 in the morning and headed back to Lucap for our Hundred Islands trip.

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Thanks to my lakwatsa buddies Glenda Suarez, Annaliza Salazar, and Gigie Galamgam for some photos of our Luzon Trip. The best kayo mga pare!

Rock Garden Resort – Contact # 0920-4139272. Rate of their standard room is P1,500, Non-Aircond rooms are P700.

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Filed under Beach, Luzon Trip

Tags: Bing's Beach Resort, Bolinao, Cape Bolinao, Cottage, Hundred Islands, Lighthouse, Lucap, Pangasinan, Patar White Beach, Seagrass, Starfish, Treasures of Bolinao