Acuaverde Beach Resort in Laiya, Batangas was our destination during my birthday celebration this month. As Acuaverde was a pet-friendly resort, I have long wanted to stay there with our fur babies. This year, even if it was a rainy season during my birthday, we finally went there.
Why Acuaverde Beach Resort?
I read about Acuaverde Beach Resort when we were still in the U.S., and I was looking for pet-friendly places to visit with our furbaby Zack here in the Philippines. Sadly, he passed away so we didn’t get to bring him there. In early 2020, we drove out to Laiya, Batangas with our two younger furbabies, and checked it out to make sure that it was really a pet-friendly resort (it is!). But the pandemic lockdowns pushed our travel plans to the back burner. Until this year, of course.
How we got there
From Quezon City, it was a four-hour car drive without stops. We drove past San Pablo City, Tiaong-Lipa Road until we reached San Juan, Batangas.
We stopped at the Municipal Tourism Office to pay the PhP20 per person ecological fee. Good thing they have drive-through booths, so paying the fee didn’t even take us five minutes.
Then we drove the long stretch of the San Juan-Laiya Road until we finally reached Acuaverde. They have quite a sizable parking lot, so that’s good.
Our Room with a View
When my husband booked our stay online, the Montana room was the only room available. When we got there, we requested a bigger room and luckily, they had one available – the 41-square-meter Brisa room on the second floor with a private balcony. It has two comfortable queen beds, a SmartTV, an inverter, a safe, a mini bar with a refrigerator with four bottled water, and an electric kettle. (You can check their rooms here.) The private toilet and bath came with a hairdryer, fresh towels, and toiletries.
My favorite feature was the private balcony with seating for two that offered views of Laiya beach and resort garden, which proved perfect for in-room dining/room service.
I confess, the relaxing views of the water paired with the sound of crashing waves kept lulling me to sleep. That’s how relaxing I found it to be.
Yes, Acuaverde is indeed a beachfront resort.
What we ate
They have an on-site restaurant, Cocina Restaurant, and an al fresco bar. We had to order food in advance because the food was prepared at the neighboring sister resort Acuatico.
Our booking came with free breakfast from their breakfast buffet. Here’s the entrance to the restaurant for the breakfast buffet.
Here are the food choices from the breakfast buffet during our visit. It’s quite a lot of food!
There were complimentary refreshing sampaloc (tamarind) drinks after check-in to welcome us, perfect after such a long drive.
Here are some of the dishes that we enjoyed during our visit.
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- Batangas Lomi
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- Chicken Tinola
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- Gising-gising
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- Rosemary Roast Chicken
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- Steak and Chips
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- Humbatangas
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- Chicken Inasal
Drinks:
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- Mango Shake
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- Tsokolate
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- Watermelon Shake
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What we did
Hang out. They have 9 cabanas overlooking the beach, plus three chaise lounges with beach umbrellas. Some guests had their laptops with them while sitting out there.
The others hung out at the al fresco bar.
Took endless pictures. That would be me who kept clicking away when we’re not just chilling.
Here’s the suman I bought when vendors approached me. I had to buy it because it looked different from the suman I know.
Then we have the beach.
Get wet. If you are into water activities, they have jet skis, speed boats, glass bottom boats, banana boats, and even those UFOs, bandwagons, and disco boats. We didn’t try those because I felt the water was too choppy for my comfort. We did see other guests who did those. There is no swimming pool, but there is always the beach.
Play. They have Kid’s Zone and a Pet Zone – play areas for kids, whether human or furry kind.
Pet-friendly!
When we arrived at the resort, there were two goodie bags for our two furbabies! I was charmed…haha.
There is even a statue of Hunter, the Golden Retriever who was a frequent visitor of the resort.
You can see the pet play area in the picture below.
Verdict:
LOVE. WILL GO BACK.
Accessibility: The property is wheelchair-accessible and stroller-friendly with specific pathways, despite being sandy. I am glad to see the grounds weren’t overly paved and cemented. I like resorts that are developed, but not overly so – just enough to be comfortable, but not too much that it’s disrespectful to nature.
Booking: The straightforward booking process via their website deserves a thumbs-up.
Accommodations: The Montana room was alright, but I preferred the more spacious and well-appointed Brisa room.
Dining: While the on-site restaurant is pretty good, I enjoyed eating on the veranda more when the staff brought some of our meals to us. Listening to the sound of waves that crash to the shore is a pretty good way to enjoy one’s meals!
Pet-friendly: Well done on this point. As of this writing, the pet fee is P900 per pet per day with a maximum of two pets per guest. Like Haya Nature Resort, Acuaverde is a pet-friendly place. In fact, Acuaverde is a “VIRTUS Awards Winner for being a Pet-Friendly Gem of Laiya”.
Kudos to the Acuaverde staff for being attentive to our needs without fussing about them. Everyone was polite and friendly, truly service with a smile.
Two negatives during our visit:
- There was a bit of noise when the day visitors were yelling and screaming by the beach, but it pretty much calmed down after they left. We didn’t realize day visits were allowed.
- While hanging out in the cabana, vendors would pass by selling knickknacks and souvenirs. I bought from one and suddenly was inundated by at least five others. It got kind of overwhelming and distracting, especially when I was simply trying to enjoy some peace and quiet.
To my surprise, the mountain gal that I am is getting converted into a beach bunny. Finally, I did more than hang out by the beach and stare at the horizon watching the blue skies. I actually spent hours in the water…even I was surprised. If we weren’t hanging out by the beach, then we sat on our private balcony. At some point, I even fell asleep out there.
Acuaverde Beach Resort gave us the breathing space that is sorely lacking here in Metro Manila. I’m happy that we finally had the chance to go there after waiting for so long.
Address:
Acuaverde Beach Resort
Laiya, San Juan, Batangas, Philippines
Resort Mobile: +63 928.854.3805
Manila Office Mobile/ Viber: +63 969.617.5021 / +63 998.843.1347