The compact and breezy city of TAGAYTAY, 55km south of Manila, sits on a dramatic 600-metre-high ridge overlooking Lake Taal and the volcano, a magical location that serves as the gateway to the lake area.
The ridge road (known as Aguinaldo Highway west of the central Rotunda) can become very congested, particularly on weekends and holidays when the crowds can be overwhelming, but you still might consider spending the night to enjoy those entrancing vistas.
Most day-trippers enjoy the views from the Tagaytay Picnic Grove (daily 6am–midnight; P50 per person; P35 for cars; tables P100) a ridge-top park 5km east of the Rotunda.
Further along, around 7.5km east of the Rotunda, the People’s Park in the Sky (daily 6am–6pm; P15) is the highest point in the area (750m) offering magnificent panoramas of the lake, the sea, Laguna de Bay and the smog that hangs over Manila to the north.
It’s topped by a collection of abandoned concrete buildings which are a bit of an eyesore; until they are redeveloped, the only other attraction up here is the modest Shrine of our Lady, Mother of Fair Love, constructed in 2003.
Tagaytay Accommodation
The gasp-inducing views from the ridge at Tagaytay make it more expensive to stay here than in one of the barangays by the lake around Talisay, where it’s quieter and more convenient if you intend to climb the volcano.
Eating and drinking in Tagaytay
Tagaytay has dozens of restaurants, though it has also been rather overrun by big chains and fast-food joints; better are the rows of fruits stalls along the ridge (the local pineapples are especially good).
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