Manila to Pagsanjan Falls and Lumban: Private day trip

Main attractions

• One of the Philippines' most dramatic natural landmarks — a powerful three-tiered waterfall deep in a narrow volcanic gorge in Laguna Province, south of Manila, where the Bumbungan River forces through sheer cliff walls draped in tropical vegetation before dropping into a plunge pool accessible only by boat
• The journey is as compelling as the destination — skilled bangkero (boatmen) pole and paddle traditional narrow bancas upstream through the gorge's rapids and overhanging rock faces for approximately 1.5 hours each way, the canyon walls closing overhead as the falls approach
• The Devil's Cave behind the main falls is accessible by bamboo raft directly into the spray zone beneath the cascade

Take note

• Life jackets are provided and mandatory; the return downstream through the rapids is faster and more exhilarating than the ascent — expect to get thoroughly wet throughout; bring a dry bag for valuables and a change of clothes

Main attractions

• A small lakeside town on the western shore of Laguna de Bay in Laguna Province, known throughout the Philippines as the embroidery capital of the country — Lumban's cottage industry of hand-embroidered barong Tagalog (the Philippines' national formal garment) and piña fabric has supplied the country's ceremonial wardrobe for generations
• The main street and surrounding residential lanes are lined with family workshops and retail outlets where embroiderers work at frames in open doorways — the craft is visible, approachable and entirely untheatrical; this is working production rather than heritage performance
• The town church of Saint John the Baptist, a Spanish colonial structure dating to the 17th century, anchors the town plaza in the manner typical of Laguna Province settlements

What to eat

• Panutsa (raw cane sugar formed into dense, dark discs) and uraro (arrowroot biscuits) are Lumban's traditional food specialities — available from market stalls near the plaza; simple Filipino lunch at any of the carinderias around the town market