Who would’ve thought that a simple part of nature will be an inspiration to the modern and ever-evolving hospitality industry?

Let us introduce to you the Cocoons! Watch our vlog here!

Like cocoons of a butterfly, a resort in Batangas widely known as Club Laiya Resort developed and evolved the conventional way of accommodation. A cocoon, as they love to call it, is a cylindrical type of room that includes a bed (good for 2 pax) with pillows and a comforter, a vault for your personal belongings, and a mini-fridge.

NOTE: The security deposit is 1,000 PHP and refundable upon checkout.

The room is very clean and just like the outside paintings of the cylindrical room, the inside is at par when it comes to aesthetics. The rooms don’t have a private bathroom but they have a common bathroom. But fret not, the bathroom here is so extra!

The cocoons are available for overnight stay only, for those who wanted to go to the resort for a day tour, they also have cabanas good for bigger groups.

Club Laiya Resort has many things to offer besides good accommodations. They have 2 restaurants, The Sands and The Rib Shack, that offer Filipino food and a feel of Western/Italian food, respectively. Both restaurants have delicious food to offer, so you better try it.

THE SANDS (7:00 AM to 6:00 PM)

THE RIB SHACK (12:00 NN to 10:00 PM)

There’s no complimentary breakfast. Breakfast meals cost 250 PHP each.

Resorts would not be completed without a pool and a good beachfront. Club Laiya Resort has the good of both worlds having an infinity pool for adults and a child-friendly kiddie pool, and a nice beachfront, whether you want to take a dip or just walk along the sand, they got it for you.

Also, different activities await you there, such as jetskiing, parasailing, banana boat ride, etc. All activities are a must-try when you visit their place. We tried the jetski and we enjoyed it.

HOW TO GO THERE?

OPTION 1:

If you opt to take the commuter way, from PITX, take a ride on any bus going to San Juan, Batangas. Fare is 310 PHP each. It would take you about 4-5 hours to the bus terminal of San Juan, which is the last drop-off point. Upon alighting at the terminal, you may choose to ride a tricycle or a jeepney going to Laiya. The tricycle ride is a bit costly at about 300-400 PHP due to the distance of 20 km from the terminal to the resort proper, but definitely faster than a jeepney ride, for the latter needs to be fully occupied by passengers before leaving.

OPTION 2:

Another option is to go with your car and google maps your way to it. Just a little reminder, all vehicles, including tricycles, are mandated to pass thru the Municipal Tourism Reception Area to check if you have a confirmed booking reservation and a vaccine card with you. All tourists must pay 20 PHP per head for the ecological fee.

To those who don’t have the said documents may be required to go back, the travel time going to this wonderful place is not that short so please make sure to abide by their rules.

WHERE TO BOOK?

As we all know, beauty and convenience come with a price. The room rates range from 3,700 PHP to 5,800 PHP. You may also book on their website. Click here.

The services were good, not to mention the good people behind the resort. So if you wanna try to sleep in a cocoon or just relax, come and visit Club Laiya Resort—a nice place to calm your mind and enjoy.

We were supposed to visit this diving resort last year but since community quarantine happened, we decided to postpone our trip to Summer Cruise.

But now that they ease the travel guidelines in Batangas, we decided to push this last weekend.

Summer Cruise Diving Resort is located in San Luis, Batangas. It is a 3-hour drive from Manila. From the name itself, it is a diving spot and a resort that was established last 2019.

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS

When we went there, we didn’t present any health certificate as indicated in the picture above. But just in case, much better if you bring a health certificate to be sure. Don’t forget to wear your face mask and face shield and practice social distancing as much as you can.

RATES

They have a day trip here in Summer Cruise. The fee for a day trip is 350 PHP per head. For an overnight stay, you have three options for accommodation. It’s either you get a room, do camping, or sleep on a hammock. If you will bring your own hammock, the fee is 450 PHP.

ROOM RATES:

WEEKDAYS – 700 PHP/head

WEEKENDS – 850 PHP/head

The room is clean and you have a balcony. One advantage if you booked their rooms is that you have your own private bathroom. Note that they have no aircon here but it really gets cold at night. We didn’t even use the electric fan inside the room.

TENT:

RENT – 550 PHP

PITCH A TENT – 450 PHP

We noticed that most of the guests here at Summer Cruise choose to stay in the tent. They also have 2 common bathrooms for campers here. When we went there, the resort is fully-booked and most of them are campers and freedivers.

ARE KIDS AND PETS ALLOWED?

When we went here, we saw pets and even kids inside the resort. Just take full responsibility if you will bring a pet or kids to Summer Cruise.

ACTIVITIES

There’s a lot of activities you can do here at Summer Cruise.

SNORKELING

Rate is 250 PHP for snorkel rentals such as mask & snorkel, life vest, boots, and fins. For individual rentals, mask & snorkel (150 PHP), life vest (50 PHP), boots (50 PHP), and fins (100 PHP).

FREE DIVING

Rate is 1,500 PHP with instructor and complete gears.

SCUBA DIVING

Rate is 1,800 PHP with instructor and complete gears. You can watch our vlog below to watch our scuba diving experience!

They even offer PADI courses here at Summer Cruise.

Open Water (2 days) – 14,800 PHP
Advanced (2 days) – 14,800 PHP
Rescue Diver (3 days) – 18,500 PHP
Dive Master (on request)

WHAT TO EAT?

Here in Summer Cruise, they offer several food choices from breakfast to dinner meals. But if you opted to bring food to cook, they charge 350 PHP for kitchen use and refrigerator storage.

Also, you can have unlimited coffee and overflowing water here at Summer Cruise.

Here’s what we got for dinner. They serve Japanese food here. The ramen has a big serving and flavorful!

For breakfast, we got some Pinoy food such as Tapsilog, Tocilog, and Bangus.

OVERALL RATING

Room – ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rates – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Service – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Amenities – ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Location – ⭐⭐⭐⭐

After our 1st ever scuba diving, we are thinking to do it all over again. It was a memorable experience! Big thanks to Summer Cruise Diving Resort for taking good care of us during the dive. Kudos!!!

CONTACT NUMBER:

Mobile: 09478127671

ADDRESS:

Brgy. Balite, San Luis, Batangas

HOW TO GO HERE?

From PITX, ride a bus bound for Lemery, Batangas. Fare is 220 PHP per head. Alight at Xentro Mall or bus terminal. From there, ride a tricycle and tell to drop-off at Summer Cruise Parking. Fare is 100 PHP per head. From parking, you have two options to get to Summer Cruise: by walk (around 15 mins, rough road) or by boat (50 PHP per head)