For city dwellers like me, the 8 – 5 weekday grind can take
a toll, and sometimes we just need that quick and quiet escape to relax and
unwind.
Tucked in a cliff in the hills of Antipolo in Rizal, is Luljetta’s
Hanging Garden and Spa, which as they claim is the first in the Philippines.
As
Antipolo is near the Metro (depending on the traffic), this is a perfect quick getaway for us (and an
alternative to Tagaytay as well).
The
drive going there was rather quick, maybe because it’s a Sunday. For southerners
like me, take SLEX, exit at C5, then Ortigas extension and at the roundabout,
go right.
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| Roadtrip |
Luljetta’s
Hanging Garden and Spa is inside Loreland Farm Resort which offers room
accommodations for the guests who want to stay overnight. We didn’t have any
reservation but good thing we were there early (the spa opens at 10AM). It’s highly
recommended that you do get a reservation because the spa services and
treatments are scheduled and they may not be able to accommodate you.
I
availed their Hanging Gardens Getaway package that includes use of all the
amenities as well as food (snack and 4 course lunch). Cha and Erik, being a
couple, got the Spa Journey comfort which includes everything I have plus
massage and ear candling.
As
the name suggests, the resort is cliffside which gives nice views of the
surrounding area and Manila.
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| View from Luljettas |
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| View from Luljettas |
The design of the resort is sprawling which means if you’re not a fan of stairs, this may not be for you.
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| Property |
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| Property |
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| Restaurant |
There are a lot of huge trees in the property, a lot of pocket
gardens with beautiful plants and flowers, and they have a lot of nooks where
you can just sit and relax, read a book, get a mani and pedi or just meditate
and have that quiet time with yourself.
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| Sunbeds for a nice tan |
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| Sitting area |
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| Sitting areas |
You’re surrounded by a lot of birds, wind chimes and with the soothing music playing across the property, it definitely puts
you in a relaxing mood.
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| Pocket garden |
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| Pocket garden and sitting area |
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| Lush gardens of Luljetta's |
What I also
liked about the place is they have these sayings scattered in the property which was a nice touch.
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| Water fountains at Luljetta's |
Since it was
already mirienda time when we were there, we decided to avail of our snacks
so that we can just relax after at the different pools that they have. We had their
Antipolo’s Best Suman (which is basically fried suman (by the way suman is a type of rice cake)), with sweet syrup and mango slices, kudos
for the presentation.
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| Antipolo's Best Suman |
Also
included in the packages is the use of locker rooms to keep your stuff as well
as providing you with a towel and batik (bath robe) for your use while in the
resort.
For a
Sunday, there weren’t as much people as I expected (which was good for us), and
there are times that we were the only ones using the different pools, probably
because most of the guests (who are couples by the way) are availing the massage services.
We hung-out
at the Jacuzzi which was nice, I can stay there for hours.
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| Jacuzzi |
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| Jacuzzi buddies |
Nearby was a small
pool with cold water which was a nice contrast, after a jacuzzi, go in for a refreshing dip.
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| One of the many pools at Luljetta's |
Although relaxing,
one would also get hungry and the good thing is that the package has food
included. We waited for almost an hour
before we got to eat. There were quite a few people and seems like there were
only 2 people on duty to cook as well as take care of the guests. To pass the time,
they had different board games to keep you occupied and signal was quite strong
so you have time to edit your pictures and update everyone on your social media
what you have been doing that day.
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| The couple |
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| Lanterns at the restaurant |
To my
delight, the food was delicious, so I'm forgiving them about the wait time, hahaha. We started with a
salad and I know that the lettuce was fresh because I saw some being grown in
pots. I particularly liked the dressing plus the feta cheese, yum! Honestly
there were ants in my salad (yes plural, like alive) and not the small black ones but the
big ones you see on trees and fruit. But I didn’t mind because I was too hungry
already. Also as a small kid, old people would say that when you eat an ant (by
accident ofcourse, unless you like eating ants), you’ll have a beautiful voice, so I felt like singing after.
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| Organic lettuce |
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| Board games |
They also
served us mushroom soup (its appreciated that it’s not the sachet ones) and for
the main course, pasta. For dessert we had panna cotta which was delicious, not
too sweet and just right. Only comment would be that it was supposed to be a
Blueberry panna cotta but I think they didn’t have any Blueberry at that time. Also the
menu indicated some baguette but it wasn’t served. The food is proportioned just right, so
if you’re still hungry, don’t worry, you can order ala carte (but it’ll be the
same menu, as they don’t have anything else) or go to the restaurant at Loreland
resort.
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| Salad |
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| Pasta |
After lunch,
we tried the Dr. Fish spa which was super funny. The fish there were like a
little big, almost half of my palm (not the tiny ones I usually see at other fish spas). It took a little getting used to because
the 1st five minutes were dedicated to shouting and laughing because
it tickles so badly. I can’t even submerge my feet for more than 5 seconds
without laughing. You can really feel the fish sucking away at your toes (queue in laughter - hahahaha).
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| Fish Spa |
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| Fish Spa |
We also tried their
hydro massage pool which was nice, I like the feeling of water falling on my
back, it’s like massaging your back gently.
Being in a
cliff, it wouldn’t be complete without an infinity pool. The view is nice, on
one side you have Laguna lake and on the other, you can see the silhouette of
Manila’s skyline. At first there were quite a few people hanging out but then
we had the place to ourselves again which was great. We hung-out there for the
remainder for the day.
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| Enjoying my time here at Luljetta's |
Since I didn’t
avail of their massage services, I waited for Erik and Cha at the jacuzzi where
I enjoyed the sunset. Orange skies peeking through the canopy of green, the sound
of birds and the best part I had the place to my own, perfect way to end my
stay.
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| Jacuzzi |
The view at
night was just as nice, you can see the glowing city lights of Metro Manila
from a distance which was beautiful to look at.
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| Goodnight Manila |
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| Main reception area at night |
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| Glittering Manila at night |
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| Time to go home |
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| Had a wonderful time at Luljetta's |
All in all,
I liked my day trip to Luljetta’s Hanging Garden and Spa. They offered the complete
package from the amenities, to the ambience, and services. It is the perfect
quick getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city. Til’ next time!
Follow me on Instagram at @thisischristianjohn
To learn
more about Luljetta’s, visit their Facebook page at Luljetta’s Hanging
Garden and Spa, Instagram at @luljettas hashtag #luljettas or via website at
www.bienvenidotours.com.
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