Ysagada. Why Sagada
Where to stay, eat and go in Sagada: 97 accredited places to stay, the town’s food and its 15 official spots, in one guide.
Rice terraces at dusk
Ysagada, said ee-sagada.
Sagada is a mountain town about twelve hours by bus from Manila. Register on iPass before you come, hire a local guide for the caves, and keep your voice down at the burial sites.
Featured stays
PartnerRock Inn & Café
An inn and café on a rock farm in Batalao, with a rock garden, a hanging bridge and an orange orchard.
PartnerThe Lalouette Inn
A pine inn above the valley, with a river-stone hearth and balconies over the ridges.
PartnerChalleya Cottages
Thatched cottages, a gallery of carvings and a function hall in the pines.
Cave
Sumaguing CaveThe big cave of Sagada. The way through is wet and slippery, and part of it is a climb.
Produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Where to go
The spots on Sagada’s official registration list.
Two days or three
Day 1
Sumaguing Cave
- Meet your guide and go caving. For more, ask for the cave connection: in at Lumiang Cave, out at Sumaguing, two to three hours. Expect to get wet.
1 stop
DetailsDay 2
Bomod-ok Falls · Hanging Coffins
- Morning trip to the falls, with a guide hired at the Banga-an office.
- Afternoon in Echo Valley to see the hanging coffins with your guide.
2 stops
DetailsDay 3
Marlboro · Blue Soil
- Sunrise at Marlboro Hill.
- Carry on to Blue Soil, then catch the afternoon bus.
2 stops
Details
The order of spots follows The Poor Traveler’s 2019 itinerary, and the cave connection is from Wikivoyage. The short descriptions are ours. Source: The Poor Traveler, Sagada guide (2019)
What to eat
Lemon pie
The house pie at Sagada Lemon Pie House. Go before lunch.
Sagada coffee
Brewed in the town’s cafés and served with pie.
Sagada rice
Grown locally. Café Bodega serves it with most dishes.
Etag
Sagada’s cured pork, cooked into soups and noodles.
Sagada oranges
Grown in the town’s orchards.
Sagada’s own ways
What people here make, drink and keep.
Weaving
Watch the weavers at the looms at Sagada Weaving in Nangonogan, one of the town’s biggest employers.
Pottery
Local potters make stoneware, including gusi jars. One potter calls them perfect for tapey.
Tapey
Rice wine, also spelled tapuy. Communities brew it for weddings, harvest rites and begnas.
Begnas
A two to three day community rite at the dap-ay, often to give thanks for the harvest, with gongs, dancing and shared food.
Ubaya
A community pause after planting, harvest or a calamity. Places can close at short notice, so stay out until they reopen.
Sources: Wikivoyage, Sagada; Northern Dispatch, 11 Sep 2011; Wikipedia, Tapuy; Pamela Fiar-od, “Mountain Province Begnas Ceremony”; Daily Tribune, 21 Jul 2025; Philstar, 2 Dec 2025.
Dry x Wet
Dry season, November to April
The driest and coolest months. Short afternoon showers still happen.
Source: The Poor Traveler, Sagada guide (2019)Hiking season runs from November to May.
Source: Wikivoyage, SagadaWet season, June to September
The wettest months. Tours can be cancelled in rain, so book them for the morning.
Source: The Poor Traveler, Sagada guide (2019)In heavy rain the caves may be limited to their entrances, and trails get slippery and muddy.
Source: Daily Tribune, 21 Jul 2025Getting here
From Manila
- Coda Lines
- Leaves from
- HM Terminal, Cubao
- Departures
- 8 PM and 9 PM daily
- Takes
- About 12 hours, via Banaue and Bontoc
- Fare
- About ₱1,100
From Baguio
- GL Liner
- Leaves from
- Dangwa Terminal
- Departures
- 6:30, 8:30, 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 AM
- Takes
- About 6 hours, along the Halsema Highway
- Fare
- About ₱390
- Lizardo Transit
- Leaves from
- Terminal in Sto. Niño
- Departures
- 3 AM and 5 PM
- Takes
- About 6 hours
- Fare
- Ask the operator
Buses from Baguio stop at the Sagada Municipal Hall.
From Banaue
- Jeepney or bus to Bontoc
- Leaves from
- Banaue
- Departures
- Ask locally
- Takes
- About 3 hours
- Fare
- About ₱200
- Jeepney, Bontoc to Sagada
- Leaves from
- Bontoc
- Departures
- Hourly, 6 AM to 1 PM
- Takes
- About 1 hour
- Fare
- About ₱70
Coda Lines times and fares are as of May 2025. The other routes are as listed on the same page when we checked it on 1 November 2026. Source: Lakwatsero, Sagada bus schedule and fare. Confirm with the bus company before you travel.
Rules and fees
- Register
- Online, before you arrive
- On Sagada iPass, with your inn’s name ready.
- Sources: Sagada iPass, the town’s registration site · Highland Tribune, 10 Feb 2023
- Fee
- ₱100 per visitor
- Plus ₱50 optional insurance, as of June 2025.
- Sources: Wikivoyage, Sagada · Highland Tribune, 10 Feb 2023 · Sagada iPass, the town’s registration site
- Guides
- Required in caves
- Caves can only be entered with a guide.
- Sources: Wikivoyage, Sagada · Highland Tribune, 10 Feb 2023
- Closures
- Sites can close
- Echo Valley, the hanging coffins, Bokong Falls and Sumaguing Cave closed for a day on 1 December 2025.
- Sources: Daily Tribune, 21 Jul 2025 · Philstar, 2 Dec 2025
Respect code
Sagada’s burial caves and hanging coffins are graves, and its church holds mass. These are the rules visitors are asked to keep.
Do not touch, move or climb on coffins or anything at a burial site.
Source: PTV News, 14 Feb 2019Do not join, photograph or film a ritual unless the elders leading it say yes.
Source: PTV News, 14 Feb 2019Do not take photos or video in or around the church during mass.
Source: PTV News, 14 Feb 2019Stay away from the panag-aapoy, the bonfires families light at graves on All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days, and do not photograph them.
Source: Wikivoyage, SagadaWhen a community closes a place for ubaya, stay out until it reopens.
Source: Daily Tribune, 21 Jul 2025
