Isla Verde Tropical Friendly Resort is Still Here - CoVid 18 UPDATE

Since my last post in April 2020, the year 2020 - 2021 has been a strange one for our lovely resort.

Covid-19 has caused lockdowns and restrictions that have severely limited the number of opportunities for people to visit the resort. On occasions when those restrictions have been lifted, guests have come to enjoy a stay here.

Jo and some staff have worked hard to keep the Resort looking as clean and smart as possible so it is always ready to be open each time restrictions are lifted.

Except for the top picture, the photos in this post are from March and April 2021 :-)

I have just received this Advert from the Resort Management:

Discover the beauty of this new paradise.  Get in touch with nature as you find a new home in this island. Isla Verde tropical friendly resort is your new abode. Located in Sitio Sampalukan, San Augustin kanluran Isla Verde, Batangas City, it enjoys the company of the majestic Philippines Sea outlined by the Rocky and sandy shorelines.  It lies beyond the borders of Isla Verde passage separating Mindoro from Batangas City. 

Our island is a home to the rich fauna and flora variety. Considered as the Center of Marine biodiversity, it is a main Sanctuary to coral reefs and underwater marine habitat.

Environmentalists and nature lovers treat this place as their new haven where you can take nothing but pictures, you can leave nothing but footprints and can kill nothing but time.

Entering the resort, you will be greeted by a fresh natural scenery with a touch of Japanese design and architecture, surrounded by a serene landscape.

Paths are paved, and bordered with green grandeur and detailed with delicate oriental arts. 

Stone benches and swing cottages offers an inviting ambiance for relaxation and rest. Mixed with soothing beach air and warmth of the sun, you can enjoy it with company of great friends or quiet pace to meditate on your own.

Islaverde Tropical Friendly Resort offers a wide arrangement of accommodations with privacy, security and convenience to maximum of 50 people, whether a family gathering, or a small company team building.  It has family rooms, stone units and nipa huts (kubo) that guests can choose from. 

Visit our Website  to see more.

ISLA VERDE@FIGHT COVID 19

COVID 19 is pandemic.  

We were temporarily closed last March 22, 2020, the start of the Enhance Community Quarantine (ECQ) in the whole island.  

We are not allowed to go out from house, unless it is necessary like to buy food to the store.  

We are not allowed to leave the island nor to receive people who wanted to come here especially if they  coming from Manila.

But as time passed by, we went into lockdown.  

There are no more normal boats trips.  A special scheduled trip is issued to buy stuff in mainland Batangas.  

Even the road became more quiet as you cannot hear kids' voices yelling and laughing and a Curfew was imposed especially to minors.  

Thus kids had quality time bonding with their parents- helping their parents doing chores.  They fetched the water.  Sweeping in the ground in the morning.  Doing the laundry.  And in the afternoon neighboring kids gathered together playing ML ( MOBILE LEGEND) to spend their afternoon.

The local mothers have time to weave mats in the afternoon and gossipping among locals stopped as need for social distancing.

The boats who were busy transporting guests and for boat tours around the island became fishing boats.  The construction workers became good fishermen waking up at early dawn to catch fish, which they sell for an income, and some share with friends and other relatives.  

For this month they always catch BALAKWAS (plotting fish), they dry them and cook like sinaing, adobo, fried and skrewed them and fry too.

As lockdown was extended till April 30, our Baranggay Offers became more busy.  We received reliefs from our National/Local government which were deliver to our house by our Baranggay Councilor and Baranggay Police Officer to their designated areas.  We received rice, canned goods, sachets of coffee, biscuit  some sachet of soup and box of Vitamins.

There were good samaritans who spread love, gave sacks of rice, bread with sachet of coffee.

In time of needs Filipinoes are always in Bayanihan- Filipino custom where people work together to accomplish task.

Salute and Thank you to our frontliners -  locals who are Baranggay  Officers, Health Workers,  Teachers, Volunteers who look after us in this pandemic. 

Lastly,  I want to share to you a local guy  ONAD singing ISLA VERDE HISTORY. 

November 2019 - Dogs are indeed a man's best friend.

Meet our adorable, huggable and lovable little pal, Jaru.

Everybody loves Jaru for his friendly features.  Who would have thought that our furry friend would be an excellent tour guide and a great companion in times of boredom. 

Every morning, he would be running enthusiastically towards approaching guests,  welcoming them with his wagging tail and a cheerful bark.  He could be seen visiting the units of every guests to check if they are doing fine. And by night,  he would be joining you by the campfire under the presence of the moon and stars.

Jaru is a stray dog  and is adopted by the son of the resort owner, Hikaru. He is found wandering aimlessly on Tabangao port on October 2018. As an afraid little puppy, he is very hesitant to meet people.  Weak and hungry,  he simply approached Hikaru and gently frolicked at his feet,  waiting for Hikaru to return the gesture to him. Feeling pity towards this creature,  Hikaru picked him up and brought Jaru to the resort, raising it as his own.

Jaru is raised and fed by Jaja, one of the resort's employees. Jaja gave the puppy an extended unconditional love that it learned how to show care and attention in return.  Thus he is named Jaru,  as a combination from the name of his caretakers.

Jaru is always present on photo ops on guests and a shout out in their reviews. He is known for his expressive eyes, that reflects his warm emotions. He is also known for his energetic stamina of accompanying guests in the village tours and for taking a  tireless swim with them on the shore.  His charming smile is something worth remembering and you would enjoy taking selfies with. Just don't forget to give him a bag of doggie treats as a tip for his extensive service.

Your Isla Verde experience would not be complete if you did not encouter this happy creature. Surely,  he will give you that perspective that animals are great companions and their love and affection is something that could really comfort us, especially on times of solitude and loneliness. 

A Bigger Room for Big Groups

Since we began receiving guests in 2013, Islaverde Tropical Friendly Resort has not just been a popular place for families and couples, but also with groups for meetings and bonding sessions.

As the resort has become more well known we have added more kubos and units, and even camping facilities. 

Some time ago, To cater to small groups and families, we built what we call our 'Japanese Style' unit, which accommodates small groups on sleeping mats instead of beds.  We have been surprised by how popular this has become with our business guests.

Because the island experienced fully booked reservations in the summer, It was difficult for business groups to find accommodation on the Island.  So Isla Verde Tropical Friendly resort decided to offer another level of service to our business guests by offerring a special accomodation for larger groups.


So we took advantage of the start of the rainy season to expand out business and groups offering.

Introducing our latest project, our 'Group Fortress', a Japanese Inspired Room that could fit a maximum of 20 people.

The project started early August and in September 2019 it is still a work in progress, with hopes of completion around early October. It is located in a vacant lot next to the stone units.

When it is finished, it will consist of two rooms separated by a customized divider and an outside patio that will serve as a receiving and a dining area. It also has is own kitchen and common toilet for convenience. The walls are made of bamboo for natural ventilation and with pawid roofs as a shade from the heat.

Interiors and design are made one at a time so it is slow work, but we think when it is finished, this unit will be a place to relax as a group, with an air of class and elegance.

Rates will be PHP500 per person per night, which we hope is very affordable and reasonable for group bookings, given the design of the unit and the access to the facilities.

This new unit should help us to cater to the increasing demand for group activities, especially on the summer vacations.

Mid Year Group Outing

 Its the midyear already and despite the start of the rainy season, visitors still arrange their booking and reservations with us.

And what a nice way to open the season with an island boat tour, a 2-3 hours boat ride which include a boat rental and tour guide.

Meet Ms. Yhona Eugenio and her team mates.  They had their group outing at the resort for the first weekend of July. This is to celebrate the birthday of their friend Grace.

After having their lunch and a quick rest, they changed into their swimming outfits and climbed onboard to our humble vessel.

First stop will be in San Agapito, where we swam the serene blue waves and sank our feet in the white sand of the Sawang area. 

Amidst the vibrant crimson horizon where the sea meets the sky, we cant help but to admire the beauty offered by God and nature.

After the relaxing dip and photo ops, we headed to the peaceful own of San Andres. We did a little trek to see the caves, have a chat with the locals and visited the lighthouse.

Upon the cliff where the lighthouse stand, we have a great view of the Philippine sea as well as the Batangas mainland. It was breathtaking.

We also visited the Long Beach (Mahabang Buhangin) which is known for its virgin white sand. This is where we spend most of the time doing our water actvities.

And for the final stop, we dropped off the Isla Verde Tropical Friendly resort for snorkeling and diving. This will be the final stop to enjoy the view of the golden sunset, that marks the beautiful end of a remarkable day.

Truly this is one unforgettable experience they will treasure as evident in their pictures.

Thank you Ms. Yhona and friends. We hope to see you again xoxo

Islaverde Tropical Friendly Resort - 2019 UPDATE

This is our first blog post for 2019 and we would like to apologise for not updating our blog since last Christmas.  A lot has been happening and we are constantly trying to improve our facilities and complete maintenance and repairs.

It is the middle of 2019 already at Islaverde Tropical Friendly Resort, and our Habagat (monsoon season) is approaching again.  This is a popular time here as guests try to escape the heat and humidity of the city for a few days in a place where they can take a walk in the shade, or simply rest and relax around our lovely island paradise.

Since we started building our first two kubos in 2013, our thoughts have been to try to make a place where people can come to relax, but to try to have enough facilities, but still keep the price of a holiday affordable for average working people.

So we decided to have kubos as our main accommodation, with some stone units for people who want to stay in rooms that have a little more of a hotel style.  Later, because some guests wanted to camp, we added our camping ground.

Our biggest problems have always been that we have no electricity connection to the mainland grid, and we often have bad cellphone reception no matter which provider.

We began with only a few batteries for our electric power, charged by two solar panels and a diesel generator for emergency.  At first the electricity only powered Tess' Cafe and it was difficult for people to even charge their cellphones.  Now we have added more rooftop solar panels and our aim is to try to have some electric power to all stone units and kubos.

Trying to keep the resort looking attractive means that gardening and horticulture is an on-going chore here.  The grounds are leveled up in places and new plants and flowers are bought to highlight and accentuate the tropical feel of our resort. It gives this fresh ambience and natural touch that we hope will let you embrace every gift that Mother Nature has to offer.

We regularly retouch our kubos are and they are varnised with an earthly brown colour. Something that will appeal to the homely, yet traditional feeling and vibrance.

Interior designs are also added for comfort and relaxation. All this is done while trying to keep out accommodation rates at a reasonable price, so ordinary people can afford an island holiday.

At various places on the resort you will find some open swing cottages.  As part of our maintenance, we have given them an avocado green shine, something that stands out better in the crimson light. These cottages have become a popular outdoor place for guests to sit and take in the sunset views across the water, or just as a spot to relax away from summer heat.

Because snorkeling in the coral reef at the resort has become so popular, we purchased additional snorkeling gear for rent to cater to the growing needs of guests who want to enjoy an underwater adventure.

Everything about a resort is a work in progress and we are opening ourselves to more changes and improvements. It is because we want to serve our visitors better so that we hope you can have an even better experience and leave with a smile.

Hope to see you soon!

The joy of Christmas 2018

Rhea and her family spent their 2018 Christmas here with us.  They were here last Dec23-25 and spent 3 nights in our resort.

On their first day, as they were tired, after their lunch they slept for long time in the afternoon.  And when they woke Niña, their tour guide , took the family to Sawang, for snorkelling and swimming.  Niña taught the youngest daughter, Sam,  to swim and happily she learned to swim quickly. They enjoyed the white sand in sawang, and loved the marine life under the sea.

When night came and all guests had finished their dinner, they watched Niña with her fire dancing.  Everybody yelled and clappped their hands when Niña blew fire. When the bonfire was started.  They drink a few bottles, sharing stories that made their night fun.

On their second day, Dec. 24, the family woke up early to have breakfast and get ready for a boat tour.  Niña showed them the parts of the island.  They went to San Agapito, Cueva, Mahabang Buhangin and Lalaguyin.  Places they can have snorkelling and swimming and her husband, Bong, who is a free lance Photographer,  had the chance to take photos of  the places they visited.

They came back in the afternoon, and all were happy as it was Rhea's kids first time to have a boat ride. Tired from their boat tour, they slept well and woke up late.

I was in the kitchen preparing dinner, when the couple came to cook for dinner.  I asked them if they would join us for Christmas eve, but Rhea told me that they were going to bed early as they had to get up early tomorrow for trekking to Mt. Dagit-dagit. While we were in the kitchen, talking with each other I learned that her kids don't each much meat.  And, because they won't have their noche buena,  I gave them a free meal a relyenong bangus (stuffed milk fish decorated with fresh vegetables) with sauce and macaroni salad.  Rhea told me that she thinks her kids will ignore the food she prepared.  And she was right her kids finished the food I gave first!  Dinner was done and time for their bedtime.

The family woke up early and we greeted each other "Merry Christmas". All of them were excited for their adventure to Mt.  Dagit- dagit.  They met Mang Winnie, who has a house  where our guests usually stay while they exploring the mountain.  He even picks fruits for the guests to share like pomelo and coconut.  And he shared his horse with Rhea's daughter.  Sam loves horses and enjoyed her riding on the mountain.

They came back to our resort in the afternoon.  Tired but all were happy as they told us its their best Christmas vacation.   And when the night came again, they went to Wangyu's place, one of my workers and they had dinner.  Rhea's daughter, Shelley, said she enjoyed the food very much after trekking to mountain.

When they returned to the resort, they shared their stories with us and this is what Rhea wrote to us:

    Aside from the breath taking place, the warm welcome and awesome service of the resort owner and staff made our stay memorable.  Thank you for helping Bong and I make this vacation memorableand meaningful to our kids.

                                Bong and Rhea