A FAMILY IN THE NORTH
In this Blog. I'll be talking about my "Joiners" experience in Ilocos Philippines with my Parents last January 2018. Hopefully, you'll get some helpful tips and ideas that you can use if you're planning to join a "Joiners Travel Tour."
So to start my story, I remember I was just scanning my Facebook timeline when I saw a picture of a windmill. Yes, that's how it started LoL 😂. I realize that in the Philippines, there are only a few places that have a windmill and the first place that came into my mind was the famous Ilocos in the Northern Philippines.
I have an idea of what a "joiner" is but I don't have much information about it so I decided to find out more. Basically, a joiners tour is a group of traveler who doesn't know each other. I hope I'm right haha 😁. Though most Travel and Tour Companies offer packages for groups, the majority of the joiners are strangers. I like the idea of meeting new people. The world is a big place and seeing places and meeting new people is very refreshing for me.
So I found King and Joy Travel and Tours on Facebook and I saw that the reviews are good. They seemed legit so I contacted the company to inquire though they have a website and most of the information you need is already there. I just want to make sure that I can easily reach them whenever I need them. So they replied and that's when I decided to book a reservation. There's a 500 Pesos reservation fee per person so I paid 1,500 for me and my Parents. The rest of the payment will be given at the meeting location on the day of departure. I paid a total of 8,400 pesos for the three of us. It's 3 days 2 nights Ilocos Tour with Accommodation Package.
The meeting location was at the Parking Lot of Landmark Quezon City and the transportation is Air-Conditioned Van. The Van is comfy and they already assigned your seat so you don't need to worry. The seating arrangement will depend on the number of groups. I and my parents were seated together because we were three. If you're alone most likely you'll sit in the front beside the driver. Our driver was very approachable and accommodating. There are three Van in a convoy traveling with us (Same Company). We departed at 10:00 PM Thursday Night and arrived in Vigan at 6:00 AM and they dropped us off at a restaurant for a breakfast on pax account. But don't worry, there's a complimentary breakfast at the hotel on the 2nd and 3rd days.
The tour starts after breakfast. You can see the list of the places on the tour on their website. The detailed itinerary is also there. There are some places that you won't get to visit sometimes, especially if the weather is bad but they are kind enough to take us somewhere so the time was not wasted.
After a long day, they sent us to our accommodation. They already have an assigned place for us. Our accommodation was a house and the room is comfortable and air-conditioned. There are two beds, one for me and one for my parents. The place is also near Robinsons Mall so we decided to visit the Mall, too. The free breakfast on our 2nd day was a bowl of delicious fried rice with a sunny-side-up egg and a hotdog. But the coffee is not included.
The 2nd and 3rd Days were the same. We visited a lot of good places that I have only seen on TV before. I like traveling locally because you'll get to see and experience the different sides of our culture.
I really enjoyed my joiners' experience with my parents and I highly recommend King and Joy Travel and Tours. I enjoyed their service and they're very accommodating and easy to talk to. The driver was also good and pleasant.
We also visited some "Pasalubong Stores" before we go back to Manila on our last day. There are also some places that we visited on our way to Manila like the Santorini of Ilocos and the Grape Farm. We weren't able to get into Santorini of Ilocos because there's only a limited number of people that are allowed to get in and by the time we get there, the place is already full. However, we enjoyed walking on the Grape Farm and they even sell products made of grapes there. There are a lot of stores along the way and our driver is kind enough to let us drop by at the stores. We arrived in Manila Sunday Night.
My overall experience was great and I will surely do this again. I encourage everyone to travel and see the world. The world is like a book and those who do not travel only read a page. Please watch my VLOGS on my YouTube Channel "jezzdoit VLOG" and visit my website www.jezzdoit.com
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I hope this helps. Stay safe wherever you are. Spread Good Vibes and be KIND.
"If you wanna do something, #jezzdoit!"
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