Province of Isabela Travel Forum

Hi! I was hoping someone could tell me if there is a bus route from Isabela to Baguio. If so, which bus line, how much is the cost, and how long is the trip?

If there's none, then I guess my group would have to go back to Manila from Isabela to hop on a bus to Baguio going to Sagada. Whew! Butt-numbing, huh? That's why I want to know if there's a shorter way from Isabela to Baguio. Thank you! =)

No need to go to Manila. If your ultimate goal is to reach Sagada from Isabela, you can take a bus bound for Manila but get off at Bagabag, Nueva Vizcaya. From there, there are buses going to Banaue and from Banaue take a jeep to Bontoc and another jeep to Sagada.

I'm not sure how long is the travel time from Isabela to Bagabag (probably 2-3 hours), but from Bagabag to Banaue it's about 1-1.5 hours, Banaue-Bontoc is 2 hours, and Bontoc-Sagada is 1 hour.

If you plan to go straight to sagada, from isabela go down at solano, nueva vizcaya.. take bus or jeep to banawe (less than two hours) then jeep to bontoc (2.5 hrs) then transfer jeep to sagada (less than an hour)..the last trip from banawe to bontoc i think is before lunch .. from b bontoc to sagada is 3 or 4pm..there are also buses from banawe and i think it will also pass via vizcaya

It depends where you are in Isabela. There are ordinary buses (Vonvon) that starts in Quirino (Isabela) all the way to Bontoc. Another one is the Dangwa that will be coming from Tabuk passing by Bagabag in Nueva Viscaya. These are the same buses that will stop in Banaue to pick up passengers there.

Otherwise, the suggestions above is the alternative. From Isabella going to Baguio to Sagada is a roundabout way.

If your group is big enough, you may try to hire(pakyaw) a jeepney in Banaue straight to Sagada.There is a set price for jeepney hire in banaue to the different tourist spots in the area like Batad drop off,Hungduan, Bangaan, Mayuyao. But I'm not sure about the Banaue -Sagada trip.

bong

to go to sagada:

1. got to cauayan(not sure of the spelling). there is a central terminal there for buses. the emmanuel bus plying the tabuk-bontoc route will go there to pick up passengers. again, i'm not sure what time it will be there but it will be morning around 8am or 9am. take the emmanuel bus directly to bontoc and from bontoc take the sagada jeepneys.

2. go to santiago. either take the von-von bus or the av trans. again, i'm not sure of the exact location of the terminal for these buses but i bet the tricycle drivers know of it. of what i recall, these buses have the same terminal with the jeepneys going to paracelis, mountain province. and the terminal is somewhere near the market. the av trans usually have their breakfast in santiago, around 7am or 8am. after which they go directly to bontoc.

Could be earlier Ichurya-a. All I know is the Dangwa passes by Banaue around 10AM and the Vonvon between 11-12 noon :) Safe bet is 3 hours travel time from Isabella to Banaue including stops.

@reeya

i think its the other way around. usually the von von bus arrives here in bontoc earlier around 2pm or 3pm while emmanuel bus arrives in bontoc around 4pm. the emmanuel bus stops at lagawe, ifugao for lunch at around 11am and will pass by banaue, ifugao at around 1pm or 1pm.

Asianbelle, thank you. That was very useful. I've seen your name pop up from time to time in the Sagada board. You give great suggestions. =)

Anyway, I gather from what you and everyone else here says that the best way is Vizcaya-Banaue-Bontoc-Sagada. Someone already pointed out that going to Baguio is the roundabout way if coming from Vizcaya. I wasn't aware of that, so thank you! I guess we can just take the Sagada-Baguio route on the way home.

BTW, just an update. My group will now leave from Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya, instead of Isabela. Does anyone know where Aritao is in relation to all the other Vizcaya towns mentioned? Is there a bus from Aritao to Banaue?

Thank you, everyone!

Aritao is about 4-5 towns away from Bagabag. Buses going to Banaue from Manila pass by Aritao. If I recall right, there's a road leading to Baguio from Aritao though I'm not sure if it's already developed or passable to commuters.

Ichurya-a, hmmm.. it could be the beer messing with my memory :)) Or could it be there's more than 1 trips for each bus? Can anyone check with this?

Aritao - Banaue :
Ride a jeepney going to Solano (2 hrs max). Find the Jeepney stand for those going to Banaue/Lagawe. If you get at to Solano earlier than 3PM you might still be able to catch a Jeepney going straight to Banaue. otherwise a Jeep to Lagawe then another jeep to Banaue. OR, catch the bus we were all talking about from Bagabag Junction (another jeepney ride from Solano) but I guess that is more of a challenge