Pagudpud: Saud Beach

Blue Lagoon just wasn't what we expected. The beach itself was beautiful and the ocean was a stunning deep blue, but Hanna's Resort made it feel like a theme park. They had SpongeBob SquarePants statues and a miniature Statue of Liberty on the hill. Their food was overpriced and subpar, yet the only real place to eat. We expected Pagudpud to feel a little more like a deserted island with delicious food and drinks everywhere.

I had written down Saud beach in my journal as the "Best beach in Luzon" so after one night at Blue Lagoon, we took our bags and rode a tricycle 45 minutes back in the direction we had came. There were tons of smaller resorts to choose from that just felt like hostels and nice hotels. At least here we had some options of better places to stay and choices of food. We wanted a place on the beach, so we walked through the buildings and VOILÁ!

fishermen

 double rainbow

totally worth the $17 each per night

still

treasure

not a single soul as far as the eye can see

We took a boat out across the bay to see the giant windmills up close. The water was crazy choppy on the way back and we got soaked! 

cheese-ball smiles run in the family

 wind power

I don't think Filipinos drink much. I most stuck to beer (San Miguel is made in Manila and pretty good) because any time we ordered a mixed drink it was terrible. My favorite was our rum and lemon frozen margarita... Luckily the liquor is extremely cheap and so we just made our own drinks on the beach.

$3 bottle of rum and $1 can of juice

Definitely the most amazing beach I've ever seen and thanks to Evangeline Resort we had delicious food to go with it. (We ate there for almost every meal-so good and so cheap!)

two stuffed squid for about $7

Filipino-American mango for breakfast

Saud beach was perfection. Empty beaches, clear warm water with sandy bottoms, delicious food, and epic sunsets. If you ever find yourself on Luzon, I promise it's worth the trip north.

I'm gonna miss this place