Here's another long overdue post of our family's overnight stay in Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar last November 2014.  That was five months ago already, I know.  I was actually planning not blog about it anymore but I realized that our family only gets the chance to enjoy a vacation like this once a year, so I cannot afford to miss a blogpost of such precious memories with my loved ones.

We have never really known or heard of Las Casas Filipinas before until my husband came across their promo offer in Deal Grocer.  Their super "sulit" overnight stay for 6 including breakfast which costs Php 6,000 was perhaps the greatest deal we had ever found online!  So without thinking twice, we bought the voucher and braved the long drive to Bataan.

Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar is a heritage park owned by Architect Jose Acuzar of the San Jose Builders, who bought several old houses from different parts of the Philippines and transported it to his property in Bagac, Bataan (which is approximately 3 hrs away from Manila) to make a Spanish colonial inspired village.  This place is really perfect for kids' educational tour/ field trip and for people who have great love for history and culture, like my dearest husband.

Upon arrival, we were greeted with a smile by the front desk officers wearing the traditional "baro't saya".  We actually came here at about 10am which was too early for check-in but they assisted us anyway and allowed us to get into our room to have some rest.  We were also given a map of the vicinity and several coupons for claiming our welcome drinks and breakfast for the next morning.

We stayed at Paseo Escolta's Executive Suite which is basically a two story house with a loft type bedroom on the second floor and a living and dining area on the ground level.  It also has two bathrooms, one of which is big enough to have a tub where you can soak yourself and enjoy a relaxing bubble bath after a day's tiring tour.  This accommodation is really spacious for 6 persons at a rate of Php 1,000/head.  Now that's what you call value for money!

By afternoon, we joined a guided walking tour around the village where we learned about the untold stories and history of each heritage house.  We also got the chance to enter some famous houses which will surely make you appreciate the beauty of vintage architecture and design.  By the way, please take note that you will be required to remove your foot wear before entering the house so better wear something that's easy to slip on/off.

Among the 27 heritage houses, the most popular and most expensive place to stay-in is the Casa Bizantina with a rate of Php 150,000/night.  It is a three storey building with 7 huge bedrooms complete with butler service and Hermes toiletries.  So that explains their 6-digit accommodation rate.  I hope someday we'll get the chance to experience how it feels to be a VIP in Casa Bizantina.  I better start playing the lottery to get that chance!

The walking tour lasted for approximately one hour which left us all tired and hungry so we decided to have dinner at La Bella Teodora before calling it a day.  La Bella Teodora is an Italian Restaurant located in Casa Biñan which was originally owned by Teodora Alonzo's family.  The food was perfectly good but a little bit pricey.  It's actually fine to pay a little bit more for as long as you get your money's worth.  And that's basically what's good with La Bella, you not only get to enjoy their authentic Italian cuisine but their beautiful music and awesome customer service as well.  Satisfaction guaranteed!

The next morning, we had our breakfast at Cafe Marivent in Casa Unisan.  While La Bella Teodora offers authentic Italian cuisine, Cafe Marivent offers traditional Filipino and Spanish cuisines.  However, their breakfast menu has only two options, it's either longganisa or daing na bangus with sinangag, scrambled egg, watermelon, and orange juice.  The food tastes good but I find their serving amount a little bit small (or maybe it's just my appetite as a breastfeeding mom a.k.a. "kain kargador").

Aside from the beautiful architecture of the heritage houses and buildings (which I'm pretty sure you would never fail to appreciate), the clear blue skies, the crystal clear waters of their "batis" inspired swimming pool, and the cool breeze of the wind that blows as you walk along the beach make this place a perfect place for rest and relaxation.

There are still a lot of ongoing construction in the area - including this church.  I bet this heritage resort will really make a great destination wedding!  I can just imagine a Filipiniana themed wedding for such picture perfect place.  Oh, Las Casas Filipinas!  You are making me feel like wanting to get married again!

This heritage village is really amazing, you would feel like you have traveled back in the old Spanish times.  My husband was so in love with Las Casas to the point that he told me he wanted to retire in this place.  I'm sure this is not going to be our first and last time in Las Casas Filipinas!  Try to pay them a visit too and experience a no ordinary out-of-town getaway.  Believe me, the long drive to Bagac, Bataan will be worth it.

Manila Address: Mezzanine Floor Victoria Towers Timog Avenue, Quezon City, Philippines

Phone No.  +63 2 332 5338 / +63 2 332 5286

E-mail:  reserve@lascasasfilipinas.com

Website:  http://lascasasfilipinas.com