Have lunch on a bamboo raft as you float along a lake! It doesn’t get any dreamier than this here at Lake Pandin… except, when the weather refuses to cooperate, which is exactly what happened to us!
But no complaints! After all, there’s no such thing as bad weather when you’re having an adventure!
Getting There:
We’re all about looking for quick escapes from Manila and this is one of our latest finds! Lake Pandin is located at San Pablo, Laguna and is around 2.5 hours away from Manila.
We drove from Manila and got our directions via Waze (searchable as Lake Pandin.) But it kinda gets tricky once you arrive!
The Nitty-Gritty Details: Arrival
So arriving at Pandin wasn’t as easy as we thought. Unlike most places, you can’t just drive, park and walk to the lake.
Our friends who live in San Pablo were the ones who arranged this activity for us. They were in touch with a woman named Tina (Mobile: +63917-9952983). They also paid directly to her for our raft rentals and everything.
When we arrived where Waze told us to stop, we saw a number of people holding signs that said “Pandin Lake Parking Here.” In other words, there was no official designated parking space.
We ended up parking our car at a house whose owner was called Manang Tina (same name as our contact Tina but different person!) It was just one of many different parking areas. This was just the nearest we found and was vouched for by our contact, Tina.
1km Hike on “Private Land”
My husband said he can’t believe that I forgot to mention to him that there was a 1km hike! Haha!! OOPS.
So yes, Tina told us to take this route. There’s a 1km hike through a private road. Because it’s “private land,” they charged us 50php per person, even the kids. We were told that you can haggle this but they didn’t let us haggle that time.
They also said it will take us 15 mins but I think it took us more than that, probably because we had kids. To be honest, the hike up wasn’t that bad. But because it was raining when we went, it was particularly muddy and slippery on the way down. No doubt, the best time to do this is when it’s sunny but not too hot. Three boys helped bring our things up. We gave tips.
However, it’s also good to note that this is only a temporary situation (as we were told!) I believe this wasn’t the path before and they’re planning to fix it as well. But, I have no other details. I am also not entirely sure if there is another way.
(Don’t forget to read the tips at the bottom of this article.)
Getting a Raft
Our friends paid directly to “Tina” upon arrival. Here are the rates:
- Raft Rental only: 220php/person
- Raft + Lunch: 400php/person
- Free for kids below 6 years old
They had life vests on all the rafts for anyone who wanted to jump on the lake and swim.
We waited for the rain to settle down a little and then off we went!
When the Weather Doesn’t Cooperate
So it wasn’t exactly THE perfect day to go have lunch on a raft. It was raining and particularly windy. I wasn’t dressed for the weather AT ALL (haha!). Kudos to the kuyas who steered our raft to the tree-covered area despite the harsh winds.
Our destination. The view was nonetheless gorgeous despite everything!
This is hardly the group picture we wanted, raincoats and all, but you make do with what you were given with! Haha!
Lunch on a Raft
The rain was on and off but thankfully the bamboo roof held up (haha) and we hardly got wet! Yay! Now it’s time to feast! We got the lunch package and this is what they prepared for us!
My faaaavorite! This is apparently a kind of fern called “Pako.” It was my first time to try it and it was sooo good! I must’ve eaten half of the plate. Oops. Hehe.
Our friends decided to bring home-cooked food for the kids, just in case they were going to be picky about the food. Thankfully though, that’s never been a problem with Luke. By God’s grace, he’s not hard to feed and eats all kinds of food. But he didn’t mind having adobo chicken either! 😉
What to do in Lake Pandin
Lake Pandin’s iconic spot is this tire swing by the trees. There’s only one of these so people all took turns. The kids had fun playing!
You can go swimming but we weren’t brave enough to do that because of the weather. I’m sure it would have been lovely though had it been sunny!
All in all, we just really had a relaxing time at the lake. No agenda whatsoever! We just ate, played a little at the swing and we went back! A peaceful afternoon with wonderful people. Wouldn’t have it any other way!
Tips when visiting Lake Pandin with Kids:
Actually, most of these are just general tips, whether or not you’re visiting with kids!
- Wear your swim attire before you board the raft. Then just bring coverups. There’s obviously no changing area once you’re in the middle of the lake! Haha.
- Bring only your essentials. Space in the raft is limited. Also, it’s hard to hike if you’re bringing so many things.
- Wear waterproof shoes that hopefully has a good grip. Water will get inside your shoes for sure when you’re in the raft but you need the grip as you go down the muddy path.
- Optional: If you have smaller kids, I would highly suggest babywearing for the hike! Bring a carrier.
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Looking for family-friendly places to visit near Metro Manila? We’re also on the lookout!