San Juan, La Union, Philippines (Top 5 Places in the Philippines, 1/5)

Sunset at the beach

After coming back to the States post-Peace Corps, people often ask me for travel suggestions if they're planning a trip to the Philippines, so I’m going to post a five-part series of my favorite places in the Philippines based on the two years I lived there. This is the first post in that series.

San Juan: The place to surf all day and dance all night

San Juan is a fun beach town in the province of La Union. It was only three hours away from my site and one of my Peace Corps friends lived in the area, so I would occasionally visit for a short getaway. San Juan is known as THE place to go for surfing in Luzon (the island Manila is located on). If you’re coming from Manila, it’s about six hours by bus.

Good waves for beginners, but also good enough for surf competitions

Sometimes a bunch of us Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) would gather and since we were tight on cash, we would cram into a hotel room. I would definitely recommend getting a place by the beach if you want to stay out late, so you can easily walk to and from the beach. Accommodations range from nice houses with private pools to rooms that are real cheap and a bit sketchy. I camped once in a tent, but it got quite hot once the sun was out and my flip-flops (which I left outside of the tent) got stolen, so I don't really recommend camping.

A group of PCVs cramming into one hotel room

San Juan often hosts surf competitions followed by dance parties at night with live DJs right on the beach. In the daytime, you can rent a surfboard and take lessons (most affordable surfing lessons I've ever taken), or just lounge around, relax, and drink coconut water straight from a coconut (so refreshing!). The locals are super friendly and chill, and there are also lots of backpackers that come through that area, so if you're traveling through, you'll likely make some new friends!

Relaxing with two of my PCV friends on the beach

Part of why San Juan made it on to my "Top 5 favorite places in the Philippines" is because of all the great memories I’ve had there, but if you like to surf or party (or both), I’m pretty sure you’ll make some great memories there yourself!