Heritage Village and Weaving in Hungduan, Ifugao

• How to get there
• How to go back
• Important Notes

On my first time in Hungduan, Ifugao the place that I really enjoyed going was the Heritage Village. It was lively and there were a lot to see in terms of how life in Hungduan really is. At that time it was their Tungoh Ad Hungduan, an annual activity on the third week of April and I think that is the best time to visit Hungduan.

In the Heritage Village before I met two travelling merchants who went around the Philippines buying and selling.

There were also craftsmen who made wood carving and baskets. One of the most memorable craftsmen last year was the guy who was carving trophies for their Rice Terraces Marathon.

Each native house depicts each barangay of the municipality and if you look closer you’ll notice that each house is unique from each other.

This is also an advantage when people go to the Heritage Village during Tungo Ad Hungduan as they will know where to gather depending on which barangay they came from.

They also present dance and games during the Tungo Ad Hungduan.

And my personal favorite, Hungduan Climbathon.

Compared to my first visit to the Heritage Village, the second time I was a week to late for the Tungoh Ad Hungduan. The Heritage Village was not as lively as my first time there. But it was still good to go there. The quietness of the place, the cool air and the native houses are conducive for a long quality conversation.

If Sagada is known for its weaving then it should watch out for the Weaving of Hungduan. I can attest to the quality of their weaving as I have bought many weaved products from the Cordillera, some were good and some easily became defective. Hungduan weaving has the same good quality of Sagada weaving, but Hunduan weaving is significantly cheaper.

Prices of some of the products in Hungduan Weaving

• 15 Pesos/piece – Coin Purse (Sagada weaving coin purse costs 40 Pesos/piece)
• 20 Pesos/piece – Pencil Case
• 35 Pesos/piece – Wristlet

You can also see the staff working and weaving the cloth. I even saw one who used a ruler to measure to see if the quality of her weaving was correct.

The only disadvantage of buying Hungduan Weaving is its availability. The Weaving Center at the side of the Heritage Village is only open from Mondays to Friday, 8AM to 5PM. So if you want to buy their weaving have a day to visit the center on a weekday. Though I’m not sure if their open on holidays that fall on a weekend.

There’s also a historical marker nearby. It marks the town where Artemio Ricarte, the man known as the Father of the Philippines Army, was first buried.

Nice place for a marker as it the view is Mount Napulawan.

The Heritage Village, Weaving Center and the Historical Marker are all located at the Municipal Hall of Hungduan, Ifugao.

The Tourism Office is also located there.

How to get there

From Banaue, you can ride jeepneys at the front of Ohayami Station to the Poblacion of Hungduan. Do not ride the jeepneys that will only go to Hapao that is still very far from the Poblacion. The jeepney availability is from 1PM to 5PM. Fare is 50 Pesos per person and Travel Time is 2 hours. Tell the driver to drop you at the Municipal Hall.

You can also rent a tricycle from Banaue for a day trip in Hungduan. You can check more information about the transportation from Banaue here.

From Hapao, you can ride a tricycle to get to the Municipal Hall of Hungduan. Fare is 150 Pesos per tricycle. Travel Time is 30-40 minutes. Since the road to the Municipal Hall of Hungduan is steep from the town proper of Poblacion, you’ll have to rearrange your seating arrangement inside the tricycle so that you are all closer to the motorcycle. The closer everyone is to the motorcycle, the higher the chance the tricycle will not stop halfway on the uphill.

You can also ride the jeepneys coming from Banaue to get to the Municipal Hall of Hungduan.

How to go back

Go down the steep road until you arrive at the town proper of Poblacion. You’ll know you are there when you see lots of stores and there is a line of tricycle.

From here you can ride a tricycle to Hapao. Fare is 30 Pesos per person for a minimum of 3 pax.

Or you can ride the jeepney going back to Banaue, Ifugao. The schedule of the jeepney can be found here.

Notes

• There’s a sari-sari store located near the Municipal Hall.
• Since the jeepney arrives in the afternoon and leaves in the morning, you might want to stay on the lodging around Hungduan.

I’ll let you in on a little secret, if you want to sleep on the native houses in the Heritage Village you can do so by contacting the local tourism office at [email protected] and [email protected].

Let’s make an effort to preserve Hungduan, Ifugao as enchanting as I have experienced it.

• Keep your trash and throw it on proper disposal bins.
• Respect the locals.
• Keep the noise low as not to disturb locals and other travellers.
• Be mindful of others.
• Do not vandalize.
• And most of all, be contented with the simple life they have. What happens in the city should stay in the city.
• To trip organizers, whether personal or professional, you are responsible to educate the people you are with about responsible travelling and encourage them to practice it before going to any destination.

Let us not change Hungduan, let it change us.

This post is part of my 12 for 2012 Travel Project that aims to create travel guides to help travellers go around the Philippines.