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A Road-Tripping Food and Terrain Trail Through Ilocos Norte

This is a source-faithful, three-day road-trip plan built around the creator’s route through Ilocos Norte: coastal arrival, Laoag and Paoay food stops, Batac empanadas, Paoay Sand Dunes, and Pasuquin bread. A private ve…

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Travel inspiration behind this plan

The Philippines’ Most Unique Coastal Terrain [EP. 15] Watch on YouTube

Plan notes

Useful context before you go

This is a source-faithful, three-day road-trip plan built around the creator’s route through Ilocos Norte: coastal arrival, Laoag and Paoay food stops, Batac empanadas, Paoay Sand Dunes, and Pasuquin bread. A private vehicle is strongly implied by the route and by the long drive from Luna toward Laoag. Preserve time for weather: heavy rain made the road journey longer, and the sand dunes were notably better once conditions cleared. For food sampling, prioritize the dishes specifically identified here: Ilocos empanada with green papaya, mung beans, Ilocano longganisa and egg; miki; pancit bihon; togue; pinakbet; bagnet; crispy canton; biscocho; pan de coco; ube cheese bread; and mulberry ice cream. Confirm current opening hours, road conditions, and 4x4 availability locally because no booking or operating details were supplied.

Itinerary highlights

What is in this plan

Days 1-2: Laoag, Paoay and Batac Food Trail

Use Laoag as the practical overnight base after the long, rain-affected drive. The next full day combines Paoay’s UNESCO-listed church and plaza with a deliberate empanada comparison through Paoay and Batac. Free parking was specifically noted at the church, while the Batac Riverside food court offers many stalls in one stop.

  1. Maharlika HighwayMaharlika Highway, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Follow the Pan-Philippine Highway section of the route toward Laoag. The journey from Luna was described as nearly 200 km, with winding roads and heavy rain adding substantial travel time.

  2. Paoay ChurchPaoay Church, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Begin the heritage and food walk at this early-1700s UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its massive buttresses illustrate the earthquake-Baroque adaptation of European church design to local conditions.

  3. Paoay Church PlazaPaoay Church Plaza, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Spend time in the broad plaza surrounding Paoay Church, where locals and visitors gather. The stop also revealed local vendors, clay jars, changing Ilocano language, and unusually frequent public trash bins.

  4. Paoay Church Plaza VendorsPaoay Church Plaza Vendors, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Try the dragon fruit ice cream from the local vendor near the church grounds. The flavor was singled out as especially good; the same plaza also had locally made sunglasses priced at 100 pesos per pair.

  5. Paoay Church Empanada StallEmpanada Stall across from Paoay Church, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Use the stall across from Paoay Church as the first benchmark in the empanada comparison. Order a freshly fried classic Ilocos empanada and eat it with suka; the filling tradition includes green papaya, mung beans, Ilocano longganisa and a whole egg.

  6. Gloomy's EmpanadaGloomy's Empanada, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Stop at Gloomy's for a second comparison. This branch has several fillings and combinations, drive-through service beside the highway, hand-shaped pastries fried fresh, and miki, the flat egg-noodle soup in pork broth. The empanada here was described as lighter-seasoned, with crunchy vegetables and sweet, chili-scented Ilocos vinegar.

  7. Batac Riverside EmpanadaBatac Riverside Empanada, Batac, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Compare the two earlier empanadas with the Batac Riverside version. This open-air riverside food court has around 15 empanada stalls and other local vendors, making it the broadest tasting stop in the route.

  8. Glory's EmpanadaGlory's Empanada, Batac Riverside, Batac, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Choose Glory's classic empanada at the riverside stop. The recipe’s longganisa-and-whole-egg combination was described as central to modern Ilocos empanada, while the thin wrapper, rapid preparation and high turnover produced the freshest and least oily result of the tasting.

  9. SM City LaoagSM City Laoag, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Use the provincial SM mall for the practical restock described on the route. The stop was used to buy essentials, including trash bags, and happened to include a live performance inside the department store.

Day 3: Paoay Dunes, Laoag Ilocano Cooking and Pasuquin Bread

Keep this day flexible around weather and daylight. The dunes were visited with a driver and guide in a roughly one-hour 4x4 package, with sunset providing the strongest light. Finish with Laoag’s Ilocano dishes, then drive roughly 20 km north to Pasuquin Bakery for freshly baked specialties.

  1. Paoay Sand DunesPaoay Sand Dunes, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Take the guided 4x4 ride across the Paoay Sand Dunes. The package described included both driver and guide and lasted about an hour, with repeated photo stops along the route.

  2. Paoay Sand Dunes ViewpointPaoay Sand Dunes Viewpoint, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Ask the driver to pause at the dune viewpoints for photographs. The ride crosses an enormous coastal belt of sand formed by river sediment, sea movement and seasonal winds.

  3. Paoay Sand Dunes Sunset AreaPaoay Sand Dunes Sunset Area, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Time the dunes for the late-day glow if conditions allow. The sky began changing color during the ride, and the combination of warm sand, sea breeze and sunset was identified as one of the trip’s most memorable moments.

  4. Paoay Sand Dunes Sandboarding AreaPaoay Sand Dunes Sandboarding Area, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Try sandboarding at the designated slope. Two runs were enough to demonstrate the activity, with the soft-sand climb back up proving more tiring than the descent; the creator specifically wished for a higher run.

  5. La PreciosaLa Preciosa, Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Order the Ilocano specialties specifically highlighted here: pinakbet, poqui-poqui, bagnet and crispy canton. The pinakbet was described as soupy and strongly flavored, the bagnet as crispy pork belly, and the crispy canton as especially enjoyable. Rice pops and instant miki were also available as take-home snacks.

  6. Pasuquin BakeryPasuquin Bakery, Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte, Philippines

    Drive north to this roadside bakery, approximately 20 km beyond the Laoag area according to the route. Buy the soft, anise-flavored biscocho, plus the pan de coco and ube cheese bread mentioned at the counter. The hot biscocho was sold in a large 90-peso bag in the account.