Kat in lounge sofa in San Rafael River Adventure
Philippines

Day tour at San Rafael River Adventure

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San Rafael River Adventure is one of the top resorts in Bulacan. This lakeside accommodation features infinity pools, glamping tents, and glass cabins with private pools. It’s also a popular option for day tours from Manila.

Last November 2018, my friend Steff and I went on a day tour at San Rafael River Adventure. We’d already seen social media posts about San Rafael River Adventure before, and it seemed very beautiful and — yes, Instagrammable — so we were pretty excited about it. Here’s our experience!

Our stay at San Rafael River Adventure

We arrived at the resort just before lunch time. Originally, we reserved for a kubo which is good for 4 people, but the receptionist asked us if we wanted to get a glamping tent instead since there were only 2 of us and it’s cheaper. So we checked out the glamping tents (regular and “with a twist”, which refers to a glamping tent in a raft by the river). We chose the regular glamping tent because although staying by the river is a curiosity, we don’t want to keep climbing up/down the stairs to the river and it was humid there.

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Our regular glamping tent is easily accessible, very comfy and breezy. The mattresses are at a good height from the floor, there are pillows and towels, as well as a fan inside. There’s also an outlet for charging. There’s an outdoor table and grill. It’s not the glam I had in mind, but it’s way better than my previous camping experiences and for me it’s perfect!

Glamping tent in San Rafael River Adventure
Our glamping tent – complete with outdoor table and grill.

By this time we were already starting so we ordered food — pinaputok na tilapia, pork sisig and sinampalukang manok. Steff also started the grill for the marinated chicken she brought.

I like the food in San Rafael River Adventure because it’s good and reasonably priced. This is a big plus points for me because even though it’s in our culture to eat & eat, there’s a noticeable lack of quality local restaurants.

We liked everything we ordered here, especially the pork sisig and sinampalukang manok (which is also recommended in other blogs). We also had fruit shakes to cool off the afternoon.

Food in restaurant of San Rafael River Adventure
Pork sisig, pinaputok na tilapia, sinampalukang manok.
Steff grilling meat
Steff grilling chicken that we’d brought.

After the lunch and a quick siesta, we started exploring the farm resort. It’s huge and it can be a bit tiring to walk around. We saw at least three different couples doing prenups.

There are swings and chairs you can relax on. We went down to the river and noticed there wasn’t much activity there; it was very still. It’s kinda weird because I thought the river activities were the main selling point of San Rafael River Adventure, but I guess on that day guests just wanted to relax — and take pictures, of course.

Signage in San Rafael River Adventure
San Rafael River Adventure, Bulacan
Signage in front of reception area.
Farm in San Rafael River Adventure
Farm inside the resort.
San Rafael River Adventure, Bulacan
The river.
Water activities in San Rafael River Adventure
Area for water activities.
Hangout place in San Rafael River Adventure
Place to hang out.

There were a lot of areas perfect for Instagram, so I can understand why this popular among millennials as well.

Kat in lounge sofa in San Rafael River Adventure
Me in this picturesque lounge sofa.

Finally, we tried out the infinity pool! The pool is 5 feet deep, I think, because it’s up to my nose. The water is lukewarm and it felt nice to dip in. There’s also a kiddie pool here. I like the blue-green shade of the water pool because it blends perfectly with the natural backdrop of trees and the river.

Infinity pool in San Rafael River Adventure
Infinity pool.
Infinity pool in San Rafael River Adventure
Overview of the infinity pool.
Infinity pool in San Rafael River Adventure
Pool in San Rafael River Adventure

After the swim, we ordered pancit bihon and beers from merienda. Again, I loved that it was breezy and peaceful. I wanted to take another nap, but alas it was time to go home.

All in all, this is a great farm resort and nature retreat. It is also family friendly since there’s lots of activities for kids to enjoy and its easy to move around the place.

How to get to San Rafael River Adventure

Here are the commute directions to San Rafael River Adventure.

  • Ride a Baliwag Transit bus in Cubao en route to Baliuag, Bulacan (P75). Travel time is about 1.5 hour depending on traffic. Get off at Baliuag terminal, which is the final stop.
  • Rent a private tricycle to the resort (P200 good for 3-4 people). Travel time is about 30-40 minutes.

It’s also possible to ride a jeepney in Baliuag to get to the resort, but we didn’t get much info about this as we don’t know if it will take too long.

You don’t need to ask the tricycle to fetch you in a later time. There are tricycles waiting outside the resort to take you back to the center in Baliuag. Same rate applies. Just take note that the Baliwag Transit buses going to Cubao is up until 6:30PM only, so if you’re going on a day tour like us, check out at 5:30PM to make sure you won’t miss it.

Things to do in San Rafael River Adventure

There are a number of activities you can do in the resort. Here are the free ones:

  • Use of infinity pool and swimming falls
  • Kayaking
  • Paddle boarding
  • Floating pool
  • Inflatable slides with blob

Other activities such as watersports, KTV or bicycle riding, horseback riding, vegetable picking and others have a corresponding fee.

San Rafael River Adventure rates

Here are the current San Rafael River Adventure resort rates (Updated as of 2019):

Day tours

There is no entrance fee. Cottage or tent rental is required.

  • Kubo/cottage: P3000 (good for 4 people)
  • Glamping tent: P2000, options are either regular or “with a twist” (good for 2 people)

Day tours are from 7AM to 6PM.

Glamping tents in San Rafael River Adventure
Glamping tents.

Overnight stays

For overnight stays, you can go for a glass houses or treehouses. It’s a bit expensive in my opinion (P10,000 – 25,000+), but I suppose it’s okay if you’re with a large group.

Here are the rates for glasshouses:

  • Day tour (weekdays, 7:30AM to 6PM) or night tour (7:30PM to 6AM): P7500 (good for 4 pax, max of 6 pax with additional P1000 per pax)
  • Overnight tour (7:30PM to 6PM the next day): P15,000 (good for 4 pax, max of 6 pax with additional P1500 per pax)
Glasshouse accommodation in San Rafael River Adventure
Glasshouse.

Budget and expenses

Overall, our budget (including transportation and food) for 2 people is about P1800-2000 per person. We ordered a lot of food plus merienda.

For a day tour, a safe budget for 2 people would be P1500-2000 per person.

Things to know before you go

  • Make sure to make an online reservation. You’ll be required to make 50% downpayment to secure your slot.
  • Bringing food is allowed (no corkage fee). We also recommend trying out the food in their restaurant. We liked all of our orders, particularly the sinampalukang manok. Each dish is reasonably priced at P200-350 and good for sharing among 2-3 people.
  • Aside from day tours, there are also night tours as well as overnight stays offered.
  • If you want to visit here for the pool, we suggest going on weekdays because the pool is medium sized. I can only imagine guests crowding in there on weekends.

P.S. Don’t forget to drop by Bulacan’s pride, Cafe Apolonio, on your way back to Manila!

Contact

San Rafael River Adventure: Official website / Facebook

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13 Comments

  • Mike

    San Rafael is a high end resort with a low quality staff. In May/June we made arrangements with San Rafael to get the Glass Tree House. We were told it was available and San Rafael sent us a confirmation message saying we had the the Tree House on overnight Tour along with billing information. A few hours later San Rafael calls us and tells us they are overbooked and we are not getting the Glass Tree house.

    Then in Nov 2019 once again we contacted San Rafael and were told the Stilt Glass Cottage was available for the date requested. We made arrangements and got a confirmation message confirming we did indeed have the Stilt Glass Cottage on the day requested. Then as before a few hours later San Rafael calls up and says they are overbooked and we are not getting said cottage.

    San Rafael is very unorganized and this should not have happened twice as it did.

  • Blair villanueva

    Wow this is an incredible place to reconnect with nature. Gorgeous and i like their infinity pool 🙂
    Saving this for future trip!

  • Diamond in the Rough Blog

    I’ve been seeing San Rafael River in my feed and travel groups but it’s my first time to read a review about this. The river doesn’t look any special but I like the scenery around. Glamping is also a nice activity. Maybe I’ll go here for the glamping and infinity pool 🙂

  • Karla

    You had me at pinaputok na tilapia, pork sisig and sinampalukang manok! I’ve been wanting to visit San Rafael River Adventure but I want to stay for two days. I think one day is not enough to experience all the fun activities they offer!

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