Kabayan, Benguet has plans to establish its tourism circuit linking its various tourist destinations.
Mayor Florencio Bantales, Jr. said the tourism circuit called “Kabayan Yellow Trail” will soon be launched as part of the municipality’s effort to strengthen its tourism sector.
Bantales said the circuit will start from the Kabayan Museum featuring artifacts of the municipality, going to the
caves, then tourists will follow the Agno River to view the rice paddies where the kintoman heirloom rice is planted.
Afterwhich, tourists will rest in a halfway house then will proceed towards the four lakes— Lake Bulalacao or Bulalakao, Lake Incolos, Lake Tabeo, and Lake Letep-ngepos– in Barangay Ballay before they will ascend Mount Pulag.
“We are finalizing the tourism circuit and we plan to launch it within this year,” Bantales said.
The mystictown is strengthening its cultural and farm tourism. Aside from the Mount Pulag National Park, cultural tourism has been Kabayan’s come-on to tourists especially through its annual Bindiyan Festival every April.
Kabayan celebrated its 122ndfounding anniversary on Nov. 29 through a two-week program which kicked off on Nov. 21 and closed on Dec. 1.
Bantales said that they expect tourists to flock the town this December, as those going up Mount Pulag would also request visits to the other tourism sites the municipality offers.
The municipality is closely coordinating with the Protected Area Management Board, which is in charge of the management of the Mount Pulag reserve, for the putting up of a ranger station at sitio Awing, Lusod to monitor the entry of tourists from Nueva Vizcaya and Ifugao.
The Akiki Trail remains off-limits while the Ambangeg Trail highly recommended to first-time visitors. Mt. Pulag, Luzon’s highest peak at 2,926 meters above sea level, sits in the tri-boundary of the provinces of Benguet, Ifugao and Nueva Vizcaya. – Ofelia C. Empian
