Quirino, a land-locked province in Cagayan Valley is partly a mystery to me. I haven’t been in that area so I was excited to join a familiarization tour to “Discover the Undiscovered”. A fitting slogan really as there is little written about this province. Underrated perhaps? A flight to Cauayan, Isabela then a 1.5 hours road-trip took us to Cabarroguis, the capital of Quirino Province. There, the Capitol Plaza Hotel and Restaurant, was our home for three nights.
Government Run Hotel
For a place like Quirino, which sees little tourist at this time, one must not expect much in terms of luxurious accommodations. Capitol Plaza Hotel and Restaurant, a 2-star type hotel in my standards may be the best already in the area. It has 3 floors, 17 rooms of different type (twin beds, queen beds and family type rooms), conference area, a restaurant and a pool. Quite popular with the locals I guess for events and occasions. There’s also WiFi at the lobby so its ice to hang out at the restaurant.
The hotel has been around for a while built around late 2000 but renovated just three years ago. It has an interesting government-building type design with doric columns at the facade and rear and white-washed walls. At the stairs, there are photos of the different attractions found in Quirino, makes a good excuse to rest and stop to appreciate the display. Each level also has a common living area.
The Room
Since I was with a group, we had a huge family room at the 3rd floor with two queen sized bed and an extra mattress. We also had a nice balcony overlooking the pool, the plaza grounds and the Capitol. It was Christmas time when we visited so we got to see the colorful Paskohan from the 3rd floor. Aircon works well in cooling up the room. There’s a nice round table inside where fellow bloggers work on and some cabinets in the room. There was cable TV but none of us were interested that much to watch.
Summary
We had a nice stay at Capitol Plaza Hotel and Restaurant. Nothing fancy but all is well-kept clean and basic for a comfortable stay and good night’s sleep. We also enjoyed the pool which they have in luxury for guest. Locations is also good as it is near a bank, the capitol and some eateries. It’s a good choice to stay in Quirino.
Capitol Plaza Hotel and Restaurant
Capitol Compound, San Marcos,
Cabarroguis, Quirino Province 3400
Contact: 0915.352.3963, 0915.267.79.81
email: [email protected], [email protected]
Rates (with breakfast included):
- 2 queensize bed (4pax) – Php 1,900
- 2 single beds (2pax) – Php 1,200
- 1 queen size bed (2pax) – Php 1,200
- Double deck (dorms 8/10pax) -Php 400/night
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
