One of our not-so random dates when we were in the Philippines last December was an overnight stay at The Greenery in Baliwag, Bulacan. This place is a popular venue for weddings and couple photo shoots. It used to be my top pick when we were researching for our possible prenup locations last year but I find them quite expensive given the few hours stay that we will only need for the shoot.
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True enough, the place looks really good in photos. The villas were built and arranged like a small countryside village. There’s a small farm house and an infinity pool too.
However, although we enjoyed our photo trip, I think, it’s NOT worth staying overnight. The place is huge but there’s only so much to do after you’ve taken all the photos.
Here are a few things I believe are fair reasons why we did not have a pleasant stay.
- The lake and the bridge on their website photos are no longer there. And by that, I mean that what used to be deep waters is now a dried land. I don’t know how one can ride a jet ski or a kayak with that offered as part of their amenities. The bridge is broken and not maintained as well.
- The villas are pretty on the outside but look unappealing inside. It’s more like a hostel, big but empty. And there are not enough toiletries.
- Wifi signal is limited and only available in certain areas. The TV has poor reception too, not even close to acceptable.
- Most importantly, they don’t allow guests to bring outside food; and they also don’t prepare/cook if there are only a few people who checked in that day. Because of that, we ended up dining and watching a movie at SM Baliwag. How can anyone stay long in a place without food?
The Greenery is probably more recommended for hosting events, team building, reunions or weddings as they seem to prefer catering to bigger groups.
