DG TRAVELER

DG Traveler is Deal Grocer’s online travel and lifestyle magazine. The publication provides local travel and lifestyle stories with the aim of inspiring readers to explore and rediscover the Philippines. As its former Senior Staff Writer, I ideated and wrote pieces centered on travel, lifestyle, and culture, with a slant toward sustainability. I also assigned writers with relevant and timely topics that would provide value for readers, and copy edit contributors’ articles to guarantee accurate, grammatically correct, and properly formatted text.

How to Help the Local Travel Industry in a Time of Crisis

Whereas the lucky few can work from home, “travel frontliners” such as porters, tour guides, hospitality personnel, and travel operators are experiencing such a formidable drop in foot traffic that their jobs are at stake. For tourists, the lack of travel may mean frustration at cancelled plans or even boredom at frivolity’s peak, but for on-ground travel frontliners, the dearth of travel means the world—as their source of survival that puts food on the table, travel is literally their means to an end.

Travel Buddies, Part 2: Ayen and Rachel

It isn’t every day that a remarkable, impactful, and long-lasting collaboration springs forth from a meeting of minds. This is precisely what happened between Ayen de la Torre and Rachel Halili, the founders of the travel brand and community Where to Next, when fate brought them together as college classmates in an Art Studies elective in University of the Philippines Diliman.

Discover The Farm at San Benito's New Luxurious Villas and Fresh Pescetarian Resto

As a premier medical wellness destination in the Philippines, The Farm at San Benito possesses a sundry of accolades that makes it a cut above the rest. Unlike your run-of-the-mill resort that merely brands itself as a relaxing getaway, The Farm radiates positive living without sacrificing luxury, presenting superior yet rustic lodging spaces that rest on a 48-hectare jungle wherein flora and fauna thrive. It’s as if the resort flourishes just as its guests are healed from all things synonymous with toxicity, a burgeoning haven that feeds on the care they lend to visitors.

An Eco-Friendly Lakeside Haven: Aquascape Lake Caliraya in Laguna

Fleeing the city has become more and more romanticized, and there's a good reason why this pervasive longing has become a twenty-first-century dream. Life’s pace has been moving at an increasingly fast speed, and in order to have some semblance of sanity—or mindfulness, to put it mildly—we need to slow down. When you reside in one of the many megalopolises the Philippines is home to, you owe it to yourself to indulge in a back-to-basics hideaway whenever you can.

Live the Simple Life in these Scenic Farm Stays Near Manila

And while urban dwellers enjoy the convenience of having everything within reach—shopping centers, cinemas, and all the dining options imaginable—this may lead to decision fatigue, or getting too accustomed to the pleasures of city life that it starts losing its charm. Luckily, as an ode to slow living and the good old days, farm stays and luxury farm resorts are sprouting left and right so guests can fulfill a desire that’s innate in them: to return to one’s roots. With the Philippines largely an agricultural country, it only makes sense for locals to pay a visit to a farm or two.

10 Sustainable Travel Tours that Help You Give Back to the Philippines

If you’d like to travel more responsibly and pay it forward at the same time, there are several ways you can give back to the Philippines. We’ve scoured sustainable travel tours that not only minimize the negative impacts of travel but benefit their natural and cultural environs as well. In these experiences, you can volunteer where your talent is needed and foster deep connections with like-minded people who fight for the same causes you care about.

These Eco-Resorts in the Philippines Champion Sustainable Travel

Before booking your stay, do your research to check if the resort practices sustainability. Luckily for you, we’ve gathered a list of eco-friendly resorts in the Philippines—because we believe that traveling and exploration shouldn’t come at the expense of Mother Earth.

8 Independent Bookstores in Asia for the Jet-Setting Bookworm

There are several ways to discover the narratives of a country. Majority of travelers flock to tourist traps, some sift through aisles of grocery stores, while others head to the obscure and independently owned bookshop tucked in a crevice that most voyagers most probably overlook. Travel, after all, isn’t only confined to crossing borders to witness the most photogenic attractions—sometimes, if not always, it can also mean unearthing the rich worlds found between the pages of a book.

Poblacion’s Best-Kept Secret: An Artsy Boutique Hotel Called ‘Element’

The identity crisis of Poblacion is perhaps one of the district’s most distinct charms. Despite how misplaced everything feels in the now-trendy locale, from its people to its establishments, all its elements create a whole that feels surprisingly intimate and preordained. And among the throng of commercial establishments is an elusive gem that embodies the bric-a-brac appeal and creative energy that Poblacion is known for: Element Boutique Hotel.

Explore these Vibrant Asian Destinations with Your All-Girl Travel Crew

There’s nothing that screams fun like traveling with the all-girl crew you’ve known for ages. You’ve seen each other through it all—barefaced, braless, and at the highest of highs and lowest of lows. And when you decide to mark your calendars, file those leaves, and explore the world hand-in-hand, it becomes so much more than just ticking a location off your bucket list.

8 Safest Destinations in Asia for the Soul-Searching Solo Female Traveler

There is beauty in the unknown. It manifests in the thrill of facing terrors, in the satisfaction of defying expectations, and in the courage of eluding the mainstream. Experiencing what’s foreign to you may induce crippling anxiety or self-doubt, may it be as mundane as introducing yourself to a crowd full of strangers or as life-changing as switching jobs mid-career, but the truth is, unexpected moments turn out to be the most fulfilling. In the fruition of what you think you can’t handle, you surpass your self-imposed limits, serving as cold, hard proof that you absolutely can do what you think you can’t, as long as you set your mind—and heart—to it.

Where to Go in Metro Manila to Feel Like You’re in a Rom-Com

Swoon over your special someone without the need for a blockbuster budget, and start planning that special rom-com-esque date that will have you falling in love all over again long after the credits roll. We’ve compiled places and activities that would make you two feel like stars of a modern-day romantic comedy—sans missed goodbyes at the airport, long sad faces of contemplation, and overt displays of undying affection.

This Unique Antipolo Eco-Stay Upholds Sustainable Tourism

Nestled in the hills of the Sierra Mountain Range, Mount Purro Nature Reserve in Antipolo is a family-run eco-park that seamlessly blends in with nature. Just an hour or two away from Metro Manila, Mount Purro offers a mountain retreat sans the typical long and stressful commute.

This Baler Resort with Repurposed Container Vans is a Surf Town Paradise

If you frequent Baler, chances are you’ve already caught a glimpse—or furtively surveyed—this elusive new hotel. A low-rise property paving way to expansive views of Baler’s sky, its crisp, all-white exteriors are reminiscent of bright summer days, and it’s easy to see why it would catch anyone’s eye. A fresh addition to Baler’s lineup of resorts and from the same creators of the highly-esteemed Costa Pacifica, CUBE Baler was made with modern travelers in mind: it features repurposed container vans that fuse creative design, utility, and comfort.