Pagsanjan Tourist Trap Tips by asianbelle Top 5 Page for this destination

The Boatmen

A man along the highway introduced himself as an accredited tourist officer of Pagsanjan and showed us his ID, credentials. He brought us to the guesthouse and introduced us to a boat operator. The latter briefed us on the tour fees, amenities, travel time, etc. In all, we had to pay P750 per person.

Soon after we found ourselves enroute to the falls, women in another boat approached us and tried to sell their merchandise and coaxed us into buying drinks for our boatmen which we turned down. When we got to the only makeshift restaurant along the river for our lunch, the owner asked us if we want to buy our boatment their lunch and this time, we obliged.

After lunch, when we were on the boat again, the boatmen took us aside and explained that we have to pay them US$20 each or P1000 for their service. Normally they said, the foreign tourists who go there have arranged their package with a travel agency in Manila and they pay the boatmen US$30 each. But since we are locals and transact directly with them, they will give us a discount thus we need to pay only US$20.

Apparently, the boatmen's service (2 boatmen per boat) is not included in the fees that we paid earlier. Obviously also, the boat operator was silent on this part; a case of "error by omission". Since we were already halfway, we agreed, but not after we gave them a reprimand.

Unique Suggestions: Haggle. Play up to the boatmen's conscience so they won't charge you much :-(((

Fun Alternatives: Be prepared. Now that you had read this tip, make sure that there are no hidden charges before you board the boat.