How To Get There

By Plane From Angeles

By far the most exotic and breath taking way to get to Subic is via airplane ... over Mount Pinatubo.  Click on the picture to read about our trip from Angeles City over the volcano.

By Shuttle From Angeles

The Swagman "Fly the Bus" offers a daily shuttle from Angeles to Subic for about P350 per person. You can contact them at Manila phone number 2-523-8541 to 45 

Angeles to Subic: Departs from the Narra Hotel in Angeles everyday at 10 am daily
Subic to Angeles: Departs from Swagman travel office (Barrio Barretto) at 12.30 pm daily

Victory Liner from Manila

By far the cheapest and possibly the most convenient way to Olongapo is via an air conditioned Victory Liner bus.  It only costs P120 per person. I have read stories of bandits robbing passengers on Philippine long transit buses, but this is so rare that it is not worth considering.  The Victory Liner to Olongapo is probably the safest way to get there.  If you look in the Manila Yellow Pages for Victory Liner, you will see that they have many terminals all around the Metro Manila area, but only two of these have buses to Olongapo ... Pasay City Terminal (corner Taft Ave & Gil Puyat) and Caloocan City Terminal (N.E. corner of Monumento Circle).  The Yellow Pages also show Victory Liner buses leaving the Cubao terminal to Olongapo, but it's a lie.  Actually, I was probably just looking at a dated phone book.  My preference is the Coloocan terminal because it has an air conditioned waiting room, well signed ticket windows and lots of convenience stores to buy your travel goodies.  To be truthful, I use this terminal because I always stay in Quezon City.  Also, the Caloocan terminal can be reached via LRT. 

The buses run about every half hour starting at 7:00 am until 8:00 pm.  There's a ticket window just for Olongapo.  When you buy your ticket, the agent will write the bus number on the ticket and the bus departures will be announced over the public address system.  You can also make a reservation from Victory Liner's webpage (though you really don't need one).  The bus route leaves Metro Manila via the North Expressway and continues non-stop to San Fernando.  Just outside of San Fernando, the bus stops for about 15 minutes at a restaurant complex where you can buy a Jollibee and pinch a loaf.  When the bus arrives in downtown Olongapo, will you tempted to disembark with most of the other passengers.  Don't.  It is best to stay on the bus until it reaches the terminal so you won't have to go searching for a jeepney or a trike.  The trip takes about 4 hours.

If you are going to Subic City, Barrio Barretto or Baloy Beach, you should grab one of the blue jeepneys. They're cheap, (4 1/2 pesos) and leave about every 5 minutes. They travel from Olongapo to Subic City and will pass through Barrio Barretto.  Just tell the driver where you want to go.  If you are going to Baloy Beach, then you will stop at the Baloy Beach road, where there will be a trike waiting to take you down to your hotel for P20 or less. 

You may find it more convenient to take a trike direct from downtown Olongapo to your hotel.  Mavel and I paid P75 to go to Baloy Beach from downtown.  But be warned that the trikes in the Subic area are the smallest I have ever seen in the Philippines.  Maybe I may need to lose a few pounds because it was a real squeeze to get Mavel and I into the sidecar.  If you're really big, bring a large shoe horn with you.

Mt. Samat Ferry Express from Manila

Evidently, the fastest way (not including airplane) from Manila to Olongapo is via ferry.  Mavel and I have always taken the bus, but many of the expats we have met swear by the ferry.  You catch the ferry at the docks just across from the Philippine Cultural Center Building on Roxas.  The ferry takes about a 45 minutes to cross the bay and then the drive from Orion to Olongapo takes another hour.  This is a little over half the travel time required by Victory Liner.  The fee for the ferry is P180 per person.  There is a transportation desk at the terminal where you can arrange for a shuttle or FX to take you to the Subic area.  If you're really adventurous, you can catch the Philippine Rabbit or Philtran bus from Orion up to the Subic Expressway and from there you can catch the Victory Liner or jeepney into Olongapo.  For a real quick trip, you can arrange for a private vehicle to pick you up in Orion.   Many of the hotels will arrange transportation for you.  Tom from Mango's says " If you contact us prior to leaving we can meet you for P1000. Remember they don't run in bad weather. But I'm not kidding, it is the way to go."  You can contact Mt. Samat Ferry at Manila phone number 02-551-5290.

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