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Bay (pronounced as Ba-eh) is a town in the province of Laguna in the Philippines. Bay is usually where the rural side of Laguna begins. Its landscape provides a definite break from the urban sprawl that has consumed the municipalities and cities immediately to its west. It also occupies an extensive forested hinterland region that reaches down south to the boundary with Batangas province and straddles the eastern slopes of Mount Makiling.
Understand
[edit | edit source]Bay is one of the oldest towns in Laguna, having existed in the precolonial era and conquered by the Spanish in 1571. It became the first capital of Laguna from that time until 1688, when the title was moved to Pagsanjan. Situated along the shores of Laguna de Bay, it gives its name to the lake.
It is home to about 70,000 people (census, 1 July 2024) 
Get in
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From Manila, the main route to Bay is through the Calamba-Pagsanjan Road, exiting from Turbina exit of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) in Calamba. The road skirts the southern edge of downtown, which is connected through junctions on opposite ends marking the endpoints of Jose Rizal Avenue, the main thoroughfare in downtown Bay. There are also secondary roads running the length of Bay south towards Calauan, San Pablo and Quezon Province to the southeast, and Santo Tomas in Batangas and Alaminos to the southwest.
Bay is served by buses plying the Metro Manila-Santa Cruz Route. It is also traversed by jeepneys travelling between the provincial capital Santa Cruz and the western towns of Laguna, including Calamba and San Pablo. Some of these vehicles pass through the old highway in the town center.
Get around
[edit | edit source]Tricycles are the main mode of transportation between barangays.
See
[edit | edit source]- 1 San Agustin Church (Bay Church), Jose Rizal Avenue, San Agustin. The main Roman Catholic church in 1954, faithfully restored to its original-Spanish era design in 1954 following damage brought about by World War II.
- 2 AboitizPower Cleanergy Center, Bitin. An educational facility inside the Makban Geothermal Plant, a complex fed by Mounts Banahaw and Makiling on the boundary with Calauan municipality that explains the mechanics of geothermal energy and how electricity reaches consumers.
Do
[edit | edit source]Buy
[edit | edit source]Bay is also dubbed the "Garden Capital" of Laguna for the sheer number of ornamental plant shops in the area that take advantage of Bay's fertile location between Mount Makiling, an inactive volcano, and Laguna de Bay. Many of them are located along Calamba-Pagsanjan Road.
- 1 Bay Public Market, Jose Rizal Avenue, Dila.
- 2 The Plant Hub by Fajardo's Garden, Calamba-Pagsanjan Road, Dila.
Eat
[edit | edit source]- 1 Tenorio's Bakery, Jose Rizal Avenue, San Agustin. A bakery founded in the 1950s. Its main specialty is monay, a common Filipino bread that in Bay is served with raisins on top.
- 2 Kamayan at Palaisdaan Resto Resort (Kamayan Resto Hotel), Calamba-Pagsanjan Road, Dila, ☏ +63 910 885 8888, kaprestoresort@gmail.com. Mon-Thu 10AM–9PM, Fri-Sun 10AM-10PM. An extensive restaurant, hotel and resort complex serving seafood and Filipino cuisine. The buildings itself, which included two Spanish colonial era mansions transported to the place from other parts of Laguna, are an attraction in itself. There is also a fishpond and floating cottages.
Drink
[edit | edit source]Sleep
[edit | edit source]- 1 Happy Farm Villas, Block 16, Lot 24, Masikap Street, Jubileeville Subdivision, Masaya, ☏ +63 925 798 3002, +63 917 538 9849. A farm resort with hot springs fed by Mount Makiling.
- 2 Grand Villa Resort and Butterfly Center, Tranca, ☏ +63 917 834 9963, grandvillalaguna@gmail.com. A farm resort with a butterfly garden.
- 3 Royal Palm Resort, F.T. San Luis Avenue, Purok 3, Puypuy, royalpalmresort1526@gmail.com.
- 4 Lotuspod Bed and Breakfast, 2340 Kalsadang Putol Street, Purok 6, Puypuy, ☏ +63 917 525 7619, lotuspodbnb@gmail.com. A Balinese-inspired resort.
Stay safe
[edit | edit source]In the rainy season, Laguna de Bay can overflow, resulting in the floods along the coastal barangays and parts of Calamba-Pagsanjan Road.
Connect
[edit | edit source]The town's postal code is 4033.
- 1 Bay Municipal Tourism, Culture and Arts, 2/F Old Municipal Building, J. Tanalega Street, San Agustin (beside Bay Church), ☏ +63 917 153 4440, otcabay@gmail.com, tourism@bay.gov.phMULTIPLE EMAIL.
Go next
[edit | edit source]| Routes through Bay |
| Calamba ← Los Baños ← | W  E | → Calauan → Santa Cruz |
| END ← | N  S | → Calauan → San Pablo |
