Posted by Eric
I've spent a year going around Region XII, including General Santos City and Cotabato City, and I've since discovered that there are pretty good places to go to in these parts of Mindanao. I decided to blog about this just to help readers, say, if you were ever in the area and didn't know anything about it.
First off, General Santos City. Gensan hosts a lot of good places to eat, drink and relax. If you're looking for a place to stay, East Asia Royale Hotel is a really good hotel. Outside the hotel, there are already gimik places where you can hang out and chill out. Good coffee places are Fagioli Coffee and Orange Cafe. Fagioli has good coffee but limited food. Orange cafe also has good coffee and really great food! Badminton, anyone? A good badminton place is Bigshot along National Highway. Bigshot has a restaurant called Sixblings. The ostrich steak is a must-try! Speaking of steaks, Roland's, in Lagao serves the best steaks in town. Fagioli, Orange cafe and Sixblings are all WiFi hotspots.
Next, Koronadal City. There's only one place I go to and it's MacGregor's Coffee. They have good pasta, great coffee, plus they're a WiFi hotspot. Right next to it is Mang Gorio, a glorified turo-turo that serves good and affordable food. In regards to hotels, you can try Marvella or Ramona Hotel. They're not your regular Marco Polo, but they're OK.
In Kidapawan City, the place to go to is Jaycee compound (or was it complex?). They have a restaurant, a badminton court, a foot and body massage parlor (they do nails too), and a gimik place on the 2nd floor of the restaurant. You can also visit the Kidapawan City Country Club (KCCC) which has a convenience store, a restaurant similar to Taps called Alche Taps, a good pizza place, a cafe/restobar called RAB's, and a whole lot more. The only hotel I can recommend is AJ's. I love that hotel. They offer free buffet breakfast! No WiFi hotspots, sorry.
In Kabacan, I stay at the Orro Travel Inn which also has a restaurant which serves authentic Indian food. Sarap! Other than that, I can't say anything more about Kabacan. It's such a small place! And no WiFi hotspots either.
In Midsayap, I stay at the Hill Park Hotel. Really nice rooms. There are several restaurants that I would want to recommend but I forgot all their names! Sorry if I wasn't too helpful with this one. Err.. Still no WiFi hotspot.
Finally, Cotabato City. A really fine restaurant to go to is Xin Tian Di, or XTD. It means something like "a mix of Heaven and Earth". They are a restaurant during the day and a club at night. There's also a nice restaurant to eat at called Le Sorelle. They have really, really big servings, so watch out. They also have great desserts and pastries. I would recommend El Manuel Hotel and Diamond Hotel. And yup, you guessed it, no Wifi hotspot.
I've grown accustomed to these places already and I'm going to miss them terribly next year as I am embarking on a new journey with a new company. But I will make it a point to visit these places again, not only for the good coffee and food, but also to visit the friends I have made over the past year. So if ever your planning to travel to these places for the first time, I hope my blog helped.
First off, General Santos City. Gensan hosts a lot of good places to eat, drink and relax. If you're looking for a place to stay, East Asia Royale Hotel is a really good hotel. Outside the hotel, there are already gimik places where you can hang out and chill out. Good coffee places are Fagioli Coffee and Orange Cafe. Fagioli has good coffee but limited food. Orange cafe also has good coffee and really great food! Badminton, anyone? A good badminton place is Bigshot along National Highway. Bigshot has a restaurant called Sixblings. The ostrich steak is a must-try! Speaking of steaks, Roland's, in Lagao serves the best steaks in town. Fagioli, Orange cafe and Sixblings are all WiFi hotspots.
Next, Koronadal City. There's only one place I go to and it's MacGregor's Coffee. They have good pasta, great coffee, plus they're a WiFi hotspot. Right next to it is Mang Gorio, a glorified turo-turo that serves good and affordable food. In regards to hotels, you can try Marvella or Ramona Hotel. They're not your regular Marco Polo, but they're OK.
In Kidapawan City, the place to go to is Jaycee compound (or was it complex?). They have a restaurant, a badminton court, a foot and body massage parlor (they do nails too), and a gimik place on the 2nd floor of the restaurant. You can also visit the Kidapawan City Country Club (KCCC) which has a convenience store, a restaurant similar to Taps called Alche Taps, a good pizza place, a cafe/restobar called RAB's, and a whole lot more. The only hotel I can recommend is AJ's. I love that hotel. They offer free buffet breakfast! No WiFi hotspots, sorry.
In Kabacan, I stay at the Orro Travel Inn which also has a restaurant which serves authentic Indian food. Sarap! Other than that, I can't say anything more about Kabacan. It's such a small place! And no WiFi hotspots either.
In Midsayap, I stay at the Hill Park Hotel. Really nice rooms. There are several restaurants that I would want to recommend but I forgot all their names! Sorry if I wasn't too helpful with this one. Err.. Still no WiFi hotspot.
Finally, Cotabato City. A really fine restaurant to go to is Xin Tian Di, or XTD. It means something like "a mix of Heaven and Earth". They are a restaurant during the day and a club at night. There's also a nice restaurant to eat at called Le Sorelle. They have really, really big servings, so watch out. They also have great desserts and pastries. I would recommend El Manuel Hotel and Diamond Hotel. And yup, you guessed it, no Wifi hotspot.
I've grown accustomed to these places already and I'm going to miss them terribly next year as I am embarking on a new journey with a new company. But I will make it a point to visit these places again, not only for the good coffee and food, but also to visit the friends I have made over the past year. So if ever your planning to travel to these places for the first time, I hope my blog helped.
