“Pearl of The Orient“, “The Paris of the East” and once the most advanced city in Asia. “Manila” was the home of the rich and influential people during their times. Even the “Gobernador Heneral” or the Spanish Head for the Philippines lives there. But after World War 2, Manila is not the same anymore, even until this very day.
To those who love to experience how old Manila was during its glory days, besides visiting Intramuros, there is a famous place in Batac, Bataan where you can go back and see for yourself how is it to time travel to the 1900s. Just two to three hours from Manila, you can choose to travel by bus or by boat though Manila Bay.
Las Casas Filipinas De Acuzar was created and built by Jose Acuzar, the owner of New San Jose Builders Inc. He started to rebuild Spanish colonial-era mansions in Bagac in 2003. In January 2010, the area was opened to the public as the Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar. The place is not only a tourist spot, but it has hotels and restaurants inside.
The main attraction of the Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar is its heritage houses, which were transplanted from outside Bagac, Bataan. The houses are disassembled from their original location and reconstructed inside the premises of the Las Casas Filipinas. This method of heritage conservation has been contentious among conservationists since they believed that their original communities could have benefitted from the structures had they been restored on site. The heritage park’s proponent Gerry Acuzar claimed that he went with the method in order to save the structures from decay and neglect.
A few of the famous heritage houses that can be found inside is the house of Jose Rizal’s mother, Teodora Alonzo which they called, “Casa Biñan”. Houses included in the Las Casas Filipinas are evaluated for their historical, cultural, and architectural value. Most structures date back to the Spanish Colonial Era, but some buildings were built later such as the Casa Lubao which was built in 1920 during the American era.
Also proudly standing there is the famous, “Hotel de Oriente” which was considered plush for its day and thought to be the Philippines’ best lodging in 1899 by American first-timers to the Philippines. Originally built by Don Miguel Amatria, Hotel de Oriente is a significant milestone in Philippine heritage, as it served as the country’s first premier luxury hotel.
It was believed to be the country’s first building constructed with electricity and telephone connection. It is also known as where Jose Rizal stayed when he returned from Hong Kong in 1892. The hotel had a total of 83 rooms, complete with ceiling fans and electricity—features that were considered extravagant at that time. The original location of the hotel was in Binondo, Manila.
Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar also hosts a small church known as the Sanctuario de San Jose. It is indeed a vision to behold in every angle. Las Casas’ main church is inspired by the St. Joseph Cathedral in Balanga, Bataan.
For those who want to visit, the entrance fee on weekdays is P 2,500.00 while on a weekend, its P2,900.00. The day tour includes the following:
Welcome Drinks
Guided Heritage Walking Tour
Kalesa Ride
Hotel De Oriente Viewing
Balsa Ride
Set Lunch
Beach Access
The heritage walk is the most exciting part as the tour guide will bring you to the most famous heritage houses, tell it’s significance and how they became part of our history. You can also ride the “Kalesa” and “Balsa”, also a mode of transportation during the Spanish era.
Also, don’t forget to ride the “Tranvia“. It was a streetcar system that served Manila and its surrounding cities during the early years of the 20th century. The tranvia served as the first railway transport to run in the Philippines, as in its earliest years the Ferrocarril de Manila – Dagupan are in its planning stages. The tranvia was renowned as “state-of-the-art” in East Asia and provided efficient transport to the residents of Manila.
