Rizal Voyage Tips and guide

The province of Rizal is the "R" in Calabarzon. It is a province to the east of Metro Manila with boundaries of the westernmost towns and cities of Cainta and Taytay blurring into the city of Pasig in the capital region. While becoming increasingly urbanized in the past few decades, it holds some rich secrets in both cultures and sights that are untouched by heavy and popular tourism yet are beauties of their own to be enjoyed.

Due to its proximity to Manila, Rizal is becoming an increasingly good residential option for professionals and students who opt to stay in close proximity to the center of action (Manila) yet far enough to allow occasional peace and quiet (which is becoming increasingly hard to get nowadays).

• Northwest District (San Mateo, Rodriguez) - mountainous towns at the foothill of Sierra Madre mountain range.
• Frontline District (Cainta, Taytay, Antipolo, Angono, Binangonan) - the closest to Metro Manila and nature's haven for city dwellers.
• Laguna Caldera District (Teresa, Cardona, Morong, Baras, Tanay, Pililla, Jalajala) - mountainous and laid back rural areas.

Map of Rizal

• 14.584244121.1762891 Antipolo — provincial capital, location of the International Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage as well as restaurants overlooking Metro Manila

• 14.523375121.1536251 Angono — home of the annual Higantes Festival & the art capital of the Philippines.
• 14.516667121.2666672 Baras — known for the local martial arts called Sikaran.
• 14.451389121.1919443 Binangonan — the gateway to Talim Island.
• 14.566667121.1166674 Cainta — the gateway to Rizal province
• 14.486111121.2288895 Cardona — secondary gateway to Talim Island
• 14.354121.3246 Jalajala — off-beat rural town and gateway to Mount Sembrano
• 14.5127121.23857 Morong — vibrant cultural hub with a Spanish-era church whose façade is also its belltower.
• 14.483333121.38 Pililla — home to Pililla wind farm
• 14.716667121.1166679 Rodriguez — formerly and still commonly called Montalban, it is home of the Wawa Dam, which once supplied water for Metro Manila, and Avilon Zoo
• 14.696944121.12194410 San Mateo — the gateway to northern Rizal province
• 14.497222121.28638911 Tanay — ecotourism destination on the slope of the Sierra Madre
• 14.569167121.132512 Taytay — a town nicknamed the 'Garment Capital of the Philippines' due to the presence of a 'tiangge' (flea market)
• 14.558611121.20833313 Teresa

Formerly a large province which hugged the north shore of Laguna de Bay and included most of Metro Manila’s component cities, Rizal now forms half of what it used to be. The province used to be called Morong until the American occupation, when it was renamed after the national hero, Jose Rizal.

The bulk of the province lies on the rugged Sierra Madre, which encouraged mass settlement on the lakeside and on the foothills before increased populations led to encroachment on the highlands, which in turn results in continuing environmental issues such as landslides, illegal logging and quarrying, and displacement of the indigenous Dumagat peoples to build water reservoirs for the rest of the province and Metro Manila. Parts of western Rizal have become part of the urban sprawl of the national capital region, with no distinguishable boundaries for the unaware traveler, except for the spur of the Sierra Madre that separates Binangonan from Cardona.

It is surrounded by Metro Manila to the west, Bulacan to the north, Quezon to the east, and Laguna and the Laguna de Bay to the south. Situated at the heart of the Tagalog homeland (Katagalugan), Rizal is culturally and linguistically Tagalog; much of the province's inhabitants are Tagalog speakers, except for a very small minority of Ilocano and Bicolano migrants.

• Rizal provincial government website

Rizal, being part of the Southern Tagalog region, has Tagalog (the main basis of Filipino) as the language for everyday transactions though English is more than a second language to most people (especially to the professionals and the younger ones).

The nearest airport is Ninoy Aquino International Airport, but getting to Rizal from the airport is rather bewildering; you will have to get by Manila's notorious traffic and inefficient public transport. Bus service is severely lacking to serve most corners in Rizal, so you might need a car to cover everything not covered well by a jeepney. From Metro Manila, the main public transport hubs leading to Rizal are Cubao in Quezon City, and Ortigas and Rosario in Pasig.

As a de facto suburb of Metro Manila, western Rizal is served by buses and jeepneys traveling between the two regions. The Light Rail Transit 2 (LRT-2) is the only train service, running from Recto Station in Manila and terminating at Masinag Station in Antipolo, with a penultimate stop at Marikina-Pasig station on the boundary with Cainta. Expect heavy crowds during rush hour (From Antipolo in the mornings and the reverse at the end of the day).

From Laguna, SINCRODA operates jeepneys from Siniloan to Cainta, entering Rizal at Pililla and passing through Antipolo and Teresa via Manila East Road.

There are no interprovincial ferries in Laguna de Bay.

Rizal's roads are notoriously small, crowded, and winding due to its geography, and public transportation is severely lacking once you head east. Driving around the province (by car or motorcycle) is much practical, although western Rizal’s traffic congestion has worsened due to its proximity to Metro Manila.

Bus service is severely lacking on most of the province. Jeepneys mostly provide most service in much of the province, but are in short supply in upland areas and Jalajala. Compared to Metro Manila, the jeepneys of Rizal tend to be of a longer and bulkier appearance running on noisier engines to negotiate the road terrain. The main jeepney hubs are in Antipolo, Tanay, Binangonan, Angono and the towns directly bordering Metro Manila. Some jeepney services may have been replaced by minibuses, such as the one running from SM Masinag in Antipolo to Pililla, which passes through Teresa, Morong Junction, Baras and Tanay.

The major highway through Rizal is Manila East Road, which runs east to west from the boundary with Laguna toward the suburban areas of Cainta and Taytay via the lakeside towns. While most of it has been widened to four lanes and sections through town centers have been bypassed, traffic is fairly slow.

The Marcos Highway (aka the Marilaque Highway), which crosses the Sierra Madre mountain range and leads to Infanta (Quezon Province, serves the central part of the province; it is a favorite route by motorcyclists with its climate and its winding route, but crashes occur often especially on its hairpin curves.

Talim Island is serviced by ferries from Binangonan and Cardona.

• Antipolo Cathedral in Antipolo is popular with travelers who are about to embark on far away trips and other well-wishers and devotees.

Dining choices in Antipolo and western Rizal are indistinguishable from Metro Manila. This decreases the further you go eastward, although a few fashionable chains and novel restaurants are gradually setting shop along the Marilaque highway for motorists and prospective property buyers.

• "Balot"
• "Fried Itik" (Fried Duck) from Angono
• "Aling Kika's Bibingka" from Cainta

• ^{[formerly dead link]} Thunderbird Resort Rizal, Eastridge Avenue, ☏ +63 2 651-6888. A/C rooms equipped with mini-bar, cable TV, coffee/tea maker and free wi-fi access. Some of its facilities and services are business center, swimming pool, and casino. From ₱3990. 

The urbanized western areas share the same crime issues with Metro Manila. There may be a few New People’s Army guerrillas in the extreme northern and eastern mountains which are not much visited anyway. There is a military garrison, Camp Capinpin, along the Tanay section of the Marilaque highway in Sampaloc Junction.

Landslides are a serious problem in the highlands and occur frequently next to densely populated residential areas. Likewise, the lowlands occasionally suffer from catastrophic flooding due to narrow or blocked waterways, as in Tropical Storm Ondoy in 2009.

Swimming in Laguna de Bay is not recommended due to pollution, heavy usage by the fishing industry and its volatile mood. In 2023, a ferry to Talim Island was sunk by the lake’s strong waves, killing 27 passengers.

Rizal is at risk from earthquakes due to the West and East Valley Faults, which both run parallel along the boundary with Metro Manila.

Marilaque Highway, highland sections of Manila East Road from Binangonan to Cardona and from Pililla to Mabitac, and J. Sumulong Road running from Antipolo to Morong via Teresa are known accident-prone areas full of blind curves.

Outside of the mountainous areas, it is easy to seek treatment at pharmacies and clinics/hospitals.