Cape Bolinao Lighthouse

The closest of the historic landmarks. The Americans built it in 1903 to guide ships heading north to Hong Kong and Japan. The tower itself stands about thirty metres tall, and it sits on Punta Piedra Point at 107 metres above the sea, which makes it the second-highest lighthouse in the Philippines, after Cape Bojeador in Ilocos Norte.

The lamp room is closed to the public, but you can walk the grounds, sit at the base of the tower, and look out over the coast you just drove through. Late afternoon is the best time, when the limestone catches the same warm colour as the rocks below. An easy first stop on the way in, or the last thing you see on the way out.