Office Team Building at Aiyanar Resort, Anilao, Batangas

For this year’s team building held last June 25 and 26, our office chose Aiyanar Beach and Dive Resort. Actually, my boss knows the owner of the resort. What she did was she just made a call and voila, we were instantly booked for an overnight stay! Our reservation even came with a 15% discount, sa’n ka pa?

receiving area

Aiyanar is a charming place tucked in Anilao in the sleepy town of Mabini, Batangas. Despite its classification as a first class municipality, Mabini has retained its serene and relaxing atmosphere. I was happy we pushed thru this outing despite the gloomy weather in Manila. It’s already June, after all, and the rains have started pouring.

I think we got lucky because during our overnight stay at the resort, the weather cooperated. There was no rain, whatsoever. The sun was up when it was supposed to be up. I even got dark when I got back to Manila. But that’s just me, my brown complexion easily shifts to dark even after a bit of exposure in the sun. Haha.

#croptoppamore

With its row of elevated rooms, a dining hall, a swimming pool, and a few nipa hut cottages, Aiyanar is pretty decent. It even has an area just below the dining hall housing its massive snorkeling and diving equipment and other related stuff. I think they’re really catering to the diving crowd here.

As for the rates, it’s higher than average. It is priced per person but the rate already includes full board meals. It could go higher or lower depending on the type of accommodation and how many people are sharing the room. Our overnight stay entitled us to four meals: lunch and dinner (on our first day) and breakfast and lunch (on our second).

Our rooms were lovely. I shared a room with a girl officemate and we each had a queen bed with four fluffy pillows, soft and fleece blankets, and white sheets. It also had a tv set and a wardrobe to keep our things. The toilet and bath had a heater which made our showers comfy.

Ayainar has no powdery white sand to walk on, just some black sand, gravel, and big rocks. But what it lacks in seashore it makes up for in vast snorkeling and diving sites with rich marine flora and fauna. What do you know, we had a blast snorkeling in the deeper part of the sea!

Snorkeling time with officemates. #anilaowaters #batangas #instavideo #igdaily #aiyanarresort #philippinetourism #itsmorefuninthephilippines

A video posted by Edelweiza Mabalay-Techo (@edelweiss_19) on Jun 25, 2015 at 5:42am PDT

We hired a boat twice and they took us where we wanted. We chose two spots: one was in front of a deserted island and another was near the seashore of a private resort. While we enjoyed both, we had more fun at the latter because it had more corals and greater variety of fish. Plus, the water there was clearer and we felt like we were just swimming in a pool except that this had a beautiful marine scenery at the bottom. With moments like those, you would really admit it’s more fun in the Philippines!

Our meals at the resort were served buffet style at the big dining hall and were generally delish. The dining staff were also courteous and helpful and made us enjoy each meal better.

my dinner on our first day

breakfast plate

the dining hall at night

I know I won’t be able to enjoy (and afford) Anilao frequently so I’m grateful with outings like this. It’s also nice that our team building never feels like team building but more like a leisure trip. I always have a blast joining it and so even if it’s a year away, I’m already looking forward to our next one. Haha.

Overall, Aiyanar is the kind of resort that will give you the R&R and at the same time, some sea adventures. I won’t mind going back there again!

Have you been to Aiyanar Resort or any other resort in Anilao? How was your experience there? 🙂

Find out more about Aiyanar at www.aiyanarresort.com.

P.S. In our past office team buildings, we were at Vista Aplaya, Palm Beach Resort, and Virgin Beach Resort (all of them are located in Batangas).

May you choose happiness always,