San Juan (Batangas)

San Juan is composed of a Spanish-era town center (poblacion) with streets laid out in a grid, and a larger area mostly agricultural in background. The town is at the center of the main route between Batangas and Quezon provinces. A major tourist draw is the white-sand beaches of Laiya, to the south of town; today, tourism is a major local source of revenue, after aquaculture and agriculture.

San Juan is served by some bus companies:

• ALPS the Bus has trips from their Manila terminals to the downtown.
• Supreme has service from Batangas City to Lucena through these town, using a mix of air-conditioned and ordinary buses.
• P&O runs Batangas City-Tagkawayan using an air-conditioned fleet. No advanced booking is needed for short to medium distances, e.g. from Batangas City or Lucena, but a pre-booked ticket is necessary if coming from their Tagkawayan terminal.

A trip from Batangas City by bus costs at around ₱84 to downtown (₱74 from Lucena terminal).

Jeepneys are a cheaper option, but are uncomfortable and infrequent outside daylight hours. Nonetheless, they are the only public transport option from Lipa. From Batangas City, a jeepney trip will entail a transfer at downtown Rosario, 22 km (14 mi) west, which can be only a waste of time and money, and jeepneys from there are infrequent. Better catch a bus from the Grand Terminal.

By car, The Rosario-San Juan-Candelaria Road and the Quezon Eco-tourism Road are the main highways to town. The Rosario-San Juan leg of the former and the whole segment of the latter forms Route 422; they provide the best road connection from Lucena, but the coastal portion can look a bit isolated, as it passes through coastal villages through the municipalities of Sariaya and Candelaria.

The town center at the barangay of Poblacion is compact, and walkable. Tricycles are abundant.

There is a highway between Poblacion and Laiya. There are many improvements along the road, including widened bridges and added lanes. Car travel is advisable but not necessary.

• 🌍 San Juan Nepomuceno Parish Church, Burgos Street, Poblacion. It used to be a simple chapel of the town, first a barrio of nearby Rosario until it was separated in 1848. The church was first built in 1843, until it was destroyed by flooding in 1883. The present church, built from stone, was from 1890. (updated Apr 2020)
• Poctol mangrove forests, Sitio Pontor, Poctol. They are part of a larger area along Tayabas Bay filled with mangroves (updated Jan 2020)

• Mount Daguldul. The highest point in the municipality, at 678 m (2,224 ft). It is reachable from a trail, and a trek takes about 2 hours. (updated Jan 2020)