It is so fascinating, that it is difficult to decide where to start talking about Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar. It is a resort hotel that looks more like a small village or hamlet than one of those beach resorts we are used to. We suggest you start with the geography, that is, with its location on the map.
Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar occupies an area of about 400 ha by the sea, at the mouth of the – humble – Umagol River, in the fishing village of Bagac, Bataan province, at the confluence of the foothills of the extinct volcanoes Mariveles (to the south) and Natib (to the north), in the western part of the island of Luzon, the largest of the Republic of the Philippines. So, once geographically located, if we want to know more about this hotel-resort-village, it is inevitable to refer to one man: “real estate magnate Jose “Jerry” Acuzar”.
Acuzar bought the land now occupied by Las Casas Filipinas, near Balanga, his hometown, in 2003. He immediately built a house. However, it was in 2008, after being offered a historic house in the Cagayan Valley, that the foundation stone of what is now Las Casas Filipinas was laid. Acuzar dismantled the Cagayan building and moved its parts to the Bagac land, where he rebuilt it with the help of a team of local architects and artisans to “restore it to its former glory”.
The Cagayan Valley House was only the first of many other historic houses and many other heritage buildings that, one after another, Acuzar acquired – or was given – and then dismantled, relocated and restored in its grounds. Today there are 63 heritage houses and 34 structures – including bridges, arches, squares, fountains, flowerbeds, lakes, canals and others – that make up this tourist resort-holiday village-artificial village.
Casa Candaba, Casa Lubao, Casa Hidalgo, Casa Bizantina, Casa Mexico, Casa Hagonoy, Casa Maranao… Each of the 63 fascinating historic houses found in Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar has a documented history. The oldest of them is the Majayjay House, built in 1744, while the only example of pre-colonial indigenous architecture is represented by the Maranao House. By contrast, the most modern are the New Manila House, built in 1926, and the San Juan House, whose exact date of construction is unknown, although it is part of the early 20th century legacy.
One of the features that makes Las Casas Filipinas such an exciting place is precisely the architecture of its houses – and not just their façades or layout, but also their exquisite interiors. Beyond the obvious, rather than sharp colonial flavour, both Spanish – to a greater extent – and American – not as widespread – perhaps the common denominator of the resort town’s architecture is the typically Filipino style known as báhay na bató. And while the term means “stone house” in Filipino, that does not mean it makes stone the only material used in its construction. In Spanish, the báhay na bató style has come to be called “casa de Filipina”.
The báhay na bató is an evolution of the traditional – rural and humble – báhay kúbo (or cube house), with an incorporation of Spanish, Chinese and native design motifs. More huts than houses, báhay kúbo dwellings were simple pillar constructions made of bamboo and other local organic materials – except for stone or brick – that were spatially distributed over two floors and often had a kind of basement or niche. Their design offered protection from the rains of the tropical climate, including floods, and from earthquakes.
The báhay na bató style was the style of the homes of the local landlord class, professionals and nobility, whose construction incorporated stone or brick – especially in the lower part, which previously, in the báhay kúbo style, was occupied by bare pillars. Its design, however, maintains the architectural principle of the latter, namely its adaptation to the tropics, the rainy season, and the seismic activity to which the archipelago is prone.
The most common variant of a báhay na bató building is a two-storey structure. The ground floor, used for storage or commercial space, was made of masonry and sturdy wooden pillars, while the upper floor, where the living quarters were located, had open spaces for better ventilation and the most ornate details, i.e. balustrades, windows, decorations with capiz shell inlay (similar to mother-of-pearl), etc. The roofs, finally, were usually of Chinese tiles or thatch, with a gradual slope towards the street.
All these details are clearly visible at Las Casas Filipinas, the result of an impeccable reconstruction and restoration work of excellence, carried out by dozens of craftsmen, architects and artists. In fact, in 2021, the resort village received recognition as the Best Historic Hotel in Asia and the Pacific from Historic Hotels Worldwide. Acuzar, after an investment estimated at €8.2 million – although it is still “a work in progress” according to Theresa Kho-Solvason, CEO of Las Casas Philippines – handed over the operation of this fascinating beach destination to Genesis Hotels and Resorts Corp.
Sources: Historic Hotels Worldwide, Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, Wikipedia – Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, Inquirer.net, Wikipedia – Báhay na bató, Wikipedia – Báhay kúbo.
Images: Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar.
