Things to Do at Camp John Hay
Complete Guide to Camp John Hay in Baguio
About Camp John Hay
What to See & Do
The Historical Core and Cemetery of Negativism
The old American cemetery occupies a quiet clearing ringed by towering pines, and it stops you cold. White crosses and headstones date to the early 1900s—soldiers, dependents, civilians who lived and died while the Stars and Stripes flew overhead. A plaque at the gate dubs it the ‘Cemetery of Negativism,’ listing grumbles and procrastination symbolically laid to rest; the gimmick feels hokey until the mist drifts between real graves and the joke turns sober. Morning light slips through the canopy in pale shafts; the ground stays spongy year-round. Entry is free and, most mornings, you have the place to yourself.
The Mile-Long Road and Pine Forest Trails
A paved loop road cuts through the core of Camp John Hay beneath a cathedral of Benguet pines. Locals pound it at dawn, couples stroll after lunch, kids learn to bike at dusk. Dirt spurs veer into wilder ground—needle-cushioned tracks where the temperature drops a notch and the pine scent sharpens. Woodpeckers drum overhead; on still days you catch the faint thwack of drivers on the adjacent fairway. Maintenance is discreet—no guardrails, no billboard interpretation—so the woods feel honest. Pack a windbreaker even in March; once the canopy closes, the chill bites.
The Bell House and Amphitheater
The rebuilt Bell House—named for US General J. Franklin Bell who founded the camp—perches on a knoll above a stone amphitheater used for the odd concert or cultural show. The cottage is plain wood-and-stone, giving a quick snapshot of how officers lived when the highlands were still frontier. Below, the amphitheater is carved into the slope with tiered stone benches; acoustics are decent, but the real drama comes when late-afternoon fog floods the stage. Walk up even if no event is scheduled—the payoff is a ridge-top view of pine tops rolling away like green surf.
Camp John Hay Golf Course
The 18-hole layout is routinely rated among the country’s prettiest, and even drivers who can’t tell a wedge from a wood brake to stare. Fairways thread through pine and cypress, and from November to February early fog pools so deep you lose the flag in the hollows. Built for American servicemen, the course keeps a low-key vibe—no glass-and-chrome clubhouse, no valet parking, just tight turf at an altitude where the ball sails farther than your ego expects. Green fees sit mid-range by Manila standards, and the mild air means 18 holes feel like a stroll, not a death march.
Le Monet Hotel Garden and Eco-Trail
Behind Le Monet Hotel at the camp’s southern lip, a 500-meter eco-trail squeezes through a gorge of native ferns, orchids, and moss that turns neon after rain. The path is short but dense—every log hosts a colony of smaller plants, each leaf wears a drip. Scent is wet stone and leaf mold, the soundtrack drip, drip, drip. It’s an easy add-on if you’re staying or dining at the hotel, and it distills Cordillera cloud-forest botany into a ten-minute hit.
Practical Information
Opening Hours
Camp John Hay gates open 6:00 AM–10:00 PM daily, but shops, restaurants, and attractions keep their own clocks. Trails and the cemetery are accessible from dawn; the golf course tees off at 6:00 AM with last groups around 2:00 PM. Manor kitchens serve until roughly 9:00 PM.
Tickets & Pricing
There is no entrance fee—walk or drive straight in. Golf green fees run moderate for a high-altitude course, higher on weekends; clubs are rentable if you didn’t haul your own. Zip-lines and rope courses inside the compound charge per ride and undercut Manila and Cebu rates by a fair margin.
Best Time to Visit
From November through February the air turns crisp and dry—mornings can slide below 15°C and the pine forest smells like a slice of the temperate zone. The trade-off: this is peak season, so Manila day-trippers flood in on weekends. If you want clear skies and elbow room, pick a weekday in December or January. June through September drapes the camp in thicker fog and slick trails, yet Camp John Hay under rainclouds carries its own quiet drama if you don’t mind damp socks. March through May warms up a few degrees but still keeps its cool edge compared with the lowlands.
Suggested Duration
Two to three hours is enough to circle the cemetery, wander the main trails, and poke around Bell House without rushing. Add a full morning or afternoon if you’re squeezing in a round of golf. Families letting kids loose on the adventure zone or spreading a picnic blanket can stretch the visit into most of a day. Short on time? The cemetery loop plus a stroll along Mile-Long Road clocks in at about an hour.
Getting There
Things to Do Nearby
Walk out of Camp John Hay’s main gate, follow Leonard Wood Road for a few minutes, and the Mansion appears. Its wrought-iron gates and clipped hedges demand a quick photo. The grounds open to the public on certain days, and neighboring Wright Park—pony rides under pine shade—slots neatly into a Camp John Hay morning.
Fifteen minutes northeast by taxi, Mines View juts over the old gold-copper trails of Benguet province. Weekends cram the deck, but arrive early and the valley rolls out in clean, unobstructed lines. Stalls sell woven Igorot blankets and carved bulul figures that stand a notch above the usual souvenir clutter.
Ten minutes toward downtown, Baguio’s Botanical Garden is small yet densely planted, with replica Igorot huts and labeled beds of highland flora. It sits between Camp John Hay and Session Road like a bookmark, giving a quick primer on the indigenous cultures of the Cordillera.
Twenty minutes west, an artist village re-creates traditional Cordilleran dwellings—steep thatched roofs pitched against the sky. The hillside setting photographs well, and resident artists run short workshops on quiet days. It’s the perfect foil to Camp John Hay’s American colonial past, a calm reminder that mountain civilizations thrived here long before barracks and fairways arrived.