ARE you dead weary of hiking for two hours the highlands of Mt. Pinatubo along a lahar-filled watery streambed on a hot summer day?

Now, here is an opportunity for people minus the heart of a perfect hunk to take on an equally exciting panoramic skyview of the majestic crater lake of the world-renowned volcano via state-of-the-art helicopter ride courtesy of the now famous first-class boutique hotel in town, ABC Hotel, located in the heart of Angeles City, according to Regional Director Ronaldo Tiotuico of the Department of Tourism-Central Luzon.

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Tiotuico said that ABC Hotel, in cooperation with his office, is providing guests and visitors to Metro Clark community a rare and to-die-for opportunity to revisit the surreal lahar-laden plains and virtually snow-capped mountain ranges of the provinces of Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales onto the magnificent jewel-blue crater lake of Mt. Pinatubo in Botolan, Zambales on board their R44 Raven II helicopter.

The sky tour is complemented with an optional overnight stay at any of the hotel's VIP rooms plus an excellent serving of Angus steak, Baby Back Ribs, or Lamb chops in their Azzuro Beach Club Restaurant. Guests are advised to extend their stay and experience like in Clark like playing a round of golf at the Mimosa Golf and Country Club, gaming at the casino, or to the wellness spas around.

Donna Cubelo, Marketing and Promotions Head, said that this newly-acquired helicopter is the latest derivative of the very successful and proven R44 chopper line.

The helicopter is equipped with a fuel-injected, angle-valve, tuned-induction, IO-540 Lycoming engine which produces substantially more power and give the Raven II greater altitude performance, more payload, and increased speed.

Its very large windows allow clear and unobstructed sideward vision from all seats. It can accommodate three passengers with weight capacity of 110 kilos per passenger including luggage. The price per hour is US$500 good for three persons while rate for waiting time is P4,000 per hour after touchdown. Its terminal is located at Omni Aviation complex in Clark.

ABC Hotel can pick up or drop off guests from the airport in Manila or may be rented by the hour.

A trip to Manila is a wonderful and unforgettable experience starting off over the lahar-filled plains surrounding Angeles City, to the large fish cages in Laguna de Bay just north of Manila, the surreal Manila slums, over the scenic Manila Bay area, and finally soaring thru the Makati skyscrapers before landing on the airport. (Press release)

(November 30, 2008 issue)
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