Have you ever heard of Kawa Bath? Or better yet heard people say they went into huge cooking pan to get a hot bath and it was fun. Well that is what we call the Kawa Hot Bath. Where you take a hot bath in a huge pan (cauldron) that is heated by fire from the wood underneath the pan.
Yes that is correct, basically you are cooking yourself in a huge pan. However, do not be scared that water does not get hot. It maintains nice and warm especially during the cold and chilly morning in Tanay Mountains. It may sound like crazy but this is what you could say the old fashion and native way of a Jacuzzi or alternative for the hot spring baths in Japan.
The Kawa Hot Bath is one of the most popular activities in El Patio Tanay. Primarily you do not only enjoy the warm bath but also have a scenic view of the scenery of nature. As you are up on the mountains the view of all the trees mountains and all of nature is breathtaking. Just the experience with the view combined is a moment to never forget.
Perhaps you want to know more specifically what this is. So let’s explore exactly what is a Kawa Hot Bath. And how did this started.
The “Kawa” is what we call a large pan or giant pot or more precisely a cauldron. The local / tagalog word for “Kawa” is a large thick fryer and looks like a gigantic wok. If ever you heard of the story of Hansel and Gretel where the which was planning to cook Hansel and Gretel in a huge pan. That type of pan is basically a “Kawa”.
The Kawa pan was a very common pan in the sugar plantation area in Panay Island of Visayas Region. It was considered the sugar capital of the Philippines. One of the cities on Panay Island is Tibiao in Antique province. It started here, where one of the owners of a large sugar plantation started to become creative after experiencing a problem.
Since the large Kawa pan was being used to make brown sugar and other siroop products. Many plantations and factory used this as historically, Panay Island has been a producer of tons of sugar as its vast lands that are suitable for sugarcane planting. Some of them make muscovado or the organic brown sugar using a very large vat.
But this was the problem, due to new technological development of the sugar refinery process they started to replace the many hundreds of Kawa pans with advance sugar refinery machines. So the owner was starting to think how could they reused this wonderful huge Kawa pans for something else. One day it hit the owner, these huge pans could be used for a great alternative of hot baths. Tibiao is a very mountainous area this means that the morning are very cool and chilly.
As the morning showers where cold, having to warm up your water before taking a shower was quite common practice. So instead of people to warm up their water, they created a hotel experience where the morning was showers were Kawa Hot Baths.
With the thought of making the Kawa’s as their tourist attraction wherein the kawa’s are like tubs that are heated by the fire of woods. And where you sit in the water with fragrant flowers and different natural herbs. This became a hit and many people enjoy this experience. (This is a common shower ritual in by the royalty of Ancient China.)
As you now might realize, Tanay is also a highland area with many mountains. The mornings are quite cool and chilly. And many people would like to experience something like this and most importantly enjoy the nurturing benefits of all those fragrance flowers and herbs.
Do you know that Hot baths has some wonderful benefits? With the Kawa Hot Bath you will feel more relaxed. It lowers your body’s stress and strain level, more specifically it relaxes the muscles. This is why many thrill seekers and adventure seekers enjoy the bath after their thrilling adventures.
It makes them completely relax and it calms the body and mind completely. Since the water is being heated naturally and the fragrance relaxes your mind due to the soothing fragrance and herbs have a strong positive effect to the body. As this entire experience is 100% naturally and cleans out your body toxins. Did you even know that certain herbs will help you sleep during that hot bath experience.
A Kawa Hot Bath can also remove toxins from your body and has a reputation of removing toxins from your body due to the herbs. The naturally heated water helps you release endorphins (meaning a relaxed feeling the brain naturally create when it is at ease), and this will make you feel more relaxed.
All of this is considered a huge secret of the ancient royalties. They knew that taking baths benefits the body not only physically but also mentally and emotionally. So now you are also in on one of the big secrets of Kawa Hot Bath.
Understand that before you can even start you have to wait. Luckily at El Patio Razon they will already prepare in advance. But before the water is at the right temperature or before you experience “being cooked alive” in a big Kawa of cauldron (think Hansel and Gretel) it will take 45 minutes of preparation.
First, the person in charge will have to heat the kawa by lighting up the fires using pieces of wood and dried bamboo. As the water gets slowly heated to its desired temperature, the personnel would then add herbs or fragrant flowers.
As the water steams you start to smell the fragrance of all the herbs and flowers. Which is an experience in itself and the fragrance will relax your mind and body. If you are scared or concerned about the water temperature, there is no reason to be concerned. The water in the Kawa is heated in a relatively low temperature, enough heat that you will enjoy.
El Patio Razon is open every day from 8 AM to 5 PM
| Day | Opening Hour | Closing Hour |
| Monday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Tuesday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Wednesday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Thursday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Friday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Saturday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
| Sunday | 9 AM | 6 PM |
El Patio Razon is just a 5-minute ride away from Treasure Mountain. El Patio Razon is the first-ever resort near the metro that offers Kawa Bath! It is so affordable that anyone can get to experience it.
Kawa bath is the most popular in El Patio Razon with a breath taking view. Going around El Patio Razon, there’s quite a lot of picturesque spot. Accommodations were nature-inspired too. There are cabins for
rent that has a veranda with hammocks which is good for family and friend getaways. El Patio Razon is a recommended place as a refreshing getaway if you’re looking for a destination that is high up in the mountains.
For the Entrance fee, it costs PHP 50/head for 4 hours and below of stay, and for 4 hours and up of stay it’ll cost Php150/head. If you want to experience being slowly boiled in a large bowl over open flame, staring out at mountains and being dressed in tiny flower, you need to pay Php 300 for an hour in which there are over six pieces of kawa that are good for 3-4 people. Yes, one kawa is good for a group of people. There are two small changing rooms and a toilet where you can change clothes after experiencing the Kawa bath.
There is a cottage for rent that costs Php5000 per night which is good for five people. You can also try camping where you can enjoy having bonfire with your friends or family. You can have your Kawa bath
at night under the stars.
How to get there:
From Gateway-Cubao, ride a jeepney or van going to Cogeo or Padilla. Tell the driver to drop you off at
Gate 2. In our case we were not dropped off at the exact place of the jeepney terminal. We had to cross
on the other side and walk our way to the City Mall of Antipolo. This will confuse you especially when
travelling at night. Landmark of the jeepney terminal will be the 7 eleven right after the Citymall. Ride
the jeepney going to Sampaloc and tell the driver to drop you of at Maysawa Circuit. Finally, ride a
tricycle until you reach El Patio Razon Resort. TAKE NOTE: Jeepneys going back to Cogeo arrive with an
interval of 30 minutes each and usually it’s already FULL. If you’re in a big group, we suggest to ride the
tricycle from the resort up to Cogeo to avoid the hassle. (Php 30 per head – good for 5 person)
