Award-Winning Farm Resort in Batangas Lets Guests Escape Manila for Slow, Nature-Filled Living
Two former chicken coops in Batangas have earned a national architecture honor. The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) named Kilyawan Farm Resort in Ibaan an Architecture Honoree (Professional Category) at the Haligi ng Dangal Awards 2026.
Born from the Ganzon family’s pandemic rediscovery of farm life, the working farm sits about 90 minutes from Manila, according to the resort. It invites guests to trade the city’s pace for orioles, cacao and bamboo.
Kilyawan Farm Resort in Batangas: A Farm Stay Built From Old Chicken Coops
Designed by Dominic Galicia Architects, the project turned two of the property’s old chicken coops into a reception building and a building of guest cabins. It preserved the site’s agricultural history and the trees around it.
Woven split bamboo ceilings, clay tile floors, clay brick walls and reclaimed wood give the cabins their character. Cushions and pillowcases are handwoven by local weavers in Ibaan.
The resort sits on an 8.5-hectare property that was once an agro-industrial chicken farm. The Ganzon family runs it, and its name comes from the kilyawan, the black-naped oriole guests can spot around the farm in the early morning and late afternoon.
“Our family rediscovered farm life during the pandemic, and Kilyawan grew out of wanting to share that experience with others,” said Tina Ganzon-Ozaeta, Chief Resort Steward. She said the recognition means a lot to the family.
Ganzon-Ozaeta said the design was always about “respecting what the farm already was – its old coops, its trees and its pace of life – and letting our guests slow down with it.” That slower pace is what the resort offers visitors leaving the city.
Batangas Farm Resort Activities and International Recognition Near Manila
The national honor follows international recognition. Kilyawan Farm Resort was Highly Commended at the World Architecture Festival 2023 in the Hotel and Leisure category and shortlisted for Best Use of Natural Light, a first for a Philippine entry.
It was also shortlisted for the 2024 Brick Award and named a finalist at the 2025 Golden Pin Design Award. Beyond the architecture, the property remains a working farm.
The farm grows cacao processed into tablea, golden queen mangoes, bamboo and organic vegetables. It also raises native black pigs and free-range chickens for organic eggs, and its produce goes into dishes at The Courtyard Farm Kitchen.
Guests can slow down with farm tours, animal feeding, walks on the nature trail and bamboo orchard, and time at the pool, forest playground, rope course, and pickleball and basketball courts. The pet-friendly resort also hosts team-building sessions.
The resort says it is about a 90-minute drive from Manila via the South Luzon Expressway. Reservations can be made through kilyawanfarmresort.com or its Facebook and Instagram pages (@kilyawanfarmresort).
