The Montemaria International Pilgrimage & Conference Center simply known as Montemaria is a township and Roman Catholic pilgrimage site in Batangas City, Batangas, Philippines. It is the site of the Mother of All Asia ā Tower of Peace, the tallest statue of the Virgin Mary in the world.
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Visited site on Thursday 8th January 2025. The monument has a one way system for traffic going round the monument, but no signage indicating such. We proceeded with the permission of a security guard to approach the monument entrance only to be halted by another guard who indicated we should reverse and go around the monument anti-clockwise. We did so and then helped our PWD wheelchair user to disembark the vehicle and enter the monument.
CRs in the monument for male and female. Female CR showed PWD wheelchair symbol. CRs were standard size however and not spacious enough for PWD wheelchair user. We were then shown to the male CR which did have a large enough cubicle, but without any assistive grab handles, hand wash facility, or tissues.
Refectory area adjacent elevator ticket area was dull, noisy, banal. Tickets for elevator per use were PhP150 per person and PhP100 per senior person upon presenting requisite ID. Looking grey haired, frail, wrinkled not sufficient. ID required. Souvenirs for sale adjacent elevator ticket sale desk. However, such consists of banal, meretricious items only.
Access to site awkward - lengthy narrow twisting road with several areas being labelled accident zones.
The area is described as a pilgrimage centre. Functioned more as a business. From a spiritual point of view functioning is very far removed from the exhortation of 1 Corinthians 14:40. CRās and PWD / wheelchair user facilities portray a paradigm of grand insouciance as does the absence of signage re one way system round...
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Not recommended to visit as of now. It feels more like for business and advertisement and less of a serene location for pilgrimage.
The guards and staff are rude. We asked for directions for toilet and parking and they answered in an anyhow way. They have no crowd control system.
All the wash room (comfort room) have no water to flush nor wash the hand even. There's no light so you gonna use your own torchlight. There are bugs inside. The path to washroom are all muddy, not cemented floor. The locks are damaged. There's not enough cubicles so que can be very long if there's a large crowd. The place reeks of human waste.
The place is littered with trash. There are hotel pods at the side which seems odd and out of place. It even has a VIP exclusive system. In my opinion, I feel like the image of Mother Mary is desecrated here. They could have been more discreet about it. I am not sure but it feels weird.
Safety wise, I noticed that some paths don't have safety railings so there's a chance someone can fall (it's like more than 2 meters high if you fall down). Do be careful as hospitals could be far.
Their entrance and parking system is so chaotic it takes half an hour to even enter.
It's not worth the long hours of drive. It's better to visit the old churches of Batangas and Tagaytay. It's especially not recommended for senior, disabled and pregnant people or even those with babies as it is highly inconvenient and inaccessible. Maybe give it a...
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Nice place to visit just be prepared for a long trip from manila through slex, star tollways, traversing small roads passing by big oil corporation through some winding roads small barrios until you reach the place. The data signal is weak to none in some areas so make sure to download an offline trip map. There is a vehicle fee as you reach the guard. He will let you go up to the building to drop passengers and drive down to the main parking lot. If you have a senior driver then you are in luck and will be guided to park around the building. They also have comfort rooms by the parking area. As you enter the main door you will reach the canteen alone with souvenirs and snack area. To the right is the elevator to get you to the top but you will need to pay P150 for regulars and P100 for seniors. Normally there is a cue for ten persons for the elevator. I was told weekends can have longer cues and so it is advisable to go there weekdays. They have a mama Mary statue for photos on the ground floor as well. On the top you'll see the glass walk, scenic Ocean, and the big statue of mother Mary. They also have a restaurant by the area but we did not bother to eat. The place felt like it was built for commercial purposes and far from Antipolo church and the like. It is nice to visit and see first time. Will I come back? I...
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