BENGUET | The Haunting of Baguio’s Laperal White House

Thursday, June 02, 2011

The Laperal White House on a Sunny Day

The day was bright and sunny as our taxi cozily sped along the winding roads of Baguio City. The air smelled of fresh pine and the sky was a clear cobalt blue, quite a fine day. We were headed towards PNKY for breakfast when I remembered a blog post about a supposedly haunted mansion across the restaurant.

Baguio's Laperal White HouseBaguio's Laperal White HouseI immediately asked our taxi driver if he knew anything about it. It turns out he does and quickly launched on about the said house.

He told us it was not always called the White House. The place used to be unpainted (or more likely paint had peeled off due to age and disrepair) before it was renovated by its new owner, none other than the business tycoon Lucio Tan, as a guesthouse. But guesthouse it is not as the place seemed totally abandoned now within its locked and rusting gates.

The former owner of the White House was the Laperal clan. Built during the 1920’s, the house was used by the occupying Japanese forces during the Second World War as they captured Baguio in 1941. The killings of its inhabitants occurred during that period but it is unclear if the Japanese were the onesBaguio's Laperal White House who did it or some other individuals. The last of the clan, Roberto Laperal, died after fracturing his head after a slip in the house’s yards.

The mansion is said to be haunted by a girl who is usually seen sitting on the front steps of the house. A few also reported seeing this same girl peering through the upstairs windows after taking a photograph of the house. I did try to zoom in to the photos I’ve taken of the mansion but found no such apparition, the cheery weather might have deterred the spirit from looking out.

Sunny weather or not, Baguio’s White House did give me the creeps. The house appears neat and tidy, but I do feel something amiss with it. I’m not sure if it’s the abandoned atmosphere it exudes, but the house seemed to be staring back down at me as I peered through my camera’s viewfinder and pressed the shutter button.

It’s obvious that the best time to photograph this haunted mansion is during twilight, I’m just not sure I can summon enough courage to face the looming façade of the Laperal White House in the dark.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

UPDATE 2014

I have been revisiting Baguio City for the past years since first stepping on the sidewalk of the haunted Laperal White House, and on the last few months of 2012, I was surprised to see that the infamous house at Leonard Woods road has now been opened to the public.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

After a chilling documentary by Jay Taruc where voices with unknown sources inside the house were recorded via the many instruments they installed, the Laperal house became an instant sensation. I didn’t know if this was what pushed the owners to finally open the house to the public, but it certainly made it as a favorite stop for tourists visiting the City of Pines.

Laperal White House in Baguio City Laperal White House in Baguio City

On my second visit to the Laperal White House, I saw that not only are they allowing people inside, but they are also having a Bamboo Carving Exhibit, something I similarly saw at BenCab Museum in the nearby town of Tuba. There’s a fee being collected, around Php50.00, which is definitely worth my money since I’ve been wanting to see what’s inside this mysterious house since first reading about it.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

Indeed its interiors were as antiquated as I first imagined it to be. But that’s not to say that it’s already in a state of disrepair and ruin. In fact, I was quite surprised at how almost immaculate and polished everything were. The wooden floors gleam with wax and their furnishings, well preserved.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

Guests are allowed to wander everywhere into the house. I passed by the so-called haunted stairs, into the bedrooms of the second floor, even up to the network of beams and rafters in its attic.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

I wouldn’t have dared gone up the house if we were not in a group as the atmosphere of Laperal gives me the creeps. I specially felt it when I wandered on one of the bare rooms upstairs where nothing but a lone mattress occupies the space. I quickly took a quick picture before hurrying on back with my companions.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

I count myself lucky that I’m not gifted in seeing things that are better left unseen. Indeed, even with my dulled senses and in broad daylight, I still felt something akin to fear when confronted with the confines of Baguio’s infamous White House.

Laperal White House in Baguio City

 

Click to View Location on Google Maps

The Laperal White House
Address: Leonard Woods Road, (In front of PNKY), Baguio City
Open Hours: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Daily
Entrance Fee: Php50.00

Baguio 2011 Series

You Might Also Like

25 comments

  1. hindi ako tumitingin dito pag napapadaan ako, nkakatakot e, iba din ung feeling. hdehe.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AuiManila
    Ahehe baka sa guni-guni lang din natin yun =P

    Tina
    Daan ka rin minsan pag napadpad ka sa Baguio and let me know what your think of it =)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Palagi kami nagpupunta sa Baguio pero never kami napadpad dito. I should pay this place a visit some time. I like creepy places, haha :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. Heard its story from a friend. Pero sayang 'di sya open for public viewing...

    World of Vhincci

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kim
    Bagay sa personality mo yan, lalo na't mahilig ka sa scary movies hehe

    Vhincci
    Oo nga sayang di pwede pumasok. May mga nakita ako pics ng loob nung bahay from other photographers, di ko lang sure kung kanino sila humingi ng permission to shoot inside.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Interesting! The B&W photos looked more surreal, while the colored photo presented it decently and not scary at all. The garden looks well-maintained kasi :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ganda ng House... Huwag lang sigurung tignan kapag Gabi na.. hehehe...
    Galing ng mga shots mo Mr. Christian.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Jonna
    Haha you think so? I converted the others to B&W because of the heavy flare my lens caught from the sun. Would you believe that the interiors of this house is in pristine condition? Saw it from another blog, it's very well restored. No one lives there tho =o

    Tripper10
    Thanks! =)
    Haha oo nga, I wonder kung ano kaya itsura nito sa gabi..

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ayokong isipin.. hehehe...
    Buti nalang walang Lumitaw sa mga shots mo...:)

    matagal nabang binili ni Lucio Tan ang bahay?

    ReplyDelete
  10. My mother used to stay in this house when our family would go up to Baguio for trips in the 70's-80's. She told me all about her experiences in the house, and how she would always see the ghost of an old man in the attic. She also said that there were some paintings with eyes that moved, Scooby Doo style! The entities weren't harmful, and they never really bothered her.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Tripper10
    I'm not sure kung kelan nabili ni Mr. Lucio Tan yung bahay eh, pag nagkasalubong kami minsan tanungin ko sya =D

    S Diaz
    Wow! Now that's something else, almost first-hand account of the hauntings! :o

    ReplyDelete
  12. Nagpicture din ako nong dumaan yung taxi namin kasi sabi haunted daw! Creepy!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Elal
    Hehe gusto ko nga sana pumasok eh, kaso bawal daw :P

    ReplyDelete
  14. dapat si Jerome kasama mo pag bumalik kayo jan at mag picture taking during twilight para sya mag guide sayo if may nakastare nga na mumu or wala. creepy!

    ReplyDelete
  15. The B&W photos exudes the strangeness of the place, Christian. I wish there;s a sequel to this visit (make the twilight visit) and then write again the experience.

    Sure ko creepy dyan talaga kung gabi na. hehehe

    ReplyDelete
  16. Doi
    Haha wag na lang din, I really don't want to see anything beyond the creepy house facade

    Arlene
    Haha parang ayaw ko na ata Ate Arlene :P

    ReplyDelete
  17. There was a bamboo art exhibit at the Laperal White House when we went there last month. Was able to take photos of the inside of the house. :D

    http://memetdiaries.blogspot.com/2013/02/laperal-white-house-bagiuo.html

    It was very creepy nga. You'll FEEL something even if you don't see or hear anything. We met the contractor who's working on the house and he confirmed that Lucio Tan bought it nga. He was on his way out, so we didn't get to interview him much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Mojita! Been a while since I last saw you here!

      Yes, I was also able to enter the place last December, I think they're opening it permanently to the public na :)

      Delete
  18. Natulog ako diyan...wala naman multo diyan. Malalaro kasi mga isip ninyo.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Is it now open for public viewing?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, the Laperal White House is now open to the public :)

      Delete
  20. How to go there? Is there a jeepney bound to laperal, or cab lang talaga?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, there is a jeep that passes by Laperal White House :)

      Delete