The Marikina-Infanta Highway, also known as the Marcos Highway

Marcos Highway

The name Marcos Highway can refer to any of the following highways in the Philippines named after former President Ferdinand Marcos:*Marikina-Infanta Highway, connecting Marikina City to Infanta, Quezon...

or MARILAQUE Highway (MARILAQUE stands for Marikina-Rizal-Laguna-Quezon), is a scenic mountain highway

Highway

A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...

 that connects Metro Manila

Metro Manila

Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...

 with Infanta

Infanta, Quezon

Infanta is a First class municipality in the province of Quezon, Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 60,346. It has a land area of 130.1 km², representing 1.5% of the area of Quezon. It is located 144 kilometers northeast of Manila, and 136 kilometers north of...

, Quezon

Quezon

-History:Originally, what now forms Quezon was divided among the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, and Nueva Ecija. The area was first explored by Juan de Salcedo in 1571-1572, during his expedition from Laguna to Camarines provinces....

 in the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

.

The highway, constructed on the 1910s starts in Marikina City

Marikina City

Marikina, officially the City of Marikina, known as the Shoe Capital of the Philippines, was former capital of the province of Manila during the declaration of Philippine Independence and one of the sixteen cities within the Manila Metropolitan Area. Marikina is part of Eastern Manila District of...

 near Katipunan Avenue

Katipunan Avenue

Katipunan Avenue is a major avenue in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines. It runs in a north-south direction from the University of the Philippines Diliman, intersecting with Tandang Sora Avenue at its northernmost point, down to the Manila Philippines Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ...

, the Loyola Heights segment of Circumferential Road 5

Circumferential Road 5

Circumferential Road 5, also known as C-5 is a beltway which stretches from Parañaque City to Valenzuela City in Metro Manila, the Philippines...

, in Quezon City

Quezon City

Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...

. It traverses the Marikina Valley and passes through Antipolo City

Antipolo City

Antipolo is a city in the Philippines located in the province of Rizal; about 25 kilometers east of Manila. It is the largest city in the Calabarzon Region in terms of population...

, where it intersects the Sumulong Highway

Sumulong Highway

The Sumulong Highway, constructed in 1960, is the highway that connects Marikina City with Antipolo City and the municipalities of Teresa and Morong in the province of Rizal....

 (at Barangay Masinag). After Masinag the road starts its ascent towards the Sierra Madre, where a series of winding roads meet the motorists and finally to Infanta, Quezon

Infanta, Quezon

Infanta is a First class municipality in the province of Quezon, Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 60,346. It has a land area of 130.1 km², representing 1.5% of the area of Quezon. It is located 144 kilometers northeast of Manila, and 136 kilometers north of...

.

Sights

The highway is one of the most scenic routes in the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, alongside the Halsema Highway

Halsema Highway

Halsema Highway is a 2- to 4-lane highway that stretches from Baguio City to Bontoc, Mountain Province. It is the highest altitude highway in the Philippines....

 in the Cordilleras

Cordillera Administrative Region

The Cordillera Administrative Region is a region in the Philippines composed of the provinces of Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province, as well as Baguio City, the regional center. The Cordillera Administrative Region encompasses most of the areas within the Cordillera...

, and the Pan-Philippine Highway

Pan-Philippine Highway

The Pan-Philippine Highway, also known as the Maharlika Highway is a network of roads, bridges, and ferry services that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao in the Philippines, serving as the country's principal transport backbone....

 in Southern Luzon

Luzon

Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...

. Among the sights that the highway passes through are the Boso Boso Highlands in Antipolo, the Sampaloc Highlands and Pranjetto Hills Resort in Tanay.

Upon reaching Barangay Sampaloc, the Sampaloc Highway intersects the highway. To the left of the intersection is the main campus of the University of Rizal System. To the right is the town proper of Tanay, leading to the Daranak Falls and the lakeshore route along Laguna de Bay

Laguna de Bay

Laguna de Bay is the largest lake in the Philippines and the third largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia after Tonle Sap in Cambodia and Lake Toba in Sumatra, Indonesia. It is on the island of Luzon between the provinces of Laguna to the south and Rizal to the north...

leading to the easternmost towns of Laguna.