Power Wheels Magazine A Notch Above
During a press conference held on October 19, 2026 at the Pop-Up Campers PH Headquarters in Marikina, Wrangler Jeans and Apparel announced their commitment as the official outfitter of Pop-Up Campers PH Grand Philippine Loop that will start in January 2027. The official Philippine Loop is a long-distance adventure, travel, and endurance challenge that requires participants to traverse the entire archipelago from Luzon, the Visayas, to Mindanao in a continuous circuit. The Pop-Up Campers PH Grand Philippine Loop will endeavor to include places that are not covered by the official challenge.
“Wrangler has been recognized as the rugged jeans to wear during camping, exploration, and outdoor activities since 1947,” stated Donnie Manaloto, Marketing Head of Authentic American Apparel Inc., the official distributor of Wrangler jeans and apparel in the country. “We are excited to partner with Pop-Up Campers PH, the makers of proudly Philippine-made overlanding equipment, to further promote the outdoor lifestyle that Wrangler has long been identified with, while promoting local and international tourism around the country.”
Donnie Manaloto (center), Marketing Head of Authentic American Apparel Inc., the official distributor of Wrangler, outlines the jeans and apparel brand’s partnership in the Grand Philippine Loop as Nio Racho (left) and Gen Belanio (right) of Pop-Up Campers PH look on.
Promote, Popularize & Prioritize Philippine Tourism
Initially, Pop-Up Campers PH principal partners Genius “Gen” Belanio and Niño Frederick “Nio” Racho decided to undertake the Grand Philippine Loop just to simply accomplish the official Philippine Loop challenge. The official rules require participants to accomplish the registration, official ride logbook, checkpoint verifications, daily odometer photos, and strict adherence to rules (such as not changing vehicles or drivers) as they pass through multiple major islands, designated checkpoints, and inter-island ferry crossings.
Pop-Up Campers PH business partners Nio Racho and Gen Belanio answer questions from the media during the press conference while emcee Lester Dizon of Power Wheels Magazine (in a Wrangler shirt) moderates the Q&A segment.
But as they got deeper into their planning stages, they decided to change their goal to “Promote, Popularize and Prioritize Philippine Tourism”, especially since the country has lots of beautiful, exciting, and fantastic sights and places that have to be experienced by our own countrymen. “As avid overlanding enthusiasts, we’ve experienced scenic places around our beautiful country that have never been featured in any tourism promotion,” explained Racho. “We believe that it is time to give back to our country by sharing these fantastic places with our countrymen and the world through the Grand Philippine Loop.”
Several days before the press conference, Nio Racho and Gen Belanio showed Lester and Shawie Dizon their planned route and schedule for the Grand Philippine Loop.
Shawie Dizon takes a groupie photo after the planning session at Pop-Up Campers PH HQ.
Pop-Up Camping Around Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao
The Wrangler-clad Grand Philippine Loop team will be traveling in 8 vehicles equipped with Pop-Up Campers PH overlanding equipment. Their vehicles will include a RAM Rebel pickup truck, 2 Fords (Ranger Sports and Ranger Raptor), 2 Nissans (Navara), and 3 Toyotas (2 Hilux pickups and 1 New Generation Tamaraw). The team will travel for 10 days each month, park and secure their rigs at a designated hub, return to Metro Manila for work and rest, then, in the following month, return to their rigs they left at the hub and continue the route to the next destination.
The Pop-Up Campers PH team during one of their recent sojourns.
The team plans to start their Grand Philippine Loop from Kilometer 0 at Rizal Park in Manila on January 22, 2027. From Manila, they will drive around Central and Northern Luzon with planned stops at tourism and historic spots along the way. They plan to camp overnight at a scenic beach in San Narciso, Zambales on their first day, and then spend the next days driving to and camping at the next destinations that include Alaminos, Pangasinan; Lake Tabeyo in Kabayan, Benguet; Vigan, Ilocos Sur; Laoag, Ilocos Norte; Aparri and Tuguegarao in Cagayan Province, Dingalan and Baler in Aurora, and then back to Metro Manila to complete the first stage of their Grand Philippine Loop.
The Grand Philippine Loop will take off at Kilometer 0 at Rizal Park in Manila and travel north to Zambales, Pangasinan, Benguet, Vigan, Laoag, Aparri, Tuguegarao, Aurora, and then back to Metro Manila for the first leg.
Documenting the Grand Philippine Loop
In February, the team plans to cover Southern Luzon (Bicol), Visayas (Samar, Leyte) and into Mindanao (Surigao, Siargao) in 10 days. In March, the team plans to drive around Northern, Eastern and Southern Mindanao before flying back to Manila from Cagayan de Oro City. In April, they projected drives around Western Mindanao, Negros and Panay, followed by an extended stop in Iloilo for the Sea-Doo Escape 2027. They are still planning and coordinating their routes for June and July, and might extend their sojourn into August, when necessary.
The team plans to travel to Southern Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao from February to March, followed by an extended stop in Iloilo in April for the Sea-Doo Escape 2027.
To document the entire sojourn, Pop-Up Campers PH will post daily blogs and vlogs updating their location and experience through their social media accounts on Facebook (Pop Up Campers PH); TikTok (www.popup.campers.ph); YouTube (https://youtube.com/@pop-upcampersphoutdoorgears?feature=shared); and through media partners in different parts of the country. Meanwhile, Wrangler Jeans and Apparel will support the Grand Philippine Loop with digital billboard displays in various strategic points around Metro Manila. Ultimately, the team plans to publish a coffee table book to promote Philippine Tourism around the world.
Nio Racho shows the features and amenities of a Pop-Up Camper to their partners from Wrangler.
The Pop-Up Campers PH Grand Philippine Loop will be going on the road in 2027 in partnership with Wrangler Jeans and Apparels, Authentic American Apparel Inc., Alfred Watermax, Dose Sinko Café, and Power Wheels Magazine. For more information about Pop Up Campers PH, please call 0917 309 6079 or email at popupcampersph2024@gmail.com . For sponsorships, inquiries about the Grand Philippine Loop, or inclusion in the planned coffee table book, please call Shawie Dizon at 0916 786 7722 or email at shawie_1107@yahoo.com
