Read more "Bantayan Island Travel Guide: How to Go + Places to Visit"
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]]>“A piece of heaven on Earth” that’s how I would describe Bantayan Island. Just right stepping on Santa Fe port, you would notice its crystal-clear waters and would have a glimpse of all the beautiful things this island could offer. I visited Bantayan Island last May for a girl’s summer getaway and it gave me one summer to remember. Though it was the summer season in the Philippines and our visit fell on a holiday week, we were surprised that the island was not loaded with tourists so we were able to relax and enjoy the scenery without the crowd. The island was added to my travel bucket list after being featured in the famous local film “Camp Sawi”. The said movie made the place known and opened tourism opportunities to its locals.
Knowing Bantayan Island
Bantayan Island is an island located in the northwest part of Cebu Island. The island is about 5 hours away from Cebu City and a popular vacation spot among Cebuanos. If you are living outside Cebu and you want to enjoy your vacation with a lesser crowd, compared to Boracay or Palawan, you might opt to visit this majestic island. The island is divided into 3 municipalities namely Santa Fe, Bantayan and Madridejos. Santa Fe is the heart of tourism where beautiful white beaches can be seen, Bantayan is the largest covering the central part and Madridejos is located on the northern portion known to be the best spot on the island to watch the famous Bantayan sunset.
How to go to Bantayan Island?
From Cebu City, make your way to the North Bus Terminal and ride a Ceres bus or van bound to Hagnaya Port. From Hagnaya Port, ride the Island Shipping or Super Shuttle that will take you directly to Santa Fe Port. Upon arrival at the port, you may take a tricycle that will take you directly to your accommodation.
In our case, from Cebu-Mactan International Airport, we opted to rent a private car that will take us directly to Hagnaya Port. It costs us Php 3,500 for a 6-seater SUV, we took this option for a more comfortable and less hassle trip. We had an early flight to Cebu so we didn’t have enough sleep that day, the private ride allowed us to rest and get us to our destination at an earlier time. We were able to take the 11:30 AM trip to Santa Fe of Island Shipping which costs us Php 325 (regular fare of 300 + terminal fee of 25). Upon arrival at Santa Fe port, we were picked up by the shuttle provided by our accommodation.
Where to stay in Bantayan Island?
We’ve seen a lot of beautiful accommodations around Santa Fe but what stands out to us was Santa Fe Beach Club and it didn’t disappoint! With its proximity to the port, I would definitely recommend this premier resort. Upon your entrance, you’ll be accommodated by their friendly staff and welcomed with a welcome drink. The villas and overall interior are aesthetically designed, perfect for those pretty snaps, and the beachfront is clean and well-maintained by the caretakers. I love the beach chairs and open cabanas you could use to lie down and relax while watching the pristine beach right in front of you. The resort is simply amazing, cozy and such a picture-perfect drop every corner. It exceeded my expectations and would definitely book here again next time I visit.
Here are their room rates as of May 2024: (Rates may change without prior notice)
- Beach Villa for 4pax @6,700/night with free breakfast
- Standard Family Room for 4pax @4,300/night
- Standard Room for 3pax @3,600/night
- Standard Room for 2pax @2,900/night
Note: This already includes pick up and drop off in Santa Fe port (7:00AM-7:30PM) + Free entrance to the iconic Ogtong Cave Resort and Sandira Beach.
For more information, you may contact Santa Fe Beach Club through their official Facebook page here.
Places to Visit on Bantayan Island
Omagieca Obo-ob Mangrove Garden
This is a mangrove eco-park located in Brgy. Obo-ob, Bantayan Island. Managed by OMAGIECA stands for Obo-ob Mangrove Garden Integrated Eco-Tourism & Conservation Association not only promotes the place as an attraction but also raises awareness of the importance of mangroves on our coastal ecosystem.
You have to wander around by walking on their bamboo boardwalk passing through mangroves. Since Bantayan Island is the home of the movie “Camp Sawi”, the famous signage can also be found in this mangrove garden.
Entrance Fee:
- Adult – Php 75
- Senior Citizen/PWD – Php 60
- Children (4-12 years old) – Php 20
Sandira Beach
Also known as “Paradise Beach” is probably my personal favorite place I visited during our land tour. The beach is somehow secluded and not as developed compared to other beaches on the island but its natural and bare beauty makes it more special than the rest. Fewer tourists are visiting here so if you are looking for a place to chill and relax, then this would be the perfect spot. It was called paradise for no reason, the beach has fine white sands, crystal blue waters and rock formations. Less crowd, quieter with a great view, we really enjoyed our stay here and will recommend it to your Bantayan bucket list.
Entrance Fee:
- Adult – Php 70
- Children – Php 30
Note: If you are staying in Santa Fe Beach Club Resort, you are free of charge.
The Ruins Bantayan
It’s literally just ruins of an abandoned house but people started to make craze of this place that it started to be part of their travel itineraries. As per locals, the house was once owned by a German who left the property after some time. The ruins or walls are now covered by graffiti making the place perfect for picture taking. Just get that angle, and you will be loaded with those instagrammable photos! Just below the ruins are famous spots now for cliff diving and swimming.
Entrance Fee: Free
Kota Beach
Kota Beach is one of the famous and developed beachfront resorts in Bantayan Island. The resort made fame as this is the actual beach where the “Camp Sawi” movie was filmed. The place also highlights a beautiful sand bar and a good place to catch the sunrise.
Entrance Fee: Free
Little Siargao
Are you familiar with the famous coconut palm tree road in Siargao? Bantayan Island also has a smaller version of it. Take those photos with the coconut trees but be mindful of the vehicles passing by the road.
Entrance Fee: Free
Ogtong Cave Pool
This enchanting cave pool is located inside the Ogtong Cave Resort. Don’t miss out on taking a dip in this natural pool, the clear blue cool water is a heavenly reward after all the tours you do under the sun.
Entrance Fee:
- Adult – Php 225
- Children – Php 120
Note: If you are staying in Santa Fe Beach Club Resort, you are free of charge.
Kota Park and Ruins
You haven’t gone to Bantayan if you haven’t witnessed yourself the famous Bantayan sunset! Since we are staying in Santa Fe (where most of the resorts are located) which is located on the right side of the island, sunset watching is not possible. We badly wanted to watch the sunset, so as suggested by our tour guide, we visited Kota Park in the town of Madridejos.
Here you can see a historical fort built in the 1790s that served as a lookout for Muslim and Moro invaders. Just a few walks from the park is a coastal shore and a boardwalk where you can take a stroll and watch the sunset.
Entrance Fee: Free
Balidbid/Baigad Lagoon Beach
This lagoon/beach is also one of the scenic places I visited on this trip. This specific beach is located at the end of a lagoon, so one side of it faces the lagoon while the other side faces the open sea. While the scenes here are another level of paradise, there are lots of resting chairs, tables and hammocks that can be seen here making the place the go-to spot for a relaxing time. Waves coming from the open sea might be strong at times, so most visitors take a dip instead on the lagoon on the other side. There’s an in-house restaurant on this resort but if you opt for a cheaper menu item, just go to the smaller stores located at the side of the resort. Food options there are affordable yet delicious and have big servings! Don’t miss out also their yummy fruit shakes, one of the best I had in my life!
Entrance Fee:
- Adult – Php 200
- PWD/Senior/Locals of Bantayan – Php 100
- Children (under 6 years old) – Free of charge
Virgin Island
A must-destination in Bantayan Island if you are doing an island-hopping trip. It is a majestic private-owned small island located east of the main Bantayan Island. Virgin Island offers white beach shores, pristine waters, and a lot more activities such as snorkeling and cliff diving. This resort island is much bigger compared to Baigad Lagoon Beach with more activities and facilities to see. It is also not crowded so we really enjoyed our stay here and took all the time to relax and swim. Unlike the other known Virgin Island of Bohol, this island is not bare, it has a lot of trees, tables, cabanas, accommodations and even a cactus garden.
Entrance Fee: Php 200
For a hassle free Bantayan land tour, please contact our recommended tour guide, Kuya Lito, at 09365451858. If you’re looking for an accommodating, good photographer and the best tour guide, Kuya Lito is the man to call.
We traveled by air, by land, and by sea just to arrive on Bantayan Island, but the exhaustion we had after the long trip completely faded away after getting all the love and allure this island blown to us the moment we stepped on its land. We found Bantayan Island but the island kept a piece of us, our hearts.
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]]>Read more "Panglao, Bohol Travel Guide: Places to Visit in Panglao Island"
The post Panglao, Bohol Travel Guide: Places to Visit in Panglao Island appeared first on Meghy Was Here.
]]>Like what I said on my previous blog, Bohol is a dream island. This paradise island is truly a jewel of the Philippines. For this article, let’s explore Panglao Island that can be found in the southwest most part of the province. Panglao Island consists of two towns named Panglao and Dauis. It is now the gateway of the province for most of its international and local visitors as it now houses the Bohol-Panglao International airport. It is known for its beautiful beaches, rich marine biodiversity perfect for diving and a lot of exceptional resorts perfect for leisure.
Places to Visit in Panglao Island
If you’re visiting Bohol for few days, I suggest to book your accommodation in Panglao Island. Aside from its accessibility from the airport, it is a good point of pick up in any attractions you wish to take. It has a lot of resorts you can choose from budget hotels up to those luxury ones and a lot of good places to eat and chill the night out. So here are the places you may visit and activities you can do in Panglao:
Bohol Bee Farm
After dropping our things in the hotel, we went straight to Bohol Bee Farm. We discovered this place through Sandara Park who featured it to the Korean show “Battle Trip”. Basically, it is a hotel/farm/souvenir place/restaurant located in Dauis known for serving and selling organic foods and goodies. We had a great experience on their outdoor dining while being mesmerized by the view of the sea. Their menu offers a lot of choices making you hard to choose. We ended up having Seafood Soup (Tinolang isda) and Seafood lasagna. They also served us cassava chips, bread and spreads as complimentary. The servings are big, you can say that ingredients used are fresh and the overall taste and quality is superb! In terms of food taste and overall dining experience, I would say that this is the best I had in the island.
Don’t forget to try their homemade ice cream! It’s flavorful and served with their very own unique cone too. They also sell pasalubong items such as honey, malunggay spread, cassava chips and many more.
Hinagdanan Cave
Probably one of the known and unmatched site to visit in Panglao. The cave Hinagdanan which means “Laddered” in Cebuano is also located in the town of Dauis that used to be a hideout of the locals in the area to hide from the Japanese Imperial Army during the Second World War. You have to carefully step down on a stair to go inside and reach its lagoon. The cave has its own lagoon where you can swim with large stalagmites and stalactites. It’s kinda hot inside the cave so better be prepared to bring extra clothes because it is better to experience swimming in its waters. Entrance fee for sightseeing is Php 50 and Php 125 if you wish to swim.
South Palms Resort
We didn’t book our stay in this resort but we didn’t miss the chance of visiting it. South Palms Resort has one of the best beachfront I’ve seen so far! It has a long stretch of clean shore with white sand. It also highlights a beachfront spanned with number of palm trees. You may chill whole day on their beach chairs while hearing the sound of the waves and trees. They also have a pool bar and a restaurant that serves also good food. We just went on the resort to dine in and was able to enjoy the place after eating.
Alona Beach
I would say that Alona Beach is the heart of Panglao. This is where a lot of resorts and restaurants can be found. If you wish to party and chill the night out, I suggest you stay on this area. It is a tropical beach with white sand and rocky cliffs as attractions. It is a public beach with no entrance fee needed so its perfect for family outings and day swimming. A perfect place to watch the sunset by the beach while eating and drinking a glass of smoothie or a beer.
Island Hopping (Balicasag Island and Virgin island)
To complete your Bohol trip, you can’t miss visiting this two island. There’s a lot of organized tour you may purchase to get on one of this trip. You may opt to have a private tour or avail a joiner package. There’s a lot of tours being offered online (facebook pages) but if you were not able to avail one ahead of time, don’t worry as a lot of these are being offered in the shore of Alona beach which is the common pick up point for this tours. You’ll see people with laminated cards offering island hopping tours, the price differs so be up for negotiations. In our case, we were able to score a Php 750/pax joiner fee.
Balicasag Island
Balicasag island is an island off coast of Panglao perfect for snorkeling and diving. With its rich marine sanctuary, it is an island you can’t missed on your list. Upon arrival in the island, visitors will be asked to ride a smaller boat maneuvered by a local guide to bring you on the best spot for diving. Under its clear deep blue waters are sea turtles, corals and colorful varieties of fish.
Virgin Island
Virgin island also known as Pungtud island is probably the most popular island in Bohol. Mainly, it is a naked sandbar with white sands and clear turquoise waters perfect for swimming and to unwind. Lies on its bare island is a sign “Welcome to Virgin island” where tourists line up to get photos with it. Also, it just happened that it was high tide when we reached the island so we were not able to see the sandbar itself. So better check the high tide and low tide schedule if you wish to see the sandbar.
Other attractions you can visit are Dauis Church and Shell Museum.
Tip: Usual rate of tricycle per ride in Panglao is Php 150 (good for 3pax), so if you wish to visit multiple places in a day, it is better to rent a tricycle. Price may vary from 500 to 1000 depends on how many stop you’ll make.
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