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| The water clarity there is incredible. |
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| A scene snapped in Siquijor from my scooter. |
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| A snorkeling spot in the Central Visayas. |
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| Bato Port in Cebu was one of the prettiest ports we went through. |
Numerous travel blogs warned me how easy it is to fritter away time in the country in transit and spend more than expected on transport. I optimistically (foolishly?) figured I could steer clear of these pitfalls with some solid research and planning. Wrong. Well, at least sort of. Even though we whittled down our destinations and had a clear route in mind, there was also mother nature to contend with:
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| The ash drift from the air. |
- Days before our flight to Manila, the Taal Volcano erupted, spewing dangerous ash into the air, halting flights, and causing devastation to the surrounding community, which is just 40 kilometers south of the capital. Experts warned that subsequent hazardous eruptions were imminent. The airport had reopened by the time our flight rolled around, so we cautiously took it after buying face masks to filter harmful particulate matter. After landing in Manila though, we changed our plans to stay in the north and immediately caught a flight south to avoid being in the ash drift and possibly stuck if the airport closed again. According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, the country has 24 active volcanoes, with the last dangerous eruptions in 2018 and 1991, so maybe tentatively keep that in mind if you plan to go!
- Wind and rain also saw our flights to Siargao cancelled two days in a row. We learned cancellations are actually very common, because the planes used for some domestic flights are smaller and less able to handle adverse weather than your typical 747. Leaving the island to catch an international flight left us crossing our fingers for good weather. Thankfully, it all worked out, but I'd give yourself a generous buffer to catch an international flight after a smaller domestic one.
- On the less dramatic end of things, our plans to surf in La Union were also thwarted by a total lack of waves for the week we planned to be there, so we ended up leaving after just two nights.
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| Flying to Iloilo wasn't planned. |
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| A seafood platter with a little veg. |
My only mini gripe is that the Filipino cuisine, which leans heavily on American fast food, didn't really light my fire (heavier on meat, salt, fat, and processed foods, and much lighter on vegetables; here is a take on why). That said, we did have a few great local dishes, and, with a little restaurant research, I almost always found food I was happy with (with the exception of one very sad 7-11 meal I couldn't stomach).
Since we spent roughly 40 days in the Philippines, I'm breaking down my blogs on the country into two. This post focus on our the Central Visayas Region, where we spent 11 days, and the next will cover Camiguin, La Union, and Siargao. Hope this gives you some ideas for future travels! Below you'll find:
- My itinerary, travel hiccups and all;
- Impressions of the islands of Cebu, Siquijor, and Bohol; and
- A spending recap.
11-Day Central Visayas Itinerary
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| We went south to the Central Visayas to avoid issues with the volcano near Manila. |
Due to the eruption of the Taal Volcano, we abandoned our original plans to stay north of Manila and go surfing for a few weeks. Instead, we took a flight south to Iloilo the night we arrived in the Philippines to play it safe. We "lost" two nights in Iloilo scrambling to rearranging our itinerary.
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| *Tricycles are Filipino auto rickshaws. Actual travel dates Jan. 16, 2020, through Jan. 26, 2020. |
The Island of Cebu: Making For Moalboal
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| Moalboal's main attraction is under water. |
We flew into Cebu City planning to head straight to Moalboal, a smaller laid-back coastal town a few hours away known for amazing diving and specifically its sardine runs. Just off its shore millions of little fish dance together in synchronized swirling clouds all year round. But we almost aborted this plan mid-flight. The girl I sat next to on the plane informed me that a huge celebration was happening in Cebu City the following day, and if hotels weren't booked out we should absolutely stay to attend it. I'd been so focused on avoiding the volcano, I hadn't even thought about checking local events!
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| Cebu City was decked out to celebrate Sinulog! |
It was the 40th annual Sinulog festival, a cultural and religious celebration honoring a statue of baby Jesus (Santo Nino) brought to Cebu in 1521 by the Portuguese explorer Magellan, which paved the way for christianity in the country. There'd be dancing, costumes, parades, and street parties. It sounded so fun, and just as we were entertaining taking another financial hit to rearranging plans yet again, our internet stopped working. Turns out, it wasn't just mine. Police had blocked signal for the entire city for security reasons over the festival weekend. Dumbfounded and unable to sort out logistics online, we decided it was a sign to stick with our original plan and make for Moalboal.
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| Snack options at the bus terminal. |
We fought our way to the bus terminal through blocked off streets packed with sweaty crowds of people holding small statues of Santo Nino. Groups of children were already decked out in costume and music blasted from massive speakers set up along the streets. At the bus terminal, we purchased some snacks and waited on benches in sticky heat until they could gather enough passengers to pack us into a minibus like the sardines we were hoping to see in Moalboal. They refused to leave until the van meant for 12 was packed with 16 people and their luggage.
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| The three-hour ride to Moalboal was cramped, but at least we had aircon. |
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| This was one of the wealthier homes in Moalboal. |
After taking in a relatively upscale airport, malls, and familiar fast food chains in Cebu City, the pockets of poverty we past on the way to Moalboal caught me off guard. While poverty in the country is decreasing, the poverty incident is still about 20% according to the World Bank (read more here). We drove by small communities surrounded by forest where the majority of homes were a patchwork of wood panels, sheets of metal, and thatching. Despite the signs of financial struggle, I felt a strong sense of pride and community shining through though. Homes were often painted cheerful colors and bright flowers were almost always planted in front. Every few kilometers, you'd come across a communal space with a rusting basketball court where kids were shooting hoops, a favorite Filipino past time and an influence from earlier American occupation. This resilience and joy for life was something we saw throughout the Philippines.
Once we pulled into Moalboal though things looked a little different. Tourism had pulled in enough money for a few fun little restaurants, hostels, bars, and cafes selling smoothie bowls and espresso shots. It was far from a lap of luxury, but there were even guesthouses with private pools. Closer to shore, we found a handful of well-run and highly professional dive shops, and locals politely asked if we'd like to join this or that tour to see waterfalls in the area or go canyoning.
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| The mural didn't make false promises. I saw turtles! |
While we didn't take them up on any tours, we did pay for a dive! There was an unbelievable amount of beautiful sea-life and coral, but the sardines stole the show. Getting to peacefully float below enormous schools of tiny fish swirling in fluid formations as light shined through was nothing short of magical. It was a mix of being in some sort of National Geographic documentary and an underwater dance scene from The Little Mermaid. I'm gutted I don't have any pictures!
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| The small strip of beach in Moalboal. |
But truth be told, I don't think you need to drop the cash to dive there. Snorkeling is almost as good, and 50 times cheaper. We waded into the warm waters off the small stretch of rocky beach near the dive shops and entertained ourselves for hours nearly every day! I saw my very first sea turtle, a blue and black stripped sea snake, lion fish, a moray eel, and lots of little nemo fish. I'm sadly picture-less, but the dive shop we went with has this video clip of the marine life there if you're curious.
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| Chicken adobo with double veggies. |
When we weren't in the water or sunning ourselves, we were at restaurants eating out, or more often than not, waiting to eat. After waiting over 1.5 hours for food a few times, we realized the trend and started showing up a solid hour before we were hungry. I have to say this ended up being necessary throughout the Philippines. When the food arrive though, it was generally tasty. I tried my first chicken adobe, where they braise the meat in a soy sauce, vinegar, and garlic mixture. There was also a wood-fired pizza joint, and a place with ocean views that we visited again and again called Lantaw Restaurant, which serves Filipino, Indonesian, and Thai food. I can highly recommend their seafood platter if you ever find yourself in town! There were a few places to grab drinks, and bars were generally buzzing with backpackers, couples on vacation, and diving enthusiasts.
All in all, we found ourselves thoroughly entertained for four days, without doing any of the recommended side trips. You have sea-life, an OK beach, a selection of very reasonably priced food and accommodation, and enough tourists to give the tiny town some atmosphere without it being grossly overrun. I think it's a great stop if you're planning to visit the Central Visayas.
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| The bus stop in Moalboal is along a main road and about a 30-minute walk from shore. |
The Island of Siquijor: Sorcery & Sand
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| This beach next to Sijuijor Port isn't even considered one of the nice ones. |
Hopping over to Siquijor from Cebu took almost a full day of travel, but it was absolutely worth it. Without an airport, the only way to arrive is by boat. We ended up taking a bus to a port, then a ferry, and then a rickshaw to another port where we boarded our final ferry to Siquijor. It was a bit of a pain, but I think the extra effort required to get to this remote place is what's kept it such a gem. That, and it's strict ban on single-use plastic!
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| One of Siquijor's historic churches. |
The island, which is home to about 100,000, is known for its idyllic beaches and being shrouded in legends of magical healing and witchcraft. There's even a 2007 horror movie called Siquijor: Mystic Island. These tales seems to have taken hold around the time of the Spanish conquest when the island was situated along a trade route. It's thought that stories of dark magic were spread to deter invaders, and that its reputation as a place of healing came from sick sailors recovering with the help of traditional medicine. Nowadays, you can still buy herbal potions or seek out one of the few remaining traditional healers, but the island has a hospital, and you're more likely to come across one of its roman catholic churches than any sorcery.
But if you're looking to be put under a spell, I have a tip: rent a scooter. A well-paved road circumnavigates Siqiujior, connecting the sleepy little villages dotted along its shores and cutting through verdant hills with swaying palms and brilliant red and yellow flowers. Locals wave and smile with a genuine warmth that's disarming. After just 10 minutes of taking gentle curves through the jungle under blue skies, I was grinning ear to ear and utterly enchanted.
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| Catching sunset over the jungle from a tucked away family-owned guesthouse and restaurant. |
A scooter is also by far the best way to unlock all the adventures the island has to offer, and there are many! We stayed in the most touristic of the towns, San Juan, given its selection of restaurants and accommodations, but a 20-minute drive east took us to a 400-year old balete tree, which is nice enough by itself, but also has a little spring at its base with a fish foot spa. Having fish nibble at my feet had me in fits of uncontrollable laughter. A strange, but entertaining experience for about 20 euro cents! Sadly, my feet weren't much better off for it though. I'd need hours there to see a difference!
If you continue counterclockwise around the island another 15 minutes, you'll come to the sleepy town of Lazi, which has a striking historic roman catholic church and covenant from the island's Spanish colonial era.
The town is also home to the very Instagram-able Cambugahay Falls. Its milky turquoise waters cascade down three tiers into swimming holes in the middle of thick jungle. You can launch yourself into the water Tarzan-style from various rope swings. Don't expect to have the place to yourself though. It draws a crowd. Local lifeguards were taking turns showing off double flips and twists to a cheering crowd when we stopped by.
If you press on another 30 minutes past Lazi, you'll get Saladong Beach, which is home to an abandoned resort and two cliff-diving platforms (about 7 and 10 meters respectively). It isn't someplace I'd stay all day as its also draws crowds, but the drive out was beautiful and the adrenaline rush from the big plug was something! My nasal cavities were definitely cleaned out after that. To get back on the rock you climb up a tiny metal ladder on the cliff and then a little bit of nearly sheer rock face, so not for the faint of heart. There was a lifeguard on duty though.
If all that sounds a little intense and too far from the main drag, I can recommend Paliton Beach. It's just outside San Juan, and close to a fabulous pizza place (yes, I do talk a lot pizza, I know). I'm so glad we went. As we walked up, a local selling fresh coconuts with a splash of rum for two euro a pop shouted, "Welcome to paradise!," and that it was. White powdered sand, super clear water, a few patches of shade from palm trees, not a scrap of trash, and only a handful of other people on the beach. We took turns snorkeling in the marine sanctuary just in front of the beach.
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| The Paliton Marine Sanctuary is just behind me. |
Thore liked it so much in fact that he swam off and out of sight for a little longer than I'd have liked. After no sign of him for an hour and a half, I started to worry and asked the coconut man if the current was strong in the area. Before I knew it, he and the local lifeguard were scanning the horizon with binoculars and telling me not to fret, they'd find him. A group of fishermen were just putting their boat in the water to scan the area for him when we saw a carefree Thore making his way back to shore. Apparently he got carried away looking at some giant clams. But that was just one example of locals' genuine kindness that we encountered while there.
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| All smiles after a day of adventures. |
After long days of exploring, we spent most evenings catching the sunset with a beer. I can highly recommend Hidden Valley Glamping Bar & Resto and Jungle of Peace Bar & BBQ, both of which are situated on hills and offer a great lookout and relaxed atmosphere.
When the time came to leave Siquijor, I was definitely a little sad! I felt like it was such a special island, and could easily have enjoyed a few more days. The port in the tiny town of Larena gave us a beautiful send off though! The Island of Bohol: Tarsiers & Chocolate Hills
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| The Chocolate Hills: A unique geological formation in Bohol. |
Bohol is a much bigger island than Siquijor, both in terms of land mass and overall population. The town of Tagbilaran where we stayed has a bigger population than the entire island of Siquijor. Because of its international airport, Tagbilaran also gets a decent amount of tourists who flock to the surrounding resorts and beaches for parties and all-inclusive holidays. While there's certainly more infrastructure in and around town, the tropical vibes come with a side of pollution and crowds.
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| We passed some super vibrant rice fields in Bohol. |
Once you get out of city though, the rest of the island is beautiful and pretty sparsely populated with limited infrastructure. For this reason, I'd still recommend staying in or near the main town, and simply renting a scooter or car to go out adventuring. We opted for a scooter to see three of the island's main attractions: the tarsiers, the chocolate hills, and a man-made mahogany forest. It was a nice, but a pretty exhausting day, because the distances are bigger in Bohol and the pollution irritated my lungs.
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| Tarsiers have the largest eye-to-body ratio of all mammals. |
Our first stop, the Tarsier Sanctuary, was probably my favorite activity of the three and only about 45 minutes outside of town. The tour is very brief and completely hands-off though. A guide gives you about 10 minutes to walk through a path in the forest where eight of the tiny primates are hanging in trees. You must keep a distance from them and maintain absolutely silence, because they are nocturnal and shouldn't be disturbed during the day. They are only 4-6 inches in length, so a little hard to spot, but so cute when you do locate one! I learned the little guys can jump up to 40 times their length. Bummed I wasn't around to see that!
The ride to the Chocolate Hill took us through the lovely man-made forest, but dragged on for another hour and a half--a little more than my butt was prepared for. We had to take a few breaks to shake out our legs, and it was challenging to find anywhere to eat lunch along the way. The unique geological formations were a sight though. There are more than 1,000 cone-shaped hills, which turn chocolate brown when the grass on them dries out. Since we arrived after rain though, they were more green than brown. It was fun to see, but after about 15 minutes of appreciation and photographing, we sat out sore butts back on the scooter for a looonng ride home.
On the way back, we came across a local parade. I wish I knew what they were celebrating, but I never did find out. We also saw some other unexpectedly beautiful spots like the river below and the colorful little statue to the right. While we certainly didn't see all of Bohol in our short time there, I have to say I wouldn't go back or necessarily recommend it if you have limited time. I enjoyed what we saw, but I simply had a better time in Moalboal, Siquijor, and in the other spots we visited later in our trip.
The ride to the Chocolate Hill took us through the lovely man-made forest, but dragged on for another hour and a half--a little more than my butt was prepared for. We had to take a few breaks to shake out our legs, and it was challenging to find anywhere to eat lunch along the way. The unique geological formations were a sight though. There are more than 1,000 cone-shaped hills, which turn chocolate brown when the grass on them dries out. Since we arrived after rain though, they were more green than brown. It was fun to see, but after about 15 minutes of appreciation and photographing, we sat out sore butts back on the scooter for a looonng ride home. 
Spending Breakdown
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| *Costs reduced by traveling as a couple. |
For 11 days in the Central Visayas, I spent just over €600. A huge chunk of that was transport costs. While flights and ferries were relatively cheap, moving from island to island just adds up, and to truly unlock the full potential of most places, you need a scooter. I'm sure we also paid a premium for having to book last-minute flights out of Manila and to Cebu because of the volcano. Under normal conditions, it looked like you could get short- and medium-distances domestic flights for around €20-€30. In general though, I think it probably is safer to budget for unexpected transport costs while traveling the Philippines.
While the cost of accommodation varied a little from island to island, we paid about €25 a night on average for a room and split that cost between us (€12.50 per person).
For food, we got by on about €10-€15 per person a day, excluding any alcohol while always eating lunch and dinner out.
Most activities and sights were very cheap, but if you wanted to scuba dive the costs were on par with international prices, so about €40 per dive. I needed a refresher course, so mine cost at little more than normal. Hope that helps anyone trying to budget for a trip!
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