If the mainland beach of Bantayan Island at Sta Fe is not enough for a true-blooded beach bum, which, mind you is already a lovely stretch based on my personal standard, visitors still have options to explore the nearby islands. Second day, mid-day of our Oceana Photo Safari, we’re still at the start of our exploration of Tañon Strait in which the Bantayan Islands is a part of. The small Virgin Island, about 45 minutes off the coast of Sta Fe by outrigger boat was our destination.
Tag: Islands
El Nido | Imorigue Island, Malapari Islet Hopping and Mangrove Sidetrip
So you have done all the tours in El Nido Palawan from Tours A, B, C, D and E. The west side of El Nido, the Bacuit Bay in particular does have dramatic limestone karst islands and captivating beaches, but El Nido doesn’t end there. The other side, the El Nido east coast holds more islands to explore and stunning white sand beached to bum around. Sibaltan is the jump off point for these island adventures. I have written about some of the islands of Linapacan, now discover the limestone of Imorigue Island. From afar it looks daunting but the locals swear on how rich the marine life surrounding its waters are.
San Pascual | Chasing the Light at Tinalisayan Islet and Sandbar
The day was quickly coming to a close. When I thought we were heading back to the mainland we were told that we’ll visit one last island on our way back to San Pascual proper. Tinalisayan islet is only 1.5 nautical miles from the mainland, roughly a 20-minute motorboat ride from town. After seeing the two islands Animasola and Sombrero Islands, I thought I wouldn’t be surprised anymore but Tinalisayan islet has a little bit of everything. A white sand beach, a scenic hill with nearby rock formations, a long sandbar off the coast, and a burst of sunrise and …
San Pascual | The Twin Sombrero Island Masbate: Quaint Island Life
Filipinos really have a knack for naming places or islands that are easy to recall like common things like – hats! In Burias Island, Masbate, another set of islands got the moniker of Sombrero Island just because the island looks like the top of a cowboy hat. It’s funny though that the Sombrero Island Masbate in San Pascual is a set of two islands close together, fraternal twins I may say. The other island near the hat-like island has a gorgeous-looking stretch of beach and sand bar. Sombrero Island Masbate is our second island destination in San Pascual, quaint and laid back.
Linapacan | South Island Hopping at Magransing and Mausonoan Islands
Being one of the “35 Clearest Waters to Swim Before You Die” from the viral list site of Daily News Dig, has placed the municipality of Linapacan, Palawan in the world map. While the main photo there is a bit misleading (since that one was from El Nido), being part of the list made people curious of this set of remote islands found in between the north Palawan mainland of El Nido and south of Calamianes Archipelago. My curiosity led me to east of El Nido where I had a chance to go island hopping to the southern islands of this famed municipality to see if the claims were true. Are the waters truly clear as they claim?
IGACOS | Follow the Signs at Hagimit Falls
My inland tour on Samal Island continues. After being amazed by the millions of bats at Monfort Bat Cave, we tracked back at the main road and proceeded to Barangay Peñaplata, where our next stop, the Hagimit Falls can be found. It is one of the well known attractions on the island and is quite accessible by the main road. We reached the entrance gate in less than an hour. There’s a Php 40 entrance fee per person for the upkeep of the resort park. There weren’t many people around since its the weekday.
IGACOS | Monfort Bat Cave: Marvel at the Sight of 2.5 Million Bats
I made sure I allotted a day to do an inland tour around Samal Island. The objective was to visit a couple of waterfalls and also the famed Monfort Bat Cave which has earned itself a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records in 2010 for having the largest colony of bats in a cave. I must admit, at first my interest wasn’t really sky high on seeing this site as I thought it would just be trivial, but being there changed my opinion of this one-of-a-kind sanctuary.
