The Cabilao Island, Bohol

The small island located upstream Cabilao Bohol Tagbilaran out of about 30 km along the coast road in the direction of Loon, Calape and Tubigon. There is a ferry (about 10 min.) With outrigger boats off the island Sandingan which is in turn connected by bridge to Bohol.

Although the island relatively close to the “mainland” the island is neither a separate power supply nor a water supply. Fresh water must be either collected from rainwater or put out of Bohol by boat to the island. The three small resort facilities on the island have not organized well.

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Beautiful Bohol

This expansive farm in the town of Dauis on Panglao Island is all about embracing the natural, organic lifestyle. The small herb garden by the main entrance is a lush home to pots of tarragon, basil, dill, fennel, coriander, peppermint—all of which you can touch and smell one by one on the free farm tour for guests. Included in the tour is a 101 talk on bees and how they work. But before you set off for the tour, take a seat and eat. The menu is a page-turner—Yoga Salad with Cheese, Organic Vegetables Stir-Fried with Shrimps, Grilled Marlin, Seafood Pasta with Cocomilk, Ube Fries with Honeyed Latik, and so on. Not strong on decision-making? Treat your group to a generous buff et spread for P420 per head for a group of six.

After lunch, look for a nook you can claim your own. The real charm of Bohol Bee Farm is to be discovered in the many cozy couches and hammocks spread all over the property. Yes, lazing around is required here. Look for the viewing deck and let the sound of crashing waves serenade you. Get a traditional hilot massage to work out the kinks. Before you depart, stop by the Buzz Shop to load up on spreads, teas, and muffins.

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Bohol, a reverie runs through it

Drinking had never been this lonesome. Not that I don’t enjoy drinking with Mom who, by the time I was writing this, had already finished two glasses of margarita. In this Panglao night, my glass of cabernet sauvignon is starting to fill me with reverie.

So I took my best friend, the laptop to write my story under these starry skies. Tomorrow, I would be back in the arms of Manila, my Manila. And the thought of it brings me feelings that are acute and painful Bohol is introverted like me, and amusingly very rural. No big, noisy parties, just tables for one, or two, or a few friends who would talk quietly. Is it the wine or the memory slowly unfolding? Time flies and I have to commit everything to memory.

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Beautiful Bohol!

Just got back from 5 glorious days in Bohol, an island in the Southern Philippines. As you know, my friend Rachel is visiting and we wanted to take her somewhere that would give her a feel of the island life (versus the chaos of Manila). Bohol had been high on our list for awhile, so we decided a trip over New Year’s was the perfect time to go. This was our first time to one of the islands and Rachel’s first tropical beach getaway.

If we weren’t napping, suntanning or swimming we were most likely eating. And eat we did! Food was fabulously cheap, so we indulged. The Philippines is reported to have the world’s best mangoes – I think Rachel would concur, as she managed to make Mango a food group in every meal she indulged in. YUM! Our favorite dinner ended up being a beachside BBQ. We selected the delicious red snapper pictured below and had it grilled up with corn on the cob and baked potatoes to round out the meal. Nothing better than selecting from fish that had all been caught that morning… very unique (and fresh)!

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Destination Trip and Treat: Panglao Island, Bohol

My parents dropped us off to NAIA terminal 2 around 6am on a Friday morning. They kissed their grandchild goodbye for a 4 day beach trip with me. He and I have been waiting for this getaway for sometime now. It’s going to be a long weekend for us, 4 days and 3 nights at a beach resort in Panglao Island. Enzo can’t wait to see a starfish again and I can’t wait to wear my new green swimsuit and tan away to the sound of waves.

PAL flight took off just in time and in just one hour, Enzo and I are already inside a white car with a driver from the resort chatting his way to get a tour package out from us. Unfortunately for him, it’s my 3rd time to visit the Bohol, and I’ve been to all the tourist spots.
As soon as we walked our way to our resort, I could already feel that familiar smell, that familiar feeling. The beach salty air becomes thick, and like the rim of a margarita, I can taste it on my own lips. But this trip is all motherly bonding. I can’t have alcohol nor dance naked (it’s not like, I can…but) the point is that, this is a trip for my kid to enjoy the beach.

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Bohol find: TREE HOUSE

Here's something that you won't find when you google for a place to stay in Bohol! :) If you're on a budget trip and not very particular for a luxurious stay, this tree house is surely a great find!!! :) Not only is it cheap, but it shares the same beach stretch with Bohol Beach Club!!! :D

The Dumaluan beach is the best beach in the Panglao island. It only has 2 resorts - Bohol Beach Club and Dumaluan Beach resort...which both consciously keeps the beach front clean.... The Dumaluan Beach Resort is cheaper than Bohol Beach Club. But it is still expensive for budget travellers like us. But the good thing about this resort is that they created an area where they built bamboo-made cottages, which are rented out at a cheaper rate.

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Wanted: Your very own beach paradise island – Bohol or Bantayan?

Aside from Boracay, the famous island with the ‘whitest beach in Asia’, the Philippines have many more paradise islands with white sandy beaches to offer.

2 of them can be found in the Visayas, a region relatively protected from the onslaught of countless Typhoons, with the worst this year, Ketsana (Ondoy) and Parma (Pepeng) causing havoc in the Northern part of the country.

Although both, Bohol or Bantayan could be your very own paradise-beach islands, they are quite different from each other. Let’s check how they compare to the traveler in search for his very own beach paradise island:

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The Beach of Panglao Island, Bohol

We’ve already said that we’re taking a small bite at a time of Panglao Island, on real time as go around the place. We’ve talked about sunrise and sunset. This time let’s talk about one of the crucial ingredients of Panglao’s allure — its beach.

A beach is just a beach. No big deal. For many of us, however, the beach is the heart of a place. There’s a number of factors which make the beach in Panglao Island different from the rest.

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Things to Do in Panglao, Bohol

There are a lot of activities you can do when you are in Panglao, Bohol. You can choose for water adventures to historical tours to nature tripping. Here are the list of activities which you can plan to do when visiting Panglao, Bohol.

Some of the finest diving spots in the Philippines are found in Bohol. Panglao, Pamilacan, Balicasag and Cabilao are islands in Bohol which have these beautiful diving spots. In Panglao Island, there is Alona Beach Sanctuary, Kalipayan diving site, Bohol Beach Club, Doljo Beach diving site, and Napaling diving site. South west of Panglao Island, Balicasag Island has Black Forest which is known forblack coral bushes, Balicasag Marine Sanctuary and Divers Heaven where turtles, sharks and fusiliers can be seen.

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Doljo Beach in Bohol Philippines

Doljo beach has become a tourist attraction in Panglao island in Bohol. It is known for the pretty seas hell. This is a beach full of marine biodiversity.

Bohol is one of the main tourist destination in the Philippines today. In going to Bohol you could go by air or by sea with a ship. Traveling by air is definitely much faster because it usually only takes about an hour while traveling by ship may take almost a day but it is cheaper thus saving you some cash. From Manila you can get a flight going to Tagbilaran. You can make any flight from Cebu Pacific, Asian Spirit, Air Philippines and Philippine Air lines first stop is Cebu.

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How to go to Panglao and enjoy it

We all know that in order to be productive we need breaks from work to breathe and refocus. I hope you find this post helpful.

My wife and I celebrated our 10th year anniversary. So to celebrate and make it memorable, I decided to surprise her with a 3 days--2 nights get-away.

We have our weekly dates, but this is the first time that we will be separated from our 10, 6 and 3 year old kids in 10 years.

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Viva Bohol!

This is the first time Garandee's family has ever been to the Philippines, so we had to make a good impression to encourage them to visit more often. She thought Bohol will definitely make a good first impression, and boy was she right!

Garandee's Mom and brother have never experienced a beach in their whole lives so you can just imagine how amazed they were when we arrived at the Bohol Beach Club in Panglao Island. Read on for the photos!

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Escape into Paradiso, Pandanon

Looking for the perfect beach?

Pandanon Island is the place to go. White sand and warm turquoise waters await the visitor for a day of fun in the sun.”

Google Pandanon Island and you’ll be greeted with more than five hundred search results. I found the ‘quote’ above in one of them. Ask a fellow Boholano where Pandanon Island is and you’ll most likely get a shrug. Meanwhile, other literatures list this beach as Pandanon Island, Cebu, Philippines.

It must be that the island is only a few miles from Mactan Island and its throng of beach resorts and may, in fact, be more accessible from Cebu than Jetafe, Bohol, the island’s mother town. And that guests of these resorts are mostly brought to the island via motorized outriggers for day tours and stops from dive safaris, as part of their vacation packages.

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Of Sunburns, Snorkeling and Finding Nemo

Unbelievable. They look straight at you, doe-eyed and incredibly cute, you can’t help but stare back as intently, as adorably. Clown fishes.

Clown fishes by their writhing anemone. They have to be the most adorable sea creatures ever. And very brave, too, they don’t dart away at the site of mere humans. I couldn’t believe I met them, just then. And there. At a beach whose coral reef was previously unheard of (at least by me). Punta Cruz Beach in Maribojoc, Bohol isn’t exactly the best beach in Bohol. There’s barely any sand, the seashore’s rocky with the kind that maims, and it’s dotted with sea urchins, huge sea urchins. The place is flocked with locals and tourists alike because of the centuries-old triangle-planned stone watchtower, Punta Cruz. And it’s not as crowded as the ones in Panglao. It still has the rustic feel about it.

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