One week ago my friends and I made a trip to Batangas for snorkeling and scuba diving. As I documented in my last post, we had a fantastic time. My next trip was to Panglao, giving me an opportunity to compare two vacation destinations that have similar reputations – great beaches and fantastic diving. Here is my assessment of this competition.

We stayed at the Bohol Beach Club in Panglao. To get there we took fast ferry from Cebu to Tagbilaran – about a two-hour trip. From Tagbilaran our ten-minute ride to the Bohol Beach Club was a van provided by the resort.

 The Bohol Beach Club is quite a beautiful resort with all the amenities you would expect for the P5,000+ we paid for a standard room containing two twin beds. Of course there was aircon, cable TV hot shower, etc. The resort has three swimming pools and two kinds of restaurants – one featuring international cuisine and one featuring local fare.

The real attraction of this property is the fantastic beach. The sand was like white powder and absent of garbage and other contaminants.  What really hits you is the immense size of this beautiful beach front. We were told it goes on for three kilometers and that looked about right. The water is quite shallow for about twenty meters, making for a fantastic green color that slowly turns blue as the water deepens. There were a few native boats in the area, but not so many to distract from the tremendous views. All in all, this is the best beach I have visited in the Philippines. The natural beauty of this place is unparalleled.

We eventually left the beach to do a little inland-hopping and snorkeling.  The sailor takes us to a small island in the area called Balicasag. We were told from the locals this small island was the best place for scuba and snorkeling and we were not disappointed. There was a great variety of wonderful fish and sea life that could be easily observed through the crystal clear water. We did notice some pretty coral, but nothing that could match the fantastic display of coral we found in Batangas.

In sum, I would recommend a trip to Panglao for relaxing and enjoying the natural beauty of the place. The beach and clear water were unmatched. For diving, the area is good but not as great as Batangas.  

My friend is taking some courses about environmental subjects. She and her classmates invited me to visit Verde Island as part of a field trip for one of their classes.  We left Ortigas at 6.am to begin our trip to Verde Island in Batangas. Traffic was fairly light, so it only took us about three hours to arrive at Liya beach in Batangas. From there we took a motor boat to Verde Island, the center of a marine sanctuary in Batangas. Like us, most of the people on the boat were planning to explore the island’s marine life by scuba or snorkeling.

The water was so clear and there were so many different types of fish, it was like being inside one of those National Geographic programs. This was the first time I’ve witnessed coral “in the fresh” so to speak and it was even better than I imagined. Coral are like flowers made of stone. The colors seemed to be intensified by the crystal clear water and beautiful fish of every variety. I’m not an underwater expert, but I heard many people on the boat going back to Liya beach boast that the diving around Verde Island is the best in the Philippines.

This is my second trip to Batangas this year and I have to admit it has some important advantages over Cebu. First, Batangas is simply more beautiful than anything I’ve witnessed in Cebu – and I lived on Cebu Island and/or the surrounding area for more than twenty years.  Then there’s the convenience if you’re travelling from outside the Philippines. For the vast majority of foreigners, the port of entry into the Philippines is Manila.

Last weekend my friends and I had a great adventure going to Batangas. We visited some wonderful beaches and resorts, but the real adventure was getting there and back through the political rallies and parades. We had a carefully constructed map to guide us to and from our destination, but our plans had to be abandoned because of the many detours caused by roadblocks, barricades, and roads that more closely resembled parking lots. Normal travelling time from Ortigas, Manila to Laiya, Batangas should be approximately three hours, but our trip required more than six hours. The primary roads to Laiya were fairly good, but the secondary roads we have to take because of the many detours were quite bumpy.

Our destination in Laiya was the Punto Miguel Laiya. One of our group is friends with this resort’s owner, so I was expecting good service but was uncertain about the beauty of the property. Overall, this resort was clean and comfortable, with really great service.

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Our room included a large patio where we enjoyed meals cooked for us by the resort’s staff. If you want to bring your own cooked food, that works fine at this resort. You know, many resorts in this area do not allow you to bring any cooked foods or snacks. At the Punto Miguel Resort, you can bring your owned cooked food or purchase some fresh fish and veggies found throughout the area and ask the resort staff to prepare your meals.

As for the activities and sports available at this resort, we found volleyball on the beach, jet skis, equipment for snorkeling, and banana boat riding. And, of course, there are clean beaches for swimming and sunbathing.

Mike and Carolyn, the owners of Punto Miguel, also took us on a tour of another resort they own in Laiya, by name Paraiso de Miguel resort. This is a bit more upscale, so there are several great resort options in this area to meet your budget. We really appreciated Mike and Carolyn’s hospitality during our trip to Laiya.

We had to do more to welcome the New Year than you trip to Sumilon Island, so we decided to check out the new resort and water park that opened on Mactan Island.  There has been a great deal of hype about the first water park in Cebu, but I was not initially too interested because I assumed the water park would just be a couple of sides that kids could use instead of diving into a swimming pool.  Well, I have to tell you, the Imperial Palace is really fantastic.

The uniquely themed water park, the first in Cebu, is designed by Dream Park International, experts in water parks, themed-parks, and family entertainment. The water park features five different themed pools: Amazon River Pool- a flowing river pool that you can enjoy best in an inflatable tube; the Wave Rider- an artificial tide pool; Captain Hook’s Pool – featuring a pirate ship and slides; Beach Pool and Toddler Pool. It also features three exciting slides including the thrilling Space Bowl.

The one-day pass for Imperial Palace costs P2,000 on weekends and holidays and P1,500 ++ – and it’s a bargain.  From the moment you enter this place, you are treated like the most important person in the world.  The customer service is absolutely outstanding in every way.  There is a comfortable and clean place to change into your beach wear.  Next, you pick up your beach towel and you’re off to visit the many theme pools and ocean.  If you’re energetic, they even offer aerobics classes that you take while standing in one of the pools.  From time to time, the Imperial Palace offers dance troops who entertain you with various family-friendly dances and small skits.  If you have any questions about what to do at the Imperial Palace, you can ask any of the friendly and helpful staff who seemed to be everywhere just waiting to help you.

We noticed a wide range of adults and children from many countries, although there seemed to be a quite large contingent of Korean guests.  Everyone seemed to have a great time.  We were a bit concerned there would be gangs of screaming, out-of-control kids, but there was only lots of laughter as hundreds of people from all over the world enjoyed themselves.  Sure, a few of the pools had a preponderance of kids, but there were also quiet, peaceful places where you could relax and rest.

The Imperial Palace is beautiful, fun, and has one of the best luncheon buffets in the Philippines.  My friends and I were hard-pressed to decide if we enjoyed the great food or water slides the most.  All-in-all this place is about the best recreational value you can find in Cebu.  If you haven’t yet been to the Imperial Palace – you should go.

Guests are 70 percent Korean, 20 Filipinos and 10 other races.

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For the holiday season, my friends and I decided to take a short trip to the small island of Sumilon.  The entire island, we learned from the Internet and mouth of moounth, is owned by the same folks who own the Blue Water Resort in Lapu-Lapu.  We left Cebu City early in the morning by bus and arrived in Bancogon, Oslob about three hours later.  Our bus ride was inexpensive but quite uncomfortable – as are most bus rides in Cebu.

We walked about a hundred meters or so from the place we left the bus to a small building with a sign that said “Welcome to Sumilon Island.”  Once inside we were offered a welcoming drink that consisted of some kind of lemon grass and lemon concoction.  It was not so delicious, but the long and bumpy bus ride left us parched.  We looked around the area briefly and found nothing of interest, so we waited more than an hour for the boat to arrive that would take us to Sumilon Island.   We were concerned the boat might be quite small and not particularly sea-worthy, but it was larger than expected and more than adequate for the ten-minute voyage to the island.

From the boat docking area you have to walk on a very rocky pathway that was overgrown with bushes and trees, making travel difficult.  If you are accustomed to climbing mountains, then maybe this route would be okay.  We, however, found this trek to be unwelcomed and irritating.

The Sumilon Island Resort is just about all you kind find on Sumilon Island.  I have to say the vista that greets you upon arrival is not quite a picturesque as the images on the Internet would lead you to expect.  “Grungy” and “dirty” are the two words that describe what the reality had, that the Internet pictures lacked.  After observing the dirty pool, limited dining options, and learning the only real venue of interest (a fish sanctuary) located an hour hike away, we decided to opt for the P1,500 day-pass rather than stay overnight.

We walked around the beach, took some pictures, and headed over to the buffet for lunch.  The buffet lunch seemed more appropriate at a company canteen than a beach resort.  All together, for our P1,500 expenditure we received the round-trip boat ride, use of the beach and leaf-covered pool, as well the buffet lunch that I would compare to P100 meal in Cebu City.  If you think that is not much of a bargain, consider an overnight stay at the Sumilon Island Resort will set you back P8,500.  So after arriving at 10:30 in the morning, we welcomed the 3:30 boat ride back to Oslob.

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