Bantayan Island has been on my mind since last year. I have always wanted to visit the island since I have heard wonderful stories and seen amazing pictures of this place. That is why I have decided to...
Hello, explorers of Hive! It’s been a while since I last posted my travel blog and I kind of missed it. Today, join me as I explore Bantayan Island together with my friends. We have dubbed ourselves “The Broke Wanderers”, well, I am the one who came up with the idea and I’m gonna tell you why. We confidently went to the island with only a minimal budget. We always believed that "Money returns, time doesn't." Since it’s been years that our group of friends went on a trip, we wanted to push through with this adventure even with a small budget. Don’t worry, we still ate more than 3x during this whole trip.
If you are expecting plotted destinations and great itinerary from different tourist spots on Bantayan Island, you are on the wrong blog. What we basically did was roam around the island using this mode of transportation called Tuktuk - a gasoline-powered motorcycle that can fit 6 people. We were 7 in total but we made it work.
This was the wisest decision we made because the transportation on Bantayan Island is quite costly. We had to pay PHP 120.00 ($2.29) for the one-way transportation going to our accommodation. If you are asking why is it so expensive, here's why. Because we wanted to save so much, we booked the accommodation through Airbnb without checking the exact location. Turns out, it was 18km away from Santa Fe Port. Yes, I know, we know. We were all devastated when we searched it up on Google Map. Nonetheless, we were all happy with the place.
If you want to book this place, you can check them on AirBnB.
Arrival
We arrived at Santa Fe Port around 1 in the afternoon. The check-in time is still at 2 PM and we were all famished from an hour boat ride so we decided to head on to MJ Food Square. This is the place to be for tourists who want to dine and drink. You can find almost anything here, from restaurants to bars, to souvenirs, clothing shops and so much more.
There are so many options to choose from but we settled with Stix Smoke House. Their price is not that expensive, but the food is good.
We stayed at MJ Square for almost an hour. We picked up the Tuktuk motorcycle that we will be renting for the whole 3D2N trip in the Hungry Beach Co, which thankfully, is near MJ Square. We then checked out the beach, but it was low tide so we can also see a vast area of the sandbar.
The ride going to our accommodation was epic. Most of us are first-time visitors to the island and we heavily relied on Google Maps. We got lost, we took wrong turns, and stopped more than 3x to ask the locals where the accommodation is. Thankfully, after 30 minutes, we have successfully reached our destination.
We didn't have an itinerary for this trip at all. Our trips are all spontaneous. When we got at the house, the first thing we did was unpack our belongings and research sites to visit in the time we had left. We ended up going to Bantayan Public Market to get goods for the next few days' breakfast and dinner.
We ended our first day with a bottle of flavored beer and a heart full of excitement for what was about to unveil the next day.
The next day was the most exhausting part of the trip. Because we don’t have an itinerary, we were just roaming around the areas near Santa Fe.
The first stop was Oboob Mangrove Garden Ecopark. The entrance fee is PHP 55.00 ($1.05). We did not enter because the place was too crowded with tourists. However, we actually did visit the place on our last day.
From the name itself, it’s a sanctuary surrounded by Mangrove trees that you can stroll through the constructed bamboo bridge. They are very sturdy so no need to worry. The place is highly maintained because I have not spotted a single piece of trash throughout the whole stroll.
This is also where you can spot the famous Camp Sawi sign. Sawi means unlucky.
Fish feeding is also an additional pastime that you can do in Oboob. Each pack of food costs PHP 5.00 ($.095).
After the fish feeding, you can also spot another sign called "Camp Wagi". Of course, if there's Sawi (unlucky), there should also be Wagi (success).
At Camp Wagi, you can see the vast ocean and the clear water. We also saw some kids swimming in the area.
After the Camp Wagi, you will continue to stroll through the bridge and you would witness yet another beauty of nature, the Mangrove Tunnel.
The locals told us that on rainy season, the mangrove trees would flourish beautifully. Here, you will be welcomed with a cool breeze. Although the water is a bit murky, it is still trash-free. Another thing, you don't have to worry about the heat, because there are sheds that you can use to take shelter and rest for awhile.
The tunnel is the last thing you will witness all throughout the walk. Then you will be directed to the exit. At the main entrance, you will notice a lot of accessory vendors; bracelets, anklets, necklaces, made out of shells. I bought two anklets, unfortunately, I lost the other one on my way home.
I have always mentioned that I am up for unplanned moments and spontaneous trips, this is by far the greatest embodiment of that concept. On my next blog, I will be sharing to you all the common tourist spots in Bantayan Island. So stay tuned!
That is it for now, wanderers! See you on the next one. Stay awesome as always! 💛