DAY 1: WATERFALLS HOPPING IN SOUTHERN CEBU

We took the earliest flight to Dumaguete and took the next boat to Oslob. Since whale watching stops at noon,
we just spent half-a-day roaming around Oslob and Samboan towns.
We hired a habal-habal to take us around. Here is our itinerary:
11:40 AM - Check in at BCD's Place
1:00 PM - Visit Tumalog Falls (Tip: Bring a waterproof camera to take a good photo of the falls.
You won't be able to get near the falls without your things getting wet. Take a swim for about 30 minutes.)
2:00 PM - Lunch at Oslob town proper
2:40 PM - Visit Oslob church, cuartel and museum and spent a little time by the bay eating ice cream :)
(Tip: Come later in the afternoon for streetfoods and barbeque.)
3:20 PM - Head to Samboan
4:30 PM - Arrive at Aguinid Falls and climb up to its topmost falls
5:40 PM - Head back to resort
8:00 PM - Dinner at nearby restaurant (Tip: A few steps away from BCD's place are about 5 restaurants
serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. I think they also serve alcoholic drinks.
Try out the one named Mother Theresa for their delicious grilled dishes. :))
Tumalog Falls in Oslob. Prepare to get a little wet even if you don't plan to swim.

DAY 2: WHALE-WATCHING, SUMILON SAND BAR AND BALINSASAYAO LAKE

The day was basically spent on whale watching, sand bar bumming and boating at Balinsasayao Lake.
Morning was spent in Oslob and Sumilon but whale-watching has to start early so you'll have time to spend in
Sumilon sandbar. We had to catch the noontime schedule of the pumpboat back to Sibulan,

Dumaguete so we could hike and boat in Balinsasayao. It was already sundown when we got back to our room
in Dumaguete. Itinerary here:
6:30 AM - Watch sunrise by the beach
7:30 AM - Breakfast (Tip: One or two of the restaurants nearby open very early.
Try Sunrise Grillhouse which is the farthest most from BCD's Place and look for their friendly staff Barbie.)
8:00 AM - Briefing then whale watching
(Tip: Whale watching starts as early as sunrise. Best if you could go in early to avoid the crowd.)
10:30 AM - Head to Sumilon sandbar
11:30 AM - Back at BCD's Place to take a shower
12:30 NN - Check out of BCD's Place
1:00 PM - Book for pumpboat then lunch at port
1:30 PM - Head back to Sibulan, Dumaguete via pumpboat
2:00 PM - Arrival at Sibulan port then multicab to Claytown Daro area

2:30 PM - Check in at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast in Dumaguete

3:00 PM - Head to Balinsasayao Lake
4:00 PM - Hike and boat in Balinsasayao Lake (Tip: Better if you get there earlier, say 2:00 PM so you could s
hiking, boating and swimming if you want. We were in a hurry since we only had 2 hours and boating stops at
8:00 PM - Back at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast for dinner
If you are not tired yet, you can visit spend time at downtown Dumaguete for some streetfood and photo
ops at the I <3 Dumaguete signage.

DAY 3: BAIS DOLPHIN-WATCHING AND MANJUYOD SANDBAR

We left Dumaguete City before sunrise to get to Bais before 7:00 AM but the trip was longer than we expected
and we got there at nearly 7:30 AM which was still on time. We rode the bus going to Manjuyod and
stopped at Bais LBC to take a tricycle going to the port area. The tricycle drivers suggested that we rent
a private outrigger for cheaper rates so we did. Here is our itinerary:

5:45 AM - Leave the hotel

5:55 AM - Hop on the Manjuyod bound bus
7:30 AM - Arrival at Bais and drop off at LBC; hop on tricycle to port
8:00 AM - Start dolphin watching (took us a while to find dolphins as the water was a bit choppy)
10:30 AM - Explore Manjuyod sandbar
12:15 PM - Arrival at port; hop on tricycle to market
12:40 PM - Lunch at market (The Bais market is bigger than the usual provincial markets and has many carind
2nd floor.)
1:30 PM - Hop on bus to Dumaguete City
3:30 PM - Back at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast; rested for a while
5:00 PM - Spend time in downtown Dumaguete and have sans rival + coffee at the famous Sans Rival
7:00 PM - Photo ops at Dumaguete bay area
8:00 PM - Back at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast
Manjuyod sandbar after dolphin watching

DAY 4: APO ISLAND

We planned to leave Dumaguete City around 9:00 AM so we didn't have to rush.

We spent time at the bed and breakfast talking to our "neighbors" and was hoping to find someone
headed to Apo Island. :) To no avail, we went there by ourselves but it was okay since the boat ride
was not as expensive as we imagined. Our afternoon was mostly spent on getting a feel of the island and mang
Itinerary for the day:
8:00 AM - Late than usual breakfast at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast (Budbod at Tsokolate was free!)
9:30 AM - Head for bus terminal
10:00 AM - On the bus to Malatapay
10:30 AM - Arrival at Malatapay; found a couple who was waiting for travellers to share a boat with
11:00 AM - Arrival at Apo Island
11:30 AM - Check-in at Ate Nor's; order lunch
2:00 PM - Mango shake at Liberty's

(Before they only serve shakes between 6-9PM when there is electricity)
4:00 PM - Roam around the island
5:00 PM - Catch the sunset at the viewdeck/lighthouse; spend time by the beach and get to know the locals
6:00 PM - Electricity in the island is turned on; time to charge your batteries! :)
8:00 PM - Dinner at Liberty's Lodge
(Tip: Food in Liberty's Lodge is expensive so if you want to save, order pancit for P100 only.)
9:00 PM - Start to dose off if you want to be sleeping before lights out in the island
9:30 PM - Lights out!
Important Note:
In the mornings, only small private outriggers costing P2,000 head for the island;
the "public" outrigger charging P300 per pax will start to accept passengers only at 2:00 PM.
If you use the small outriggers, prepare to get wet and when I say wet, I mean really wet!
'Yong tipong you might as well wear your swimsuits and goggles. We were dripping wet from
head to foot when we got to the island. The waves are really big but it only gets like this during amihan
season, according to the boatman. Summertime, no worries!
.

DAY 5: SWIMMING WITH SEA TURTLES AND SHAKES AGAIN! :)

I was advised the day before that it's better to swim in the morning for better chances of seeing sea turtles.
Later in the day, sea turtles go to deeper parts, the locals say, to avoid divers.
In the morning, they roam around the shallow areas scavenging for sea grasses to eat.
We have asked Ate Pinky from Liberty's Lodge to save us a seat in their outrigger boat headed for mainland.
Our schedule was 11:30 AM so we didn't have to hurry. Itinerary:
6:00 AM - Rise and shine; catch sunrise at lighthouse; spend time by the beach
8:00 AM - Go back to Ate Nor's place for their free breakfast
9:00 AM - Swim with sea turtles (this was our itinerary but better if you could swim say at 6:30 AM)
11:00 AM - Wait for our boat Hercules (which arrived at 12:30 PM)
1:20 PM - Arrival at Malatapay; grab some cheap lunch in the carinderia near the port
2:30 PM - Head for the city
3:00 PM - Arrival at Dumaguete port; book for Siquijor
4:30 PM - On board boat for Siquijor
6:00 PM - Arrival at Siquijor; meet Kuya Dhen of Islandia for free pick-up
7:30 PM - Check-in at Islandia Beach Resort; dinner
It could have been better if we arrived earlier at Islandia so we could spend time swimming by the beach.
It was already night time when we got to the resort and it was already too cold to swim.
Also, better if you know the schedule of the boats headed for Siquijor so you can maximize your time in
Dumaguete and cut waiting time at the port.

DAY 6: EXPLORE SIQUIJOR

Since we only have this day for Siquijor, we were only able to spend a few minutes per tourist spot.
If you have the luxury to spend at least 2 whole days, that will be most ideal!
With 2 days, you can swim at every body of water you get to and really enjoy the trip. This is our one day itine
7:00 AM - Breakfast at Islandia
8:00 AM - Spend time lounging by the beach

10:00 AM - Start tricycle tour! (We rented a tricycle to take us around the province. It would have been a habal
we needed to bring our backpacks since we have to head back to Dumaguete City at 5:00 PM.)
10:30 AM - First stop: Old Balete Tree and Fish Spa
11:00 AM - Second stop: Lazi Church and Convent
11:20 AM - Third stop: Cambughay Falls; jump and swim
12:20 PM - Fourth stop: Kagusuan Beach
1:30 PM - Fifth stop: Sta. Maria Church
2:00 PM - Last stop: Salagdoong Beach; cliff-dive; swim; late lunch
4:20 PM - Siquijor Church (San Isidro Labrador)
5:00 PM - On board boat to Dumaguete City
7:00 PM - Check-in at Gabby's Bed and Breakfast
7:30 PM - Street food by the bay at downtown Dumaguete; ice cream by Kuya Toto; buy souvenirs
9:00 PM - Coffee and sans rival (again 'coz we just couldn't get enough!) at Sans Rival Bistro
(Even the bistro serves sans rival and coffee at very affordable prices. P26 for a slice of sans rival
and P35 for a cupt of brewed coffee.You can opt to explore other restaurants.
Along Rizal Avenue, there's a whole stretch of restaurants that you can try out.)
Important Note: The shelf life of sans rival outside of the refrigerator is 4-6 hours.
If your flight is in the morning (i.e. 8:55 AM), you can buy one from the old store which opens at 7:00 AM.
Better if you could have one reserved for you the day before.
Bistro is open from 10AM - 10PM and the older restaurant opens at 7AM - 7PM.
You can also buy one in the airport but costs P40 more.

HOW-TO-GET-TOS OF THE
TRIP:
Manila to Dumaguete:
Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines fly to
Dumaguete everyday. As of March 2015, Cebu
Pacific flies in the morning at 7:00 AM and in the
afternoon at 3:00 PM. Philippine Airlines flies in
the morning at 8:40 AM and in the afternoon at
1:20 PM.
Dumaguete to Oslob:
Go to Sibulan port/pier/pantalan and ride either the
pumpboat or the fastcraft heading for Liloan,
Santander. See my separate entry on how to get to
Oslob from Dumaguete.
Dumaguete to Bais:
Head to Ceres bus terminal and ride the bus
heading to Manjuyod or Bais.
Dumaguete to Apo:
Ride the Ceres bus going to Bayawan and stop at
Zamboanguita, Malatapay, Zamboanguita. Walk or
ride a tricycle from the highway to the port area.
Ride an outrigger boat headed for Apo Island.

Dumaguete to Siquijor:
Head to Dumaguete port and ride a fastcraft or
RORO headed for Siquijor.

EXPENSES/DAMAGE
The entire trip took costs us nearly P10,000 per head for 2 pax, excludingpasalubongs and
souvenirs. You can spend less if you opt to eat at really inexpensive restaurants/carinderias or if
you ask more people to join you. Please visit these entries to read more spending less for this
trip:

Apo Island for Less

Siquijor on a Budget

ARRANGE FOR YOUR TRIP

Here are contact numbers which might be helpful for the trip:

Kuya Jeff, our Oslob guide has a habal-habal and he can take you around Oslob and
Samboan - 0923-530-6331

Ate Dimple, owner of Islandia Resort in Siquijor - 0939-761-2772

Hadji Adiong, boatman for Bais and Manjuyod - 0999-522-6152

Ate Nor, owner of Ronors Lodging in Apo Island - 0915-775-2422