Cebu • Philippines

5 DAYS 4 NIGHTS IN CEBU

(Total Expenses at the end of the post)

The first time I got to know about Cebu was probably 2 years ago. I remember I was totally impressed when I first saw the photos - clear blue water, jungles, waterfalls, whale sharks, etc. I'm not exactly a beach person (grew up close to the beach) when it comes to choosing a travel destination. I'd rather see and do something different. I never had the chance to visit the Philippines until April this year - the 1 year dating anniversary of me and Shibby! ♡ I thought Cebu was perfect for a little romantic getaway plus some adventures.

Travel Period: April 23 - 27, 2017

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DAY 1

Cebu Airport to Oslob

Some travellers choose Cebu city as their base and make day trips from there back and forth. We chose to stay down south of the Cebu island, reasons being:

1. Things we wanted to see are at the south. We did not want to travel ~150km between Cebu city and places of interests back and forth everyday. Most roads in the Cebu countryside have just one lane in each direction and the road condition is not perfect. A 150km distance can take your car ride up to 3 hours. If you stay in Cebu city, you have to wake up REALLYYYY early in the morning to join activities in the south.


2. I always prefer to stay in the countryside when traveling. Food and shops may not be as convenient but I love the quiet environment and real beauty of the nature which I cannot experience in the city. Staying far from the city means I have a better chance to interact with the locals too.

We booked our accommodation in Oslob. Tony was the host and he was kind to arrange a driver to pick us up from the Cebu airport to our accommodation.

At the airport, we bought a traveler sim card from Globe at 300 php. However, I wouldn't recommend it at all for usage out of the city. We barely had any reception throughout our stay.

Beautiful sea view from the accommodation

First thing I saw when I entered the room! What a surprise!

More surprises from my man. Happy 1 Year Anniversary!

Made a photobook for him!

DAY 2

Whale shark watching | Tingko Beach

A jeepney was arranged to pick us up in the morning to head to the Oslob whale shark watching centre. It took us only 15 minutes - the benefit of staying in Oslob.

It's all up to you what time you want to be there, but the last session of whale shark watching is around the noon time. It is recommended to go early in the morning to get clearer water and avoid the crowd. We went at 10am and it was already full of tourists! The fee is 1,000 PHP/pax for tourists.

Whale shark is locally known as "butanding". It is the biggest fish in the world. I was shocked when I first dipped my head into the water and saw how gigantic it was. You will feel intimated by the size but trust me, they are one of the most gentle animals.

For some reasons they look much smaller in these pictures. In real life, they are at least 4 times bigger than me.

You're only allowed 30 minutes to be in the water. Some people prefer to just stay on the boat and watch from above the water. After 30 minutes, the boat will bring you back to the shore, so make good use of your time.

Breakfast after whale shark watching

Later in the afternoon, we decided to hit the beach. The nearest one we could find was Tingko Beach, 1 hour away from Oslob.

I was not too impressed when I first saw the beach. Just when we were about to leave after taking a few shots, a boat approached us and asked if we were keen on taking a short ride to the sand bar not too far from the shore. After a price negotiation, we agreed and hopped on the boat.

Never did we expect that it was one of our best experiences in Cebu. That beautiful and peaceful sand bar, and of course the MAGNIFICENT sunset view from the boat!

Totally blown away

We had some real fun playing with the shallow water at the sand bar.

DAY 3

Whale shark watching | Sumilon Island

For some reason, we just decided to do another round of whale shark watching today. Since we were so close to the place, why not? We went earlier at around 8am this time, expecting to have more peaceful water.

However it was not the case. We saw less whale sharks today even though we came early. So I would say, it really depends on your luck.

Sumilon Island was up next. We bought the Day Tour Package by Bluewater Sumilon Island Resort at 1,500 php/pax. There are many other cheaper 3rd party operators who will bring you to the Sumilon Island too but you won't have full access to all the facilities in the resort. The Day Tour Package is good that it provides you boat transfer, lunch, towels, snorkelling gears, etc.

The Bancogon dock at the mainland is where you will register yourself and take the boat to the island. It is only around 10 minutes away from the Oslob Whale Shark Watching Centre.

You do nothing but chill here!

One of the highlights - infinity pool

Sumilon Island Sandbar

Bear in mind that the boat runs on a fixed schedule to send you back to the mainland. Plan your time.

We then headed back to our accommodation and took some rest.

DAY 4

Kawasan Falls & Canyoneering

Kawasan Falls is located around 2 hours (car ride) away from Oslob. If you plan to do canyoneering, you will need almost a full day. Originally, we did not plan to do canyoneering at all as I heard from many that canyoneering is very physically challenging and energy consuming, but our host Tony insisted that we should experience it at least once. After a discussion, Tony and his recommended tour guide came out with a customised plan that suited us - half canyoneering plus a bamboo raft ride.

I was skeptical at first, until I really experienced the whole thing myself.

We started here. TOO BEAUTIFUL!

We were there early at around 8 or 9am. There was no one, other than a local woman doing her laundry at the waterfall and a kid playing with the water. It was tranquil and calm. I felt so great to be a part of that undisturbed nature!

The water was so cooling and fresh. Shibby even drank from it!

My favourite activity at Kawasan Falls - rope swing!

I had no experience in this before, but the moment I saw it I was thrilled! I wanted to try it so badly. It was not easy at first for me to climb up the ladder where the fast and strong waterfall water was gushing down. You won't even be able to see clearly. I could only use one eye and my hands to feel where the ladder was to climb up. The moment you're up, you hesitate if you should really swing and have the confidence to drop yourself into the deep water at the right timing - else you could injure yourself easily if you hit any rocks at shallow depth.

After just one try, I immediately got addicted! It was toooo fun and I did it at least 3 times!

While we were swinging, there were a couple of other tourists cliff-jumping from the top of the waterfall. One lady hurt herself at the chest badly due to her wrong jumping position even though she had her life vest and helmet on. Canyoneering can be really fun but it is advisable to be really careful of yourself. A friend's friend of mine got unconscious for two days and had a temporary memory loss from the jump.

My advice is: If you are not confident, do not do it.

Sliding

This sliding is not the same as what you'll find in the children playground. I hurt myself from it. The water was too powerful and I literally could not stop. My whole body got pushed against those rocks at the bottom while I was trying to find my balance and get up. You'll end up with scratches everywhere.

It was fun but I still prefer the swing haha!

Bamboo rafting

All in all, I would definitely recommend canyoneering, provided you have a good tour guide and know how to play it safe! We had to thank Tony for insisting that we go because I had a very good time getting close to the nature in a fun way.

It was around 2pm when we were done. We were provided lunch before heading back to our accommodation.

On the way back, our driver was very kind to show us around for a bit.

DAY 5

Hometime

Last day of our trip.

We got a driver to send us back to the Cebu airport. This time it took us more than 3 hours because of the terrible traffic. So plan and spare yourself more time to get to the airport if you need to catch a flight!

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Accommodation:

Oslob Garden Stay Beach Resort - Click to earn 10% back on Booking.com

My stay was good but not perfect. It was booked at the very last minute so I was left with only a few choices. I wish I had booked a better place. Try to plan early and I'm sure you will find a lot of nice accommodations in Oslob.

Expenses (2 pax):

• Accommodation: RM 650
• Transportation: 12,560 PHP ≈ MYR 1065
• Food: 4,215 PHP ≈ MYR 358
• Whale Shark Watching: 4,000 PHP ≈ MYR 340
• Bluewater Sumilon Island Resort - Day Tour Package: 3,000 PHP ≈ MYR 254
• Kawasan Falls Canyoneering + Bamboo Rafting: 3,000 PHP ≈ MYR 254
• SIM Card: 300 PHP ≈ MYR 25
• Tips: 1,000 PHP ≈ MYR 85

AVERAGE PER PERSON: MYR 1,515 (Flight tickets excluded)