Just came back from a trip in April to visit the following areas:
Cabilao
Alona Beach
Apo Island
We flew to Tagbilaran and took the commuter jeepney to Sandingan, then took the commuter banca across the strait to Talisay; from there we hopped on the motorbike service to the other side of the island. (This was an inexpensive way to get there but my buddy sustained a burn on his leg from the muffler of the motorbike.)
In Cabilao we stayed 4 nights at La Estrella, diving with Cabilao Dive Center. Our A-frame cabin was quite comfortable and clean. Food at the restaurant was ok (we ate the daily specials, mostly, and these varied from grilled fish to barracuda to mussels – don’t ask me which dive site the barracuda came from).
CDC provided good service and their guides were competent and hard working. They offer 3 dives a day, and night dives. The dive sites we visited were within 15 minutes (usually 5 minutes) of the resort. Our dive sites included Lighthouse, Chapel, South Point, Fallen Tree, (formerly) Shark View Point, and House Reef and places between. It’s basically one big wall on this side of the island.
While we didn’t see many big fishes (say, fish over 2 feet long) there was a lot of small fish action. We did see the occasional grouper, Napoleon wrasse, barracuda, blue spotted ray, and hawksbill turtle. Coral life was good and often it was like swimming in a busy aquarium. I was particularly impressed with Chapel and South Point, with their coral growth. Dive guides pointed out pygmy seahorses, ghost pipefish and other small critters. We noted there were dive boats that visited Cabilao from Cebu, and Panglao for the day.
I can’t say enough about snorkeling in front of the resort. This is one of the easiest sites to get to and the snorkeling was very good. One guest in the resort said he counted over 200 kinds of reef fish while snorkeling (he was an avid birder too, the type who kept count of sightings). My warm-water fish marine ID skills are poor, so I won’t argue.
From the first crow of the rooster in the morning, till the end of the day, there is constant activity from the birds in the island. I heard birds all through the day and it was a nice change for a city person as I. The birder fellow pointed out Ebber doves, bee-eaters, and orioles as they called out.
The resort mascot (a lab named Treivi) is quite attached to the dive instructors and tries to accompany them when they go diving. When the dive banca heads back to the resort the dog often swims out to greet them.
Not everyone who stays at La Estrella dives. Most visitors appear to be Europeans. Fresh water is in short supply and is mostly collected from rain.
When it was time to leave we split a banca ride (PhP 500) between 4 persons and rode from the resort to MocPoc, where we took a commuter jeep to Tabilaran.
Alona Beach
There is commuter jeep service from Tagbilaran to Alona Beach area.
We stayed at Peter’s House and dived with Genesis Divers. Accommodation at PH (right above the dive shop) is very basic. We ate breakfasts there and had dinner at a variety of the restaurants nearby.
Genesis provided good service and dive guides were also competent. They tried hard to find little critters like sea horses and shrimps and crabs nestled in anemones. Our dive sites included Kalipayan, Arco Point, Doljo, Napaling and Balicasag Island. The first four sites were not bad, and we saw sea snakes, turtles, ribbon eel, and the usual gang of small reef fishes. But the trip to Balicasag (2 dives) really stood out. As Lür (shop manager) said, “sometimes everything comes together at Balicasag and you have a really good day.” On the day we were there a large hawksbill turtle swam into view 3 feet in front of me, I could make out all the detail in the shell and the suckerfish attached to it. Large mackerel and schools of trevally swam around us. A school of barracuda came by and so did a small ray. The water around us was so busy, sometimes you didn’t know where to look.
Alona Beach isn’t a large place and most of the accommodation and dive shops are within a ten minute range by foot. But there isn’t much snorkeling – I tried to snorkel near the area marked as a sanctuary but gave up. There is more of a social scene in Alona. On the Sunday that we were there, the group of expat Europeans were having a game of boules (or Petanque) in front of Peter’s House.
Apo Island
We took the Oceanjet ferry from Tagbilaran to Dumaguete. At Dumaguete we were picked up by the Apo Island vehicle (US$12 includes banca transfer). It can be a wet banca ride to the Island – 40 minutes or more, depending of sea conditions.
Apo Island is pretty though a bit arid. I noted that in mornings the island people would carry jerry cans and take the banca to Negros to augment their drinking water supply. We stayed at Liberty’s. Accommodations are pretty nice and food is quite good. Electrical power (sometimes interrupted) is shut of at 9 pm. The dive guides and crew provided great service. Dive sites included Chapel, Boluarte, Largahan, Sanctuary, Rock Point, Kan-u-ran, Coconut, Cogon. It is not a big island, so in four days I dived a majority of the sites on their list. There is no shortage of good coral and healthy fish life. On one dive in Coconut we counted six hawksbill turtles, some of them accompanying us on the drift dive some of the way, it was a neat feeling. I did a couple of drift dives on Sanctuary (one of my favorite sites here) and sometimes you didn’t know where to look, with the profuse coral and schools of trevally and mackerel nearby. It was like a fish bowl. At one site I did see a large bumphead wrasse and a grouper. I saw sea snakes, sand eels, snake eels and morays. At the shallow portion of the house reef a large trevally came into view, it must have been about 25 or more pounds.
Paul’s Diving offers 3 dives a day, and night dives. They are flexible about the schedule and try to accommodate the guest’s preferences. There is snorkeling near the resort and at the Sanctuary. But I was doing 3 dives a day and by the end of the day I was ready for a cold San Miguel or two.
About 800 people live on the 72 hectare island, plus children. In the late afternoon the children play and swim in the beach, and if there is a visiting dive banca they often clamber on the outriggers and dive into the water. It’s the kind of fun you wish you wish life was all the time. During our four day visit, there were visiting dive boats from Dumaguete and Panglao. It is a delicate balance between the fishing livelihood of the islanders and diving; during dives you will often see fish traps.
There are not many amenities on Apo Island. No restaurants aside from the resort (but I did note a “community eatery” during my walk of the only main street). There is a karaoke bar that operates till the power shuts down (mercifully, at 9 pm). So if you want social life, stay elsewhere.
In summary, we had great diving on all three areas. Too bad we didn’t see any sharks but these creatures are on the fast track to being on the endangered list. I have a soft spot for Cabilao for the easy snorkeling and bird life. Sorry, I don’t have an underwater camera, so I have no pictures of marine life.
With the exception of Alona, not all resorts have regular internet service, so your inquiries may take a few days for response.
. the beach in cabilao is okay, too? i have been to alona and balicasag in the past. how s it compared to the two?
