5Days-4Nights Siquijor-Dumaguete Trip

St. Francis Of Assisi Church

Mystical Island

Siquijor, the 3rd smallest province in the Philippines, is located in the Central Visayas Region. Siquijor is the best jump-off point if you want to roam from Island to Island due to its proximity to other provinces. To the north of Siquijor is Cebu, to the west is Negros, northeast is Bohol, and to the south, across the Bohol Sea, is Mindanao.

Siquijor has long known to be a province of magic potions (gayuma), shamans , witches (aswang), sorcerers (mambabarang), hence the tagged name Mystical Island. This belief of the province probably led to the preservation of its nature. Now in modern times, locals claim there are still some who practice this kind of stuff and jokingly adds acceptance of digital payment (lol)

HOW TO GET THERE :

There is no direct flight to Siquijor, so your nearest airport would be in Dumaguete. You can choose to fly with Philippine Airlines , CebuPacific or AirAsia.

Upon arriving at Sibulan Airport Dumaguete, you will ride a tricycle to drop you off at the Dumaguete port near Siliman University. There are tricycles inside the airport which charged more than the ones in the highway. If you are not in a hurry, you can walk your way out of the airport and then from there hail a tricycle that takes you to the same port but cheaper. We had luggages so we contacted our guide to have a trike pick us up for 400 pesos for 4 persons. I was told this is way too high but then I'm paying convenience besides we were in a bit of a hurry to catch the 10AM ferry for Siquijor,

Here are the  ferry schedules: 

For up to date schedule, please refer to:

https://dumaguete.com/dumaguete-ferry-schedules-offices/

Ferry ride takes about almost 2 hours if you ride the Montenegro lines, fast boat Atlantis and Ocean jet can take about 1 hr. Your choice of ferry would really depend on your budget and time, but most likely it will depend on what's available at the port.

We have not taken our breakfast yet just to catch the 10AM schedule. We bought some cup noodles in the ferry for 50 pesos each and entertained ourselves in taking pictures. If you have motion sickness, I suggest you just sit, and do nothing but pass time.

I contacted Kuya Jun Mark to pick us from Siquijor port to Coco Grove Beach Resort, our accomodation in San Juan, But since we were really hungry and could not wait, we asked our guide to take us the nearest resto. We ended up eating at Monkey Business. Food was so-so and not worth the price. I think Thai pork belly and Pad thai (forgot to pic) were the ones that stood out from the ones we ordered.

                      

COCO GROVE BEACH RESORT

Our rooms are not yet ready so we wandered to the resort first and familiarize ourselves with the beach area, restaurant area, and pool. The resort is huge, I did not expect so.

our not so refreshing welcome drink

1st pool at the entrance

where to?

beach area and resto at the right

 

2nd pool by the beach area

cabanas everywhere

Finally, our villa is ready!

                                        

First order of Business, Chill by the beach. We were just too tired to have a tour for our first day.

Expenses in Pesos: 

Trike from Airport to Dumaguete Port : 400 (100 each)

Ferry Fare : 936 (234 each)

Terminal Fee : 60 ( 15 each)

Trike from Siquijor Port to Resort : 300 (75 each)

Lunch at Monkey Business : 2500 ( 5 persons including the tourguide)

1st TOUR DAY

The usual tours in Siquijor combines the spots that are near to each other and would have you change clothes. I specifically requested our guide to separate the water activities so we can have our "Awra" moments. It's just hard to pose for pictures in some spots when your hair is messy.

Tour starts at 8:30 AM

BALETE TREE WITH FISH SPA

                      

The 400-ish year old Balete tree. Here you can have your Fish Spa where you let the little fishes nibble your dead skin cells. If you're ticklish like me, you won't last a minute as you will keep off the water. I even found myself laughing out loud.. Oops. don't forget to say Tabi, Tabi po.

Souvenirs and Potions 

                 Voodoo Doll for 160 Pesos                               Haplas" for Love and Luck 200 pesos

HAPITANAN BROOMSTICK

SAN ISIDRO LABRADOR PARISH CHURCH AND CONVENT

I initially scrapped this spot from the itinerary but saw posts in a travel page how lovely the place is. It did not disappoint me, Its ancient architecture complemented well in its surroundings. The big trees in its facade added a natural flair and divided it to the world outside. The creaking of the floors gives you a trip down the memory lane. I just avoided the displays in the 2nd floor, it gives me a different feeling though I did enjoy looking at the windows, and mesmerizing at the beauty of the structure.

View of the Church from the Convent

Convent framed by the Tree's Crown Shyness (front view)

Convent framed by the Tree's Crown Shyness (side view)

stare and stairs

light and shadows

lovely courtyard at the back

SALAGDOONG BEACH

 

The guide failed to mention to us why swimming and diving is prohibited but just read somewhere in the net that the place is being rehabilitated. The restaurants were demolished and pushed back from the shore. I like the new look though. no obstruction of the view, just the shore, the beach and the horizon. I love the varying colors of the water here.

                                    

 

LUNCH AT HARBOUR LIGHTS

MANGROVES

WELCOME TO SIQUIJOR SIGN (St. Francis of Assisi Church)

This spot right here is what you will see coming out of the port. We did not stop by when we arrived as it was scorching hot and we were too hungry to be in a mood for a picture.

SEASHELL MUSEUM

This is a personal collection only of the owner of this place. Shells collected all over the Philippines. They sell some merchandise too, purses from small clams, necklaces and other accessories. This is the most expensive entrance fee in all tourist spots. It's not for everyone's liking but we did enjoy looking at the colorful and interesting displays.

End of Tour, Back to Base...

Dinner at Baha Bar, San Juan

it's important to note that the Baha bar structure is inspired by Cang-Isok's house. Cang Isok's house is also a tourist spot, it's the oldest known surviving house in Siquijor. Our guide did not stop in Cang Isok's house,  though I did recognize it when we passed by.

What to note when dining at the 2nd floor, is you need to leave your footwear at the stairs. We ordered Pad thai, mango Margarita, Sisig, Siquijor Fried Rice, There's a live Band on Saturdays and Sundays. I was moved to tears when the reggae band played Mutya ka Baleleng, my father's favorite song.

Total Expenses in Pesos:

Trike Tour : 1500  + TIP

Balete : 80 (20 each)

Hapitanan : 80 (20 each)

Lazi Convent : 80 (20 each)

Salagdoong Beach : Donation

Lunch at Harbour Lights (1400)

Shell Museum : 400 (100 each)

Dinner : 2615 

2nd Tour Day in Siquijor

For our 2nd tour day in Siquijor, we are doing water activities only. Tour starts at 8:30 AM. 

PITOGO CLIFF

You can swim below the stairs but as we are not swimmers, we just took some pictures of the area in all perspective. lol

                    

                             

This spot can be added in our 1st day Tour. Kuya Jun might have thought we can swim so he included this in the 2nd day tour for water activities.

CAMBUGAHAY FALLS

After going down a flight of stairs, you will see this view of the falls Bamboo rafts. One serves as a holding area for the Balsa riders, and the other one can move near the falls. Balsa Ride costs 50 pesos, either solo or with a group. We preferred Solo. 

The swing at the right of the picture is the highest while the one in the left (not in the pic) is about  5 ft high. I tried twice and failed both..hahahhaha. On 1st try, I let go of the swing too early and the 2nd one I tried to swim after I fell so it felt like I was drowning. Maybe my 3rd will be a success. lol. Swing costs 20pesos for unli jumps. Do not worry if you cannot swim, there are lifejackets for rent for 100 pesos each, free if the life jacket won't work ( Per Kuya Dave, our guide).

lowest tier

To get to the middle tier, you have to climb a little and cross over using the bamboo railings as your guide. Best if you have your aqua shoes on as it could get slippery in here.

middle tier

The top tier I think is cute. I was able to do a long exposure shot on this one using my phone and removed all the people that are swimming. There is also a swing and Balsa ride available.

top tier

All tiers in one pic

Lunch at Y road

The serving is a bit slower but damn the food is so good. The spicy pork ribs got my heart. It is so yummy. We also tried Basoy, a Siquijor soup dish.

                                              

TULAPOS MARINE SANCTUARY

I read a lot of reviews saying this is better than Tubod Marine Sanctuary which is actually just beside Coco Grove. So we headed to this place even if it's a lot, lot farther. It took us a lot of trike time to get to this place. Weather is not so promising and I even have doubts if snorkelling can be doable but when we arrived to the place, we saw some peeps snorkelling. They have life jackets available and snorkelling gear, fins and even go pro for rent. Two of us have our own set of snorkelling gear while the other two rented theirs.One Guide is good for 2 people.

It was a 4 or 5min walk to the deeper side of the sea. The water is shallow near the mangrove area. I think this got me tired too because it is hard to walk in water than on land. So first few kicks will take you to the giant clams. I just want to see them and no, not  so near them. I asked Kuya Guide to veer us away from it.. Hahaha. I just fear of stepping into one of them and leave my foot as a souvenir. Then saw big sea urchins and a few fishes. The waves are getting bigger, and there is a little drizzle. My friend is having a hard time with her mask, we kept on stopping to fix it and realized after that it was defective.. Thanks shoppee! I saw the house at the shore getting smaller and the waves kept hammering us. Having to put more effort in our kicks, and seeing my friend struggling, I asked Kuya guide to bring us back to the shore. I don't know, when your instincts tell you it's no longer safe, you need to listen to it.

PALITON BEACH

It took us about 45mins to reach Paliton. By this time, we were so tired. We just chilled on the beach. There were swings for the gram, but we opted for the sand castle pictorial. The sand at this side of San Juan is definitely the finest. It's more of boracay or Bantayan quality. Since it's a public beach, expect it to be crowded and the sands are just all messy. It's like every people in the island stepped onto it.. Lol.

There are also some stores nearby that sells of food, drinks, souvenirs and beach ootds. The infamous reclining coconut for pictorial is already gone. I am not sure if that was the one already lying on the sand. If you expect a quieter place to chill, this beach might not be for you. 

 Due to time constraints, we did not visit Lugnason Falls and Balas-Balas beach. Skipping Tulapos and going to these 2 might be doable.

SUNSET WATCHING AT COCO GROVE

Finally with the help of the heavens, we were given a beautiful sunset on our last night in Siquijor. We were about to freshen up before dinner when a burst of colours in the sky caught our attention from our room. Everybody headed out to the beach.

  

                   

Total Expenses in Peso :

Pitogo Cliff : 120 (30 pesos each)

Cambugahay Falls :  80 (20 pesos each)

Life jacket : 400 ( 100 each)

Balsa Ride : 200 ( 50 each)

Swing jump : 80 (20 each) 

Table : 100 (25 each) 

Tip to Kuya Guide and Kuyang Human Drone : 1200

Lunch : 1620

Tulapos : 1300 

Paliton Beach : Free

Trike Tour : 1800 (with Tip)