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Posts Tagged ‘Panglao’

Mornings while in vacation is always refreshing. That is how I always felt whenever I’m out of town. Even how much I’m exhausted or drunk the day before, the stress will surely vanish. This is the best detoxification that I know and it never failed me.

The moment that we woke up in our resort in Panglao, we instantly felt the rush to experience how the beach is like. And we are astounded by the beauty of the sun greeting everyone as the relaxing breeze and calm water touches the white stretch of silky sand.

We started the morning with a hearty breakfast and afterwards started walking the vastness of the beach and were amazed by the stretch of fine, white and wet sand. We are fortunate at the time that we visited; the beach is not littered by trash and seaweeds. The water is still and you can walk about 30 meters from the shore before the water touches your feet. In Panglao, there are two beach strips, Dumaluan and Alona. I don’t know more about Alona except from what I’ve read on travel blogs. Dumaluan Beach has a few resorts compared to Alona Beach. The Dumalaun Beach Resort 1 and 2, where the 1 is the older resort. There is also the prestigious Bohol Beach Club, which is about a few meters from Dumaluan Beach Resort 1. And the exquisite Eskaya Beach Resort and Spa. We took our breakfast on the same grill station in the older Dumaluan Resort and then we stroll in the pristine beach.

We then decided to take a look at the prominent Bohol Beach Club. And we are not disappointed of what we have discovered. We suddenly fell in love with the serenity of the beach! We are lucky that there are no restrictions for other tourists that are not staying in their resort to leisurely walk and swim in the beach in front of it.

The shoreline is not crowded by people or boats and it is one of the selling points of this resort.

We decided to stay longer here and take a ton of pictures since we are staying here for an hour or two and we will take off to our next destination, Bohol Bee Farm and then go back to Cebu.

On our Day 2 at our Cebu-Bohol trip, we went to Bohol the next morning.  Rain is pouring that morning in Cebu but that didn’t dampen our mood for the day. At 8:30AM, the SuperCat fastcraft went ahead on schedule. We are glad that it is not raining at Bohol when we arrived at around 10:30AM. We met our tour guide slash driver, Kuya Michael with his Toyota Crown model 1995 or much older, I’m not quite sure I didn’t bother to ask him. I am actually aspiring for a newer model of car from the owner, Mang Johnny, since my friend recommended him to us that she even elaborate on how new the van that they used, but for me as long as it is not dilapidated, running smooth, has a working aircon and clean, then it is fine with me.

I am advised ahead of time of the owner, whom I contacted 2 days ago what our itinerary will be and pleased that we might get an additional tour at certain spots at Panglao island if time permits at no extra cost, which usually is listed on their other day tour.

We availed the Tagbilaran CountrySide Tour, which included the world renowned Chocolate Hills, buffet lunch in the floating restaurant at Loboc River and see the minuscule but stunning tarsiers. Other attractions are the Blood Compact Shrine, Baclayon Church, Hanging Bridge, Butterfly Garden, Man Made Forest, Aproniana Souvenir Shop and Largest Python in captivity. We took a pass on the Python sightseeing because there is nothing special than seeing a normal detained python as it is in the zoo around Manila.

This is our itinerary for the Tagbilaran Countryside Tour:

• 8:30AM – Depart from Cebu port via Supercat
• 10:15AM – Arrived at Tagbilaran port
• 10:45AM – Picture taking at Blood Compact Shrine
• 11:00AM – Arrived at Baclayon Church
• 11:30AM – Departed from Baclayon Church
• 12:00NN – Arrived at Loboc River
• 12:30PM – Start of Loboc River cruise
• 2:00PM – End of cruise
• 2:15PM – Picture taking with the tarsiers
• 3:00PM – Arrived at Chocolate Hills
• 4:15PM – Departed from Chocolate Hills
• 4:45PM – Arrived at Simply Butterflies Conservation Center
• 5:00PM – Sidetrip at Man Made Forest picture taking
• 5:15PM – Crossed the Hanging Bridge and buy pasalubong
• 6:00PM – Bought native delicacies at Aproniana Souvenir Shop
• 7:00PM – Arrived at Dumaluan Beach Resort 1
• 8:00PM – Dinner and Rest

What tour to take:

• There are many car rentals in the Internet that provide the necessary vehicle for your tour. The car rental company already has an itinerary to follow which you can choose if you want to follow it, but mostly those attractions are the normal destinations. The tour to take is the Tagbilaran Countryside tour, which we took and the Panglao Island Land Tour.
• If you have time to spare and adventurous enough, you may also opt the Danao Extreme Sports Adventure and the Dolphin Watching, Balicasag and Pamilacan Island tours.

Where to Stay:

• You can pre-arrange accomodation with your rented car tour, but it is suggested that you try to check first the Internet as most resorts in Panglao have established websites already so that you would not be ripped off.
• You can still go ahead and walk-in on the vast range of resorts in the different beaches in Panglao Island.

Where to Eat:

• Loboc River Cruise – eat buffet lunch or dinner in one of its different floating restaurants
• Bohol Bee Farm – try their organic menu.

Where to buy Souvenir/Pasalubong:

• Cross the other side of the Hanging Bridge for souvenirs at a cheaper price than the normal pasalubongs that you will see across the road.
• You can also buy premium souvenirs at Aproniana Souvenir Shop. It has a comprehensive inventory of assorted souvenirs and native delicacies.

Things you need to know:

• If you will be coming from Cebu and planning to return, it is best to pick a round trip ticket because of the 20% discount from fastferries.
• Don’t buy right away to the first person that sell you souvenirs if you want to save money.
• It may be cliche but it is best to plan ahead. Unlike other tourist destinations where you can pick and go to a spot that you like, in Bohol you will definitely need to rent a car or van to go on with the tour. It is not suggested to be a cheapskate and try public transportation because your day will be over before you can go to the next attraction. There are so many car rentals that ranges from P1,000 per person to P3,000 or P3,500 for the whole car itself for a group of 4. This comes of course with a driver who will also serve as your tour guide. The usual tour last for about 8 to 9 hours.

For details on the trip, you may read on these related posts:

• Day 1 Cebu trip
• Blood Compact Shrine: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Baclayon Church: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Dine at the Loboc River Cruise: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• A Day with the Tarsiers: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• The Magnificent Chocolate Hills: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Butterfly Center and Man Made Forest: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Crossing the Hanging Bridge: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Pasalubong galore at Aproniana Souvenir Shop: Day 2 Bohol Tour