Bantayan Island Escapade!
10:11 PM
ACR
First of all, Im sorry for not having pictures right now. I dont own a digicam yet..:( But I will post some pictures once I get some of it from my officemate's camera.
Anyway, we went to Bantayan Island last Monday together with my officemates. Bantayan Island is known for its breathtaking white sand beaches. The island is located in the northern part of Cebu.
Monday at 9:00AM we arrived at the North terminal of Cebu City . This will be your first step to reach Bantayan Island. We took a Ceres Bus going to Hagnaya. It took us 3 hours to reach the port going to Bantayan Island. The fare was cheap. It was only Php50! Imagine travelling for 3 hours and have that fare. It was already a good savings for my tight budget.
After 3 hours of sitting in the bus , finally we reached Hagnaya port. From their you'll need to ride a 'RORO' ship going straight to Santa Fe port in Bantayan. The fare is Php 135 plus Php10 Terminal Fee. Also, you have an option to take First Class accomodation for Php 160. Then, it took us 1 hour to reach Bantayan island. All in all you need to alot at least 4 hours of travel.
From the port, you can witness right away the green colored water and white sand.
We decided to stay in Santa Fe Beach Club. Our first decision was supposedly Ogtong Cave but the pedicab driver told us to better stay at Santa Fe Beach Club to save for the room accomodation. They said that Ogtong Cave and Santa Fe are just sister companies and you can go to Ogtong Cave with Free Shuttle and Entrance Fee if you stay at Santa Fe Beach Club. So we decided to stay in that beach. It was just 100 meters away from the Port. We took a Pedicab for 20 pesos each. We get a non aircon Family Room for Php 1200 which is good for 5 persons already.
The room was great. It was clean and it seems to be a comfortable one. Late night, we took dinner at D' Jungle Resto which is 500 meters away from Santa Fe beach club. We took pedicab for 2o pesos each to reach that place. It has variety of seafoods. You will be the one to decide on how it will be served. But the price is a bit expensive because maybe the owner is a foreigner and most people who eat their are tourists.
After that great dinner, we went back to the place where we stayed. Then, I immediately plunged in to the sea water. The sand was very soft and the water was very clear. It was a relaxing night swimming for me. Refreshing feeling.
In the Morning, we went to Bantayan proper to visit Bantayan Church. An old structured church which is also a tourist attraction in the Island. We took a tricyle for 25 pesos each to reach that place for 25 minutes. The church really looks old. The foundation was old looking brick. Then we spent some prayers and lit some candles.
After eating breakfast, we went back to Santa Fe Beach Club. Then have free shuttle service going to Ogtong Cave. It has great amenities. Two swimming pools and most especially the cave. We went right away to the cave. It was a good place and you can feel the fresh water. It was like a tub in a cave. 100% fantastic!
After spending time in Ogtong Cave, we went back to Santa Fe and pack up our things to catch 1:30PM ship going back to Cebu. The time was too limited for us. We missed the chance for island hopping in Virgin Island. Feel Bad..:(
