Published via Facebook Notes on March 16, 2010
Beach enthusiasts these days can either settle for Boracay, Puerto Galera, a beach in Zambales, or if you have the luxury of time and money, Palawan. Thanks to Facebook, we discovered a fan page where it featured a little known island in Quezon province, far from the toxicity of Manila but just near and affordable enough for meager budgets. We were instantly eager to visit the island and after months of planning, we finally set foot on the island called Cagbalete.
Here's a simple guide on how to get to Cagbalete Island, and survive.
First, FOOD!
If your group's a cowboy type and wants to save money, and one of your companions know how to cook, you can bring your own canned goods and noodles, and some fresh pork and fish to Cagbalete, but keep in mind that the island doesn't have round-the-clock electricity (only runs from 6PM to 10PM depending on the resort where you are staying.) So, no friendly fridge is available there. You have to cook the fresh meats once you arrive in the island and keep it in a safe place for tomorrow or the next next day's consumption. If you want to save on weight, you can drop by SM City Lucena and buy your groceries there.
If you're the maarte type and does not want to do some grocery shopping, you can arrange for the resort to cook your meals for you, but for a price. Depending on how many you are in the group, the package for a group of less than 10 will cost you PhP 900. Yes, nine hundred pesos per person, per day. Groups of at least 10 persons, will cost you PhP 700 per person, per day. But the package will give you 3 full meals and 2 snacks for the day, enough to bloat your tummy.
Second, TRANSPO.
We went to Cagbalete on a weekday, so traffic was not that intense and you can literally have the bus for yourselves.
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| At JAM Liner Terminal. |
Travel time would be around 3 1/2 to 4 hours to Lucena City. We took the 9:30PM bus, and arrived in SM Lucena by 1:00PM. We bought some groceries (rice, canned corned beef, tuna, eggs, noodles, pork (for adobo), boneless bangus, and others). It cost us about a measly P1,200 for 3 days worth of food. A big savings compared if you want to take the food package.
We're done in about 40 minutes, so we managed to buy some take-out food from Jollibee and Pizza Hut, and ate it while we were waiting for the van to bring us to Mauban. The van terminal is located at the other entrance of SM Lucena. We left at around 2:30PM and it took us a good 45 minutes to reach Mauban. It will also cost you PhP60-70.00.
We arrived in Mauban at around 3:20PM. Upon arrival, ask the tricycle driver to take you to the pantalan where a motorboat awaits you. Tricycle ride will cost P10.00 a pop. The ride will take about 5-10 minutes. There's no worry for you to get lost or even take the wrong boat. The boat does not have a fixed schedule though, so once you miss the boat, it's either you take the next ride or hire a private one to bring you to Cagbalate. The public boat only has two tripss per day. The morning trip, which leaves around 10AM (or even before 10AM), and the afternoon trip, which leaves around 4PM (or even before 4PM) so it's best to arrive in Mauban as early as possible.
The ride will take about another 45 minutes, and will cost you PhP40.00 per head. During our trip, the weather and the waves were manageable enough, similar to a boat ride going to Puerto Galera. A reminder though. The boat is the only mode of transportation for the locals, so expect that you're not the only passengers.
We arrived at about past 5PM in Cagbalete. Depending on the tide, you may take a short flat boat ride going to the shores of the island. Ask the locals for the direction of going to the resort. They will be glad to assist you. It will take you about 15-20 minutes of walking for you to reach the resort.
We stayed at Pansacola Beach Resort for 3D/2N, which offered us P1,000.00 a night for a room in a quite a bit large hut. There are other huts available though at higher prices. There's also a tree house which gives you a good view of the beach. The caretaker will provide you matresses, pillows, sheets and blankets, and of course, a mosquito net. :D
At P150.00 per day, you can also rent some kitchen utensils, pots, pans, plates, spoons, forks, for you to cook your food. There's also a dirty kitchen beside the hut where you can do your kitchen wonders. You need to also purchase some 1-2 small packs of "uling" at P20.00 a pack from the resort caretaker. If you need more items to buy, you can ask the caretaker to buy the items for you at the nearby sari-sari stores in the island. Mosquito coils, candles, and matches are essential. If you need drinking water, the resort also can provide you a 5 gallon water container at P100.00. That's more than enough for your entire length of stay.
If your skin is sensitive to insect bites (like mine), don't you ever forget to buy mosquito repellent lotions, in addition to mosquito coils. It's a sin not to buy one. Buy the brand that repels all insects. Please. But if you prefer to get some bites in your arms or feet as souvenirs, that would inflame and becomes reddish spots for about a week, then go ahead. It's a free country.
The main activity in the island is swimming. If you want to do some boating, you can rent at P100.00 a day a small bangka, which would carry about 2-3 persons. If you can manage to wait for the low tide in the afternoon, the shore would extend for up to 400 meters. There you can sit and see the sun set.
The resort also offers massage services for both sexes. According to the resort owner, they have a male masseur, who is a former employee at one of the spas in Manila. They also have a female masseur for female massage enthusiasts. For the rates, you can ask the caretaker. :D
We left Cagbalete on Saturday after lunch to catch the 1PM ride back to Mauban town proper. Same route, only backwards. Tell the van driver to drop you off at the Grand Terminal, which a bus going to either Cubao, Buendia, or Alabang will wait for you. Buses leave at an hourly basis. If you want to dine, there's Jollibee and Chowking inside the terminal. The terminal is also a pasalubong center, so if you want to buy some delicacies from Quezon province, there's a bunch of stores there.
We left Lucena at 4PM and arrived in Buendia at about 8PM, an hour late behind schedule due to traffic en route to Turbina Bus Terminal from Lucena. And we waited for a bus going to Las Pinas to retire and get some much needed sleep and wake up again at 2AM to prepare for a shift that day.
We experienced a good and relaxing vacation, not to mention an adventurous one as we were just guided by the resort owner through text.Think of it as you're in the Amazing Race - Cagbalete. The island reminded me like I got into a time warp and visited Boracay 25 years back, without the urbanization, the crowd, the electricity, the buildings, and the noisy music coming from the bars. It reminded me of the Boracay days where you needed candles to guide you during the nights and "uling" to cook your food and the mosquito nets to protect you from insect bites.
If only the local government of Mauban is to develop the island into a tourist spot, the island can go a long way.
Until our next encounter.
