Best of Bohol 2: Sea Tour
- Czariina Mae E. Gaspar
- Jan 6, 2018
- 5 min read
Hi Nookfinders!
Land tours in Bohol are pretty awesome but trust me, things will be on a whole lot of new level if you try out touring its islands. Robin and I had to separate ourselves from my family for a day to enjoy snorkeling and sea activities. I carefully customized our Cebu-Bohol experience in a way that everyone gets to enjoy without sacrificing the quality of the trip.
At 4 am, Robin and I were both thrilled while waiting for our driver at the hotel lobby of Arabelle suites in Bohol. We requested a very early breakfast the night before to have the needed energy to enjoy no matter how physically demanding the activities will be. It was the third and last day of my family’s Cebu-Bohol escapade. Before we go back to the concrete jungle of the metro the next day, we were set to have our sea tour. It was just the two of us since we adore the sun and sea—besides, the activity would be too much for my parents and 6 year old niece. My family were still sound asleep as their Panglao tour starts later in the morning while we had to wake up early for a higher chance of sighting the dolphins in Panglao.
During the entire tour, we had an enormous boat all to ourselves. The privacy made things enjoyable and we felt like we had a boundless journey ahead with our boatman.
Dolphin Watching
Upon our arrival at 6 am at Alona beach in Panglao, we were instantly escorted to our boat and given our life vests. Our driver left us since the tour will take the whole morning to finish. He will tour my family while we are busy being mermaids. He told us to text him to fetch us wherever the last stop of our boat is.
Upon riding the boat, I was positively astounded by the view. The collection of boats getting ready to compete with the best view of dolphins plus the stunning morning sky was a sight to feast our eyes on. The boat ride itself and the cold breeze of the wind added to the incredible mood.
The boat went farther to the sea near Pamilican island where dolphins are normally sighted. It didn’t take long for us to see the dolphins in their natural habitat. In groups they show up charming watchers. Few dolphins even jumped—their bodies twisting as they dance into the air then back into the water again. Our boatman was a bit furious with other boats since they kept chasing the dolphins bumping into their exact direction while luring them away.
Balicasag Fish Sanctuary and Turtle point
After an Hour of Dolphin watching, we proceeded to our next stop which is the Balicasag Island to swim freely with the fishes and if lucky, to get to see turtles. We arrived and had to pay 700 Php per head for the tiny boat which included the guide, snorkeling gear and fins. You could choose to eat here but it was definitely too early for us and we didn’t want to swim bloated. I recommend you buy your own lunch from the mainland because food in the island is expensive as fudge.
The island is small and is off the coast of Panglao. It has a very healthy coral reef evidenced by its vast variety of marine life.
We tried our luck with the turtles. Luckily, we were able to see at least one. My only concern was that throughout the swim, little jelly fishes kept stinging our faces haha! The feeling was like having your warts cauterized without the topical anesthesia.
Our second snorkeling activity was at the fish sanctuary. This was my favorite part. We were given bread crumbs to be able to attract a lot of fish but actually we didn’t need any because there were so many! From Large to colorful ones, it was just simply amazing. But then, i guess no trip is complete without a little misfortune. I kept telling Robin his Hero 5’s protective case had too much moist inside. He didn’t believe me and we ended up having ruined, blurry photos! I guess we would have to keep them gold through memory.
Virgin island
After the exhausting turtle and marine life encounter, a 30-minutes boat ride will take you to your next stop which is Virgin Island. It’s called that way because there are no islanders living here although there’s a part of this island that is being privatized. This island is actually a sand bar with a wide stretch of white sand spanning around 1 hectare. We were lucky because at the time, it was low-tide and the whole bar was not submerged in water. We decided not to swim because we were too tired but the view is enough to please anyone and it’s photo worthy. It was honestly the clearest view of water I’ve ever seen.
Tourists can delight themselves with a bunch of sea foods sold by the locals but they are quite pricey. You can have abalones, squids and even sea cucumber. If you’re not into sea food, you could satisfy your hunger with banana cues and boiled eggs. Buko juice and mineral water are also sold by these vendors. Robin and I bought a lot of sea urchins which cost us 20 pesos each They were tiny and price seemed questionable but oh well, we loved how it was partnered with vinegar which is actually for sterilization. We also ate a lot of boiled eggs while enjoying the view.
We stayed for a bit , we talked, took a few photos with a few mangroves here and there. I dipped myself in the water and enjoyed the cold breeze. We decided to leave when too many boats were already coming in.
When we went backed to our boat , to our surprise, there were a lot of locals wanting to have a free ride. Hahaha. Well it was not a big deal, the boat was indeed huge for the both us and it was our great pleasure to share it. This family needed to go to the hospital to get this little boy checked and it felt nice to know we could be of help. Transportation could be a little tricky for islanders especially during emergencies. We had to change the final destination for them but it was cool. We can always tell the driver where to fetch us.
We arrived at our final destination where our car was already waiting after notifying the driver only a few minutes earlier. Even the place itself had a cool ambiance with all the surrounding mangroves.
Overall, any swimming activity is enjoyable for me. This tour enhanced my swimming skills in deep waters which I only mustered the courage to do during college when Robin forced me to swim in the open sea during a weekend trip to Zambales. I realized I could actually swim and enjoy than having that bulky life vest on me.
A trip to Bohol will not be a waste without a sea tour but I still recommend you do it.It's a good way to maximize your trip . This tour cost us 1500 Php per head plus the 700 Php Snorkeling experience then other personal expenses depending on your food needs. Go for a DIY trip and personally book a boat at a cheaper price! Still thinking where to go for summer? Go for Bohol!
Yup, I am not yet done with Bohol! The Sea tour ended too early at approximately past 11AM that we decided to do the Panglao Island tour so we could maximize the experience. Decided to do another blog post for that. PUBLISHING SOON!
This tour is a part of 4 days , 3 nights Cebu-Bohol Escapade and you could check related tours by reading the blog posts below.
CEBU TWIN CITY TOUR - The tour package rate and agency who handled everything are included here.
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