Cebu to Surigao, to Paradise on Siargao Island

Everytime I leave Cebu I feel a bit sad. It’s hard to leave such a perfect place. But when my Australian mate Chris, said he was heading to Siargao and then on to Surigao Island by boat, I knew adventure was calling. We boarded a Cebu Pacific Airbus A319 and for the “outrageous” (haha) sum of 1,371 pesos ($32 USD) and 45 minutes later we arrived in Surigao.

On the way from Surigao to Siargao

Sorry, but I don’t have any photos of Surigao to share. I wasn’t impressed by the place, even though I stayed in the “famous” Tavern hotel where apparently, lots of “famous” people have stayed in the past. You want famous, go to Hollywood or Europe, not Surigao, Philippines. Call me a snob, but I wasn’t that impressed with the city, the hotel or anything about it, it was only a stopover point for me.

In the morning, Chris and I boarded a ~40 passenger boat that took us from Surigao City to the beautiful island of Siargao, (A) below. The trip was wrought with heavy rains and high seas that forced the captain to slow us to a snails pace. Our trip had become a 4 hour trek that never seemed to end. When we saw the harbor appear in the distance, I think everyone was glad to have arrived.

Siargao Island is where people go when they want to truly get away. It’s a spot that makes you smile as soon as you see it. Imagine a beautiful island with friendly Filipinos, fantastic surfing past the reefs, yet tranquil turquoise waters for swimmers and inexpensive accommodations directly on the beach.

For me, Siargao island is paradise. Surfers worldwide know it as terrific place to go surfing and enjoy the local Filipino nightlife. Surprisingly though, outside the surfing community, this island gets little tourism.  The photo on the right has not been touched by Photoshop, it’s straight out of the camera and shot on a crappy day. Imagine a nice sunny day and – you get the picture as to why I call this place paradise…

Siargao is protected by a huge reef approximately a half a mile away from the shore line. That means that as a surfer, you can go out to where the waves are epic or as a swimmer, you can lounge at your white sandy beach and relax in thousands of feet of tranquil turquoise waters. The choice is yours!

I miss it already...

I stayed at Patricks Hotel and overall it was great. Every morning I would wake up to the gentle sounds of the ocean waves crashing on the beach. I could shower up or simply throw on the swim trunks and go swimming in the ocean first. The food was also downright decent. Nothing you’d write home about, but for the money and the “remoteness” of the place, quite good!

If you get the chance you really should visit, it won’t disappoint.

FOXY

Tags: Cebu to Surigao, Siargao beach, Siargao Island, Siargao travel, Surigao to Siargao Island