Maia's Beach Resort, Bantayan

Since we were travelling with children who also wanted a pool to swim in aside from the beach, we decided to stay in Maia's Beach Resort as they were one of the few resorts in the island that had their own pool. The stay was a pleasant one, the owners were nice, they have reasonable prices that comes with free breakfast and cost to pick you up from the port to their resort is already included in the room rates.
                         
However there were still several disadvantages in staying here:

1.  No TV inside their rooms. They have an entertainment room and TV though in their restaurant. I guess this is not such a disadvantage since you won't want to just watch TV in your vacation. 
2. The beach is not good for swimming. 
3. The place is 9km away from Sta. Fe proper where the market is and all the other bars. So if you are expecting to drink in a bar during the night, then do not stay here. The place is more for families with small kids and honeymooners. 
4. Also, since it is 9 kms away, there are almost no transportation going to Sta. Fe so you will be forced to rent their van and driver to get you around which costs around P250.00
5. There is no hot water in the rooms 

Other than this, it was still a pleasant stay in Bantayan and in Maia's Beach Resort. 

The rooms in Maia

Walkway to the beach

Maia's Beach front

Free Breakfast

Bacon! Yum!

To experience the beach, we went to Bantayan Beach Club. This is their beach front

Bantayan Beach Club.

Road to Maia

Pool

We spent only around 1,300 per night in Maia. They gave us discounts since we were a big group.

On the Road to Bantayan, Cebu

A lot of people wonder which is a better beach to go to in Cebu, Bantayan or Malapascua. Being able to go to both beaches, I realized that each has its own beauties.

For me, both trips started with a plane ride from Manila to Cebu.

Then a 3 hour long bus ride along a ceres bus going to Hagnaya Port. The Bus ride to Hagnaya is a bit shorter than that for Maya Wharf going to Malapascua. The bus fare from the North Bus Terminal to Hagnaya Wharf costs P150.00/head.

Hagnaya Wharf is more organized than Maya Wharf. You will ride a ferry or a roro to go to Bantayan. It's bigger than the ones for Malapascua also because Bantayan is a lot bigger than Malapascua. Bantayan actually consists of 3 municipalities.

Here are some pictures on the road to Bantayan. 

Hagnaya Wharf - Buying Ferry tickets

There are grills selling hotdogs and longganisas in sticks (I don't recommend the hotdog though, it's not TJ)

Ferry

Hagnaya Port

Sta. Fe Port

You can also ride the RORO

Malapascua Island - Things to do and How to Get There

Can you imagine what Boracay was like 20 years ago, The fine white sand, the beautiful beach, the helpful locals, peacefully walking from Station 1 to 3 without people approaching you to offer all kinds of activities?

This was what I saw in Cebu's Malapascua Island and more. On the road going there and upon my first steps in the island, I felt like I was transported 20 years ago. The 1 hour plane ride from Manila to Cebu,  more than 4 hour ride from Cebu to Maya Wharf, the 40 minute boat ride from the wharf to the island was all worth it.

First, how to get there from Manila.

1. There are a lot of airlines flying from Manila to Cebu so this will be no problem. These airlines would usually have deals where you can get tickets, sometimes free. You would only have to pay the airport taxes.

2. Upon arrival in Cebu, ride a metered taxi going to the North Bus Terminal. This is where it gets tricky because the Ceres Buses that will ply the Maya-Bagay route do not follow a schedule of departure. Aircon buses are rare. Because it was already late and we did not want to miss the boat, we decided to ride in a non-aircon bus. The scenery was amazing, you will pass by a lot of fields and seashore. Riding in a non-aircon bus for 4 hourse was such an experience. The fare is P163.00/person. But if you are a big group travelling and have money to spare, I suggest you rent a private van to bring you to Maya Wharf as this will get you there faster and the ride is more comfortable. Going back from Malapascua, we decided to already arrange for a private van to Cebu. We had to pay P2,500.00 for the rent, the van can seat up to 12 people.

3. At the Maya Wharf, you will pay P80.00 for the boat ride to Malapascua. But they also offer special trips of P800.00 - P1,000.00 where you will charter your own boat and you will not have to wait for other passengers before it leaves.

Regular boats which will wait for other passengers before leaving

Or you can also arrange for a special trip

If you arrive late i n the afternoon, your boat will not be able to dock in the shore. You will have to transfer to one of the smaller boats like this to bring you to shore. For tourists, the banca ride is another P20.00

   4. You will arrive at their port in Malapascua, you will have to walk quite a bit to reach your hotel. Or you can also ride in one of the motorbikes. So I suggest you pack light.

Now, for some things to do and places you should not miss in the island. 

1. Swim in Malapascua Legend's pool. They are the only hotel here that has a pool and offers the comforts of a 3 star accommodation. Each standard room costs P5,000.00 for peak season while the native room is P2,500.00. If you are not staying here, you can still swim in their pool by paying P150.00

Malapascua Legends Pool area

2. But of course, you did not go to Malapascua just to swim in the pool. So you have to get one of the island tours which will bring you to several snorkeling sites including the shipwreck - where you will get to see the remains of a ship that sank during World War II

 3. If you are brave enough, cliff dive!

This is my friend, jumping off

4. Have lunch along one of the beaches. We had our boatman Mang Noli, who is a local in Malapascua, prepare the lunch for us. This was the best meal I had in the island. I do not usually like eating fish, but I liked what they prepared.

This is the spot where we had our lunch

5. Spend the afternoon in their floating bar

The floating bar

You can feed the fishes and snorkel around the area

Drinking fresh buko juice

6. Try the specials in the Ocean Vida Bar.

I could fall asleep in these bean bags. What's great about this place is that you can hear each other when you talk. No loud music blasting away.

This was my favorite special drink. They call it the Malibu Bay Breeze (pineapple juice, cranberry juice and malibu)

7. Ride a motorcycle that will bring you to the best parts of the island.

The motorcycle ride. We paid the driver P150.00 for bringing us to the tip of the island

Our country really has the best beaches

You can watch the children play

And have fun yourself

8. Do not miss the sunset

9. Eat at Ging Ging's. This place comes highly recommended by the locals. When we went, the place was packed with foreigners.

Chicken Curry

Spaghetti with Egg & Cheese

Ging Ging's Flower Garden Restaurant

 10. And of course, Malapascua is known for its diving spots. If you have a diving license, then go ahead and dive. They say this is the only place that you can see tresher sharks in the country.

Picture courtesy of www.malapascua.net

Malapascua Island is really another reason to say that it's more fun in the Philippines.