As the map shows Panglao has a number of beaches but the best known is no doubt Alona Beach . About 700 meters in length Alona Beach is basically defined by two rock out croppings that jut out into the water at each end of the beach .The Sunrise image was taken near our lodging at the beginning of Alona Beach .
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| Alona at Sunrise |
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| And Sunset |
Flying into Tagbilaran is an option of course but given the distance travel by water is the more common option chosen from Cagayan de Oro . The type of boat chosen for the journey is where choices have to be made . We happened to travel with Trans - Asia which had both it's positives and negatives . Not being bashful , i will share some of each .
The image above is of Trans - Asia 8 and sails from CDO to Tagbilaran once a week leaving CDO at 7 pm and arriving approximately 4 am the following morning . The return trip has the same departure and arrival times . Depending upon the check in and check out times of your lodging this can be a positive or a negative . If booked " round trip " you are faced with a two day or five day stay because of the ship schedule .
Type of accommodation on board ranges from open air on 2nd deck to air - con tourist and cabin on lower level with pricing from 800 pesos and up . For this " old goat " accommodation choice was less of an issue than basic amenities . Basic amenities being toilets that flushed , or not , and distance one has to walk (hike) from terminal to ship . With Tans - Asia it was a not for the toilets and a hike for the distance . :-)
Some Filipino food choices are available as well as soft drinks and beer with pricing sometimes reasonable and sometimes not . Best to haul your own snacks as my basic impression is that this ship is more of a freighter than a passenger vessel . I base that on having watched the crew unload 2,000 cases of San Miguel Grande from the CDO facility when i lost interest and stopped counting . And , that was just the beer . :-)
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| A Fast Ferry |
Option 2
This option involves taking the " fast ferry " from Cagayan de Oro to Camiguin and continuing on to Bohol . It's my understanding that this operation is now under the ownership of Super Cat of Cebu and not Paras of CDO . Unfortunately , as of now , Super Cat of Cebu is not listing this option on their web - site that i saw and i only know of this option because of another cdo couple that we ran into on Alona Beach that took it . Ocean Jet of Cebu also offers this option but at higher prices . http://www.oceanjet.net/index.php
A primary consideration when taking this option is the distance from where the fast ferry ports in Jagna to Panglao . Based on our friends experience with this option fare was 800 peso one way and left CDO about 8am with short stopover in Camiguin before proceeding to Jagna and arriving at approximately 2pm .
A van from Jagna will run about 2,000 peso for up to 9 people taken to Alona Beach and takes about 1 hr. A bus can also be taken for about 100 peso to Tagbilaran but you would have to add the transport fee from there to Alona Beach of around 500 peso for a taxi and 600 for a van .
Fast Ferry leaves Jagna about 2pm and proceeds directly to Cagayan de Oro arriving about 7pm . Our friends are under the impression this option is available daily which would allow you greater flexibility for the duration of your stay on Panglao that option 1 does not offer . A mix of the two options could , of course , maximize your time on Panglao .
Tagbilaran Impressions
The small portion of Tagbilaran that we went through left little for comparison to other cities in the Philippines except for two . First impression being that the environment is cleaner than many , including CDO . No trash that we saw on city streets and no street or sidewalk vendors . My only other impression was with the smaller type of Tricykl used around town . Best suited for one or two . :-)
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| Tagbilaran Trike |
Most folks going to Panglao will opt for a taxi ( 500 peso ) or a van pickup ( 600 peso ) but other options do exist for the less hurried and/or more adventurous . Locals will take a jeepney ( 25 peso ) or a trickyl (?) but most locals know where they are going and ain't hauling lots of stuff . :-) Some web sites list this trip by taxi or van as being from 15 minutes to half an hour but plan on about 45 minutes to Alona Beach . The trip itself is pleasant enough along two lane roads through a rural environment .
The main island of Bohol is connected to Panglao by two bridges and the one taken often depends upon time of day and traffic . Panglao itself is not a very large island consisting of roughly 5,500 hectares total and a 2010 population of 28 , 610 . I did meet a few beach staff that were born and raised there but many are from elsewhere and rent in boarding houses . Rental houses are available away from the beach but did not have time to inquirer further .
In Part 2 of this post the " old goat " will share a bit more detail about our experience at Alona Beach and highlight some of it's pros and cons .
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