When the Spaniards first arrived in the Camotes Island, they met some natives digging sweet potatoes. The Spaniards asked the natives the name of the island. The natives, thinking that they were being asked what they were digging, replied, "Camotes." Thereafter, the island retained the name, camotes, or sweet potato island.
The Camotes group of islands located northeast of Cebu is composed of 4 islands: Pacijan, Tulang (the tiny dot on top of Pacijan on the map below), Poro, and Ponson. From Cebu, the best way to go to the islands of Pacijan and Poro is by boat from Danao, a city 27 km north of Cebu.
After we had made the decision to go to Camotes, we searched online, read reviews, and finally decided to stay at Mangodlong Paradise Beach Resort located in San Francisco on the island of Pacijan. We went to their office in Mandaue City, discussed options for the right accommodations for our party of 4, then paid for the room. They advised us to get boat tickets from the main office of Jomalia Shipping, which was about a block away.
It takes 2 hours for this passenger boat to get there and they also carry vehicles onboard. The tickets cost P180 for regular non-air conditioned rooms and P200 for air-conditioned rooms, both one way. Below is the schedule of departure times from Cebu to Camotes and back:
Friday afternoon, my brother's driver took us to Danao city port, about an hour away from Cebu. After paying the P5 per person terminal fee, we didn't have to wait long before boarding was announced.
The tourist class or air conditioned room was comfortable. There was a no eating sign in front, but of course nobody believed it! There was a TV which showed violent movies, but it didn't matter then because I was only too glad to take my mind off the rocking motion of the boat!
We arrived at Consuelo port at about 7:30 that night and as part of their service, the resort people picked us up in this vehicle.
After about 5 minutes of riding, we made it to the resort.
Check-in was quick, we made arrangements for an island tour the next day, and we were ready to go to our room (cabana) and call it a night.
The next day, we took a quick tour of the resort before going on our island tour. For those interested in internet connections, here's the deal. Within the resort, internet is touch and go. The internet addicts anonymous meet at the restaurant. However when the place is packed, it's first come first serve... whoever gets connected first wins!
our cabana
view from our cabana
the beach
the infinity pool
Promptly at 9, we went to the lobby to meet with the driver that was to take us on our island tour. The cost of the tour is P1500 for 1 to 12 persons on a non-air conditioned van.
The main road (known as Provincial road) is paved. The inner roads however can be muddy or dusty depending on the weather. People rely mostly on motorcycles for their transportation.
There is only one ATM station in the entire Camotes group of islands and is found in Poro. Before going though, they call to check if it is online to prevent a wasted trip. There is also no gas station on the islands and gas is transported in gallon containers from Cebu and transferred to liter bottles before they are sold to motorists.
People rely mostly on agriculture as their means of livelihood and they plant corn and cassava (yucca).
It is interesting to note that people's houses don't have house numbers. Instead, there is a white sign in front of each house with the notation: "Balay ni..." (house of...). I guess the mailman knows everyone on the island!
First stop was the 1680-acre Lake Danao Park in Patabog, San Francisco. Entrance fees are P15 per adult and P5 for children.
There is plenty to do here. There are picnic tables where you can eat or just enjoy a whole fresh young coconut. For P500, we rode the pontoon boat around the lake, stopped at Snake islet, and went around Crocodile islet. The 2 guys who took us around on the boat did not talk much, so we didn't really learn anything about the lake from them!
Snake islet
Crocodile islet
One can also go fishing using a bamboo pole and earthworm for bait. You only pay for whatever fish you catch.
Next stop... Bakhaw Beach. With its picturesque stretch of white sands amidst the blue sea, we were surprised that this beach was almost isolated, with no signs of noisy tourists or sprawling resorts.
Then we went to Timubo Cave in Sonog, San Francisco. The fee to get into the cave is P15 per adult and P5 for kids.
We went down 77 steps on rock stairs with hand rails. It was hot inside the cave and not much ventilation although the place was well lit.
And then... an underground natural pool of crystal clear water. The water was lukewarm, not cold, and it was very refreshing to take a dip.
We stopped at Baywalk on the way to Poro. Baywalk is one of the newer leisure areas in San Francisco, Camotes. The Baywalk trail has a number of exercise equipment including monkey bars and parallel bars.
We then proceeded to a resort in Poro called Buho Rock. The fee to get in is P20 for adults and P10 for kids. From the viewing deck, you walk down 56 winding steps to get to the main area below.
This platform is probably about 20 to 30 feet down and people have been known to jump and dive into the water below. We asked our driver why the resort has been abandoned and he said that the swimming pools have sprung a leak.
Our last stop was Santiago Bay, a public beach located a few kilometers away from our resort.
The driver brought us to one of the eating places here for lunch. It was an interesting experience to eat amidst dogs digging through the sand looking to cool their bodies, flies buzzing around, and generally just watching people go by.
Lunch consisted of grilled fish, calamari, fried chicken and a fish ceviche or kinilaw. The total bill including drinks was P437 (about $11) for all of us!
kinilaw
So finally it was time to go back and enjoy the amenities of Mangodlong Paradise Resort. From the outside, the resort looks unimposing. Once you walk through the lobby and out the door, this is what you see to the left...
To the right, something for the kids...
And straight ahead, beyond the restaurant, the sunset bar...
and the cabanas.
Upon looking up at the coconut trees, we found this...
I asked one of the resort men about it and was told that this was for tuba making. Tuba is wine or vinegar that comes from the coconut flower sap. A bunch of coconut flowers are tied together, and the tip of the bunch is sliced. It is the sap from this cut that drips into the plastic container. After the plastic container is filled up, the tuba is filtered to remove dirt and transferred to another container. This can be used as wine or allowed to mature into vinegar.
The bamboo cafe is the resort's restaurant. Breakfast (part of the room rate) is a la carte. Generally, the food was blah! The menu was extensive (usually between P150-P300) but choosing good food was hit and miss. Everything was bland except for one or two items. Everyone at the restaurant was polite but service was terrible. It took an average of 45 minutes for them to serve our food even if it was just a breakfast plate of bacon, bread, and scrambled egg. It really did come to a point where we dreaded going to the restaurant because we knew that we would have to wait so long for food that's not even worth waiting for. A suggestion would be to call in your order from the room before you go to the restaurant. The food is still not great, but at least you're not waiting long for it!
As a whole, we had a great time. We did snorkel but we didn't see anything but rocks and seaweed.
When we requested to stay another day, the staff took care of rebooking our tickets. However, it rained so hard on our last day and we were told that instead of taking the 4:00 boat, we needed to take the 2:00 one in case the last trip would be cancelled.
They took care of all the arrangements, drove us to Canlusong Point, which is an hour away from the resort because the boat couldn't dock at Consuelo Port due to the rough seas. The shipping company had to get special permission to dock at Canlusong Point because it is a protected reef area.
The almost 3-hour trip back to Danao port was such an ordeal that I think it will be a while before I get on another boat again... a very long while!
