Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
hotel owned by the mayor of Poro's brother. Rooms are
clean and pleasant and have
wi-fi, pa
rquet flooring and
some also have small balconies.
P1500
PORO
Heritage Inn
Poro Town
T
0928 751 8004.
If you don't
mind being away from the beach you'll find some of the
nicest and best value rooms on the island at this brand new
Moalboal
Three hours by road and 89km from Cebu City, on the southwestern flank of Cebu
Island, lies the sleepy town of
MOALBOAL
, jumping-off point for the resorts of
Panagsama Beach
, a boozy hangout for travellers and scuba divers (see box below),
3km away on the coast. Sun-worshippers looking for a Boracay-style sandy beach will
be disappointed - there isn't one: the shoreline is a little rocky in places and not
generally suitable for recreational swimming. Nonetheless, Panagsama's village makes
up for this in other ways, with a great range of cheap accommodation, a marvellous
view of the sunset over distant Negros and some good discounts on diving and rooms.
Sunbathing by resort pools, diving and drinking take centre stage, and there's little else
to do in town. If being on the beach is top of your list, head 8km north along the coast
to
White Beach
, an attractive strip of sand with several mid-range resorts. Note that
- confusingly - the whole area around Panagsama, including White Beach, is often
referred to as Moalboal.
Away from the coast, the jagged limestone peaks and lush river valleys of Cebu's
central mountains offer canyoning, hiking, kayaking, mountain biking and horseriding
all within easy reach of Panagsama.
6
Naomi's Bottle Museum and Library
Panagsama, 300m inland • No fixed hours • Free
For a break from the beach, bars and diving, it's just a short walk to the quirky
Naomi's Bottle Museum and Library
, where recycled bottles from the resorts adorn
every available surface. Each bottle is filled with a message of goodwill, and
visitors are given miniature versions as gifts. There are also bottles and other trinkets
for sale.
DIVING AT MOALBOAL
Pescador Island
, thirty minutes by bangka from Panagsama, is one of the best dive sites in
the country, surrounded by a terrific reef that teems with marine life, and renowned for its
swirling sardine shoals. Barely 100m long, the island is the pinnacle of a submarine mountain
reaching just 6m above sea level and ending in a flat surface, making it look from a distance
like a floating disc. The most impressive of the underwater formations is the
Cathedral
, a
funnel of rock that is open at the top end and can be penetrated by divers. Pelagic fish are
sometimes seen in the area, including reef sharks and hammerheads, while at lesser depths on
the reef there are Moorish idols, sweetlips, fire gobies and batfish. There are at least ten other
dive sites around Panagsama, including the gentle Balay Reef, Ronda Bay Marine Park, Airplane
Wreck (which was sunk by Savedra) and Sunken Island (an advanced site).
Arranging diving trips is easy, with a dozen
operators
at Panagsama Beach. Dives typically
cost P1300 for a shore dive and P1600 for a boat dive, including equipment.
DIVE OPERATORS
Blue Abyss Dive Shop
T
032 474 3036,
W
blueabyss
diving.com.
Savedra Dive Center
T
032 474 3132,
W
savedra
.com.
SeaQuest Dive Center
T
032 232 6010,
W
seaquest
divecenter.ph.
Visayas Divers
T
032 474 0018,
W
visayadivers
.com/wpvd.
Wolfgang Dafert
T
0928 263 4646,
W
freediving
-philippines.com.
For something a little different,
Wolfgang Dafert, who is based up at White Beach,
arranges free-diving courses which aim to assist guests
in holding their breath longer and diving deeper
unassisted. Prices start at US$125/day.
