Arena Point

After 5 days of consecutive island hopping, Andrea, Sarra and I headed to the island of Siargao in the east of the Philippines. Funnily enough, though, we were all on different timelines. I went first, Andrea arrived a day afterwards and Sarra two days after that.

Anyway, the flight from Coron to Siargao (via Cebu) was beautiful, as I flew over countless little islands that were surrounded by reefs that made the colour of the water a perfect turquoise blue.

Once I arrived in Siargao, I took a tuktuk north to the area/town of Pacifico. On the way, i got a first glimpse on the essence of the island. Light grey and empty roads lined up with high and green palm trees on either side. It felt so tranquil. Pacifico itself is such a chilled area (Siargao is the surfing capital of the Philippines) and was simply perfect for me to relax and recharge after quite an exhausting week.

My hostel was also just a few minutes walk away from the beach, which was wide and with not many people on it - bascially my kind of beach. Palm trees also featured prominently, of course.

Once Andrea arrived, we hired a scooter after trying to rent one for hours, but once we had one, we quickly hit the road, exploring the island, its beaches and its little treasures. One beach, in particular, was dreamy for us - Pasikon Beach. Slightly tucked away from the road, bright sand, blue waters, palm trees (tried to climb one!) and again not a single other soul in sight. Might as well been one of my favorite beaches so far. We finished our time in Pacifico with a delicious lunch up a hill that provided us with a beautiful view over the ocean.

The following day, we headed south to the biggest town on the istand, General Luna. It was like stepping into another world, as the town was buzzing with tourists. After a peaceful time in Pacifico, my first reaction was "I prefer Pacifico". We watched the sunset on the bridge - a popular spot - but it was too crowded to really enjoy it as was the town in general.

The next day, we hired scooters again and explored the central and southern part of the island. Once again, the island was stunning - fields of coconut trees, endless roads to drive on, taking a canoe down a beautiful river to a crystal clear lagoon and trying various foods. It really was a beautiful day.

Then it was time for a last island hopping tour. We visited three islands, but two of them were only 'okay-ish'. The number of tourists were also a lot more here vs Palawan. We did have an amazingly presented lunch, however, and the snorkeling spot was nice. Our last stop, Naked Island, was essentiaily a big sandbank without any tees/shade - hence naked - that i thought was quite cool.

That was largely it for my time in Siargao. I really liked the island, but mainly the central and northern part (i.e. Pacifico) and less so Generad Luna. I would even say that Pacifico ranks among my favorite places in the Philippines, as it was so chilled out and the vibe was just very welcoming and easy-going. Certainly a place I would want to go back to.Read more