It was March 18, 2011 (4 am) that I arrived Cebu through plane. From airport, we hurriedly took taxi and rushed to Pier1 to take Ocean Jet fast craft ferry 6am trip to Tagbilaran. Tickets can be booked online for as low as P300 per head (libre balik promo) excluding terminal fee which costs around P20 only. The trip from Cebu to Tagbilaran is approximately 2 hours.
Waiting at Tagbilaran port was Kuya Paul who offers car rent + tour around Bohol . He is very accommodating and offers reasonable tour packages. It won’t be possible for us to visit numerous places in Bohol without his services. You’ll learn a lot about Bohol through his stories and trivias. If you are interested, you might want to check out Incon Bohol Tour Packages.
This is map of Bohol. Let me drive you through our Bohol day tour itinerary. You judge for yourselves whether you can make it without renting a car.
Carmen is at the central part of the Island of Bohol which houses a viewing deck to one of the World's Seven Wonders - The Chocolate Hills. It has 1776 cone shaped hills, covered with green grass that dies during dry season hence, turning it into dark brown color.. Legend says the mysterious Chocolate Hills were formed by tears of a broken hearted giant. Entrance fee is P50/adult and P10/child
Simply Butterflies Conservation Center is located in Bilar. It has different species of butterflies. One will be able to see and observe the whole life cycle of this beautiful insect – from the courting stage, mating, laying of eggs; from a caterpillar, to a chrysalis, and finally into a whole new creation, the wondrous butterfly! And what's more! You also get to learn things you've never heard before... Like "butterfly na bakla" and more... Entrance fee is P30/adult and P5/child
Bilar Man-Made Forest was born because a governor spearheaded planting thousands of Mahogany seedlings in this area in Bilar and Loboc towns. For many years now, the lush green forest has been enjoyed by everyone who passes through it. Thousands of Mahogany trees can be seen along the road. A side-trip to the forest is refreshing as the ambience is cool and peaceful.
The Hanging Bridge is a foot bridge composed of bamboos and hardened steels which was initially used by locals to cross the river going to the Barangay on the other side of the main road. The Hanging Bridge hangs about 25 meters above the river. The river is supposedly to be greenish in color, unfortunately it flooded the night before we came here. :( Entrance fee is P10/pax.
The trip won't be complete without food trip at Loboc River Cruise. The trip is about 45-minute cruise on Loboc River while having a delightful lunch buffet on a floating restaurant. We greatly enjoyed the food, the view, the kids' performance as well as the serenading of one Boholano guy while on board. Buffet lunch is P300/pax
The Philippine Tarsier is already an endangered species found in the Philippines. It’s scientifically known as Tarsius syrichta and also called Maumag in Cebuano/Visayan. It derived its name from its elongated “tarsus” bone or ankle bone. It is the world's smallest primate, measures about 12 centimeters in length. Mostly active at night, their two big eyes are fixed in its skull and don’t have the upper protective tissue. In this area, you can also
Albuquerque is where you can visit "Prony the python". Prony was named after its captor “Sofronio. She is considered the largest captive reticulated python in the Philippines. She was captured on October 21, 1996 with a length of 5 feet at 5 kilos. In this zoo, you will also meet "Marimar or Miss Foundation" who will share with you stories of Prony. There are other animals in this zoo also. Entrance fee is P10/pax.
Baclayon Church is one of the oldest church in the Philippines. Next to it is a small museum which houses old artifacts and religious collections. Baclayon is known as the hometown of multi-award winning actor Cesar Montano.
Blood Compact or Pacto de Sangre is a ritual made where they cut their wrist and pour blood in a cup and drink each other's blood for friendship and agreement. This particular Blood Compact in Bohol called "Sandugo" was made by Bohol Chief, Datu Sikatuna and Spanish Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, witnessed by Fray Andres de Urdaneta and other two soldiers. Blood Compact Shrine is a monument built to commemorate the first treaty made by Spanish explorer, Miguel Lopez De Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna to seal their friendship through tribal tradition. It is sculpted by Napoleon Abueva, a Boholano himself. It is placed on an open and raised dais portraying five (5) life-sized images of men gathered around a table with Legazpi and Sikatuna supposedly making a toast. Standing on the dais, visitors are treated to a good view of the Bohol Sea and the contour of that particular side of the island of Bohol. FYI: The actual blood compact site is at Loay.
We would love to join the Bohol Bee Farm tour, unfortunately we won't able to be in ferry port if we join the next tour. Instead we enjoyed their souvenir shop, free taste for all their products! I think this is a good marketing strategy to attract customers to buy, especially if their products are really good. And who would not want to try their famous ice cream, sweetened not by sugar but by honey of course, it is only P50 for 2 scoops/ cone. We tried malunggay, spicy ginger, pagong, and pandan...YUM! For more info, visit their website.
This culminates our Bohol Day Tour. There are lots of activities yet to explore... I will definitely recommend you to visit this wonderful place and be sure to call Paul to tour you around :)
Posts
