Bohol Getaway

Bohol is an extremely popular tourist destination here in the Philippines. What else can Bohol offer besides the ever famous Chocolate Hills, Panglao Island and Tarsier? Let me share with you our trip in Bohol which may encourage more tourists to visit this quiet island paradise.

Bohol has a lot to offer, so much that many tourists have a hard time to select the most important things to see in their limited time. You can easily spend a week on the island, and just see the highlights. But for tourist with a lesser time, one could just choose the places that they want to visit in Bohol.

Most of the resorts or hotels in Bohol offer countryside tour. It depends if you purchase a package together with the accommodation or you could either rent a van for a whole day countryside tour. You could always ask the front desk if there are vans available to rent or ask about the tour package upon doing your reservation.

It was a good thing for us that we have an aunt who lives in Tagbilaran. That saved us a lot of money for accommodation. We stayed in Bohol for 4 days and 3 nights and started our countryside tour the 2^nd day since we arrived in Tagbilaran at around 3pm already.

Prior to leaving Manila we have already arranged and picked the places that we wanted to visit. Our list included the famous Chocolate Hills, Loboc River, see the Tarsiers and of course take a dip in the beautiful beaches of Panglao. Since we were staying with our aunt and they’ll be touring us around Bohol, we had the luxury of time to prepare for our day tour. 

We left my aunt’s house at around 10am to start our tour of Bohol. Our first stop was the Sandugo Blood Compact. They say that this is the usual first stop for every Bohol tours. This is the famous blood compact between the chieftain of Bohol Datu Sikatuna and Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi. This monument offers a nice view over the Bohol sea with Panglao Island to the right and Pamilacan Island a bit farther away to the left.

Next was Baclayon Church. It is one of the oldest churches in the Philippines. Its monumental church, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, opposite the pier, is well worth a visit. This church also has a small museum with some old church relics on display.  

It was about time for lunch so we headed to Loboc River. Loboc River is also well-known for its floating restaurants that cruise along  Loboc River where you can have a buffet of Filipino food and enjoy the live band or watch the Filipino folk dances being performed by the local dancers. The tour will end at Busay falls and then will return back to port.

After our big lunch buffet we proceeded to Chocolate Hills. After several minutes on the road we pulled over to a stretch of thickly forested land of mahogany trees. This area is well-known as the Bilar man-made forest. Most Bohol tours stop here for a short while to enjoy the soothing greenery and majestic canopy.

After that short stop-over, it was time to get back on the road and drive straight to Chocolate Hills. Chocolate Hills is located in the town of Carmen. To enjoy the scenery, you'll first have to climb the stairs on one of the hills for a magnificent view. This is probably the best spot to enjoy the eyrie landscape. These grass-covered hills are usually green and turn brown during summer making it earn its name, “Chocolate Hills”.

After the tiring climb up and down the stairs and some picture taking, our uncle told us that we’ll be heading to Sagbayan Peak to see the tarsiers. Everybody got so excited that we immediately jumped in the van to proceed to our next destination.

When we got to Sagbayan Peak ,everybody was just interested to see the tarsiers that no one had the enthusiasm to climb up the stairs to get another view of the other side of the Chocolate Hills. I’m not quite familiar about Sagbayan Peak although upon entering the site it seems to look like a recreational park. And since we still have to see another tourist spot in Bohol, we decided to just take pictures with the cute little tarsiers and head back on the road.

These tarsiers are cute little creatures considered to be the world’s smallest primate. We were lucky enough to have a close encounter with these adorable creatures. The caretaker was nice enough to let us take a picture by setting the tarsiers on our arms. Just remember that you are not allowed to hold them and you cannot use flash while taking photos.

For our last stop we went to Punta Cruz Watch Tower. The Punta Cruz Watch Tower is not included on most Bohol tours. This triangular watch tower provides an excellent view of Cebu and the south seas of Bohol. It was built during the Spanish era as a look-out post against pirates and Muslim marauders, who at that time where a plague to the people of Bohol. The site offers a small stall for buying drinks and snacks and makes a good spot for a picnic and a swim.

It was really a tiring trip considering that we actually went around Bohol. And what other way to end this trip was sumptuous meal from Payag Jo’s Chicken Inato in Mansasa. Considering that there were 6 of us and everybody had buko juice in the shell and the food was really delicious, we only paid Php 1,000+ for dinner. After dinner we headed back to our aunt’s house and rested for the next day activity.

Time to hit the beach! The municipality of Panglao is home to the best known beaches of Bohol. With its pristine white beaches and crystal blue waters, one cannot simply resist this wonderful gift of nature.

On our way to Panglao Island Nature Resort, we made a quick stop in Hinagdanan Cave. This cave is one of the tourist destinations in Bohol. The entrance of the cave is still narrow and steep and only one person at a time can enter. The large underground cavern has a pond, looking dark yet alluring. As far as I remember, the pond is deep and the water is icy cool and fresh.

After that quick stop we went to Panglao Island Nature Resort for a day tour. The entrance fee is Php 450 per person and the Php 350 is consumable for food and drinks. The package is inclusive of the free use of the amenities in the resort. The food was superb and price was fair for a resort rate. The resort has swimming pool and billiard table to suit your leisure and of course a nice beach.

When the sun was about to set, it was time for us to head back to Tagbilaran to have dinner. It was really nice to go home after a tiring day wherein the food was ready to be served. With all the fresh and rich marine life surrounding Bohol, one could not simply resist their best local dishes. For desert my aunt stopped by Lilia’s bakery before they picked us up from the resort. Lilia’s special ensaymada with ube filling was extremely good.

It was our last night in Bohol and while talking to our aunt and uncle in their veranda we found out that there are still places to see in Bohol that we missed within our stay. They told us that there is a new extreme attraction adventure in Danao which offers zip line and other stuffs. One can also enjoy island hopping together with whale and dolphin watching while you’re in Bohol and would simply enjoy swimming, snorkelling or diving in Pamilacan, Balicasag and Virgin Islands. I’m not quite sure about the rates but for some tours, it’s included in the package.

Time flies so fast when you’re in a vacation. But hey, you could always go back or find another destination to explore and experience. Hope you find this article about Bohol interesting and helpful for your travel needs. Enjoy!