It is my third time in Romblon and second time in Hambil or Carabao Island. I knew I wanted to take Kevin to Romblon, however, I wasn’t sure if we’d have enough time to go to the other islands. I decided to just take him here after our week in Boracay. The island has everything you could possibly want: white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, and a cool breeze in its exotic surroundings!
Boracay to Carabao Island
This proved to be complicated…
Our initial plan was to take a small boat from Puka Beach to Carabao Island. The part of Carabao Island that’s facing Boracay is actually the Lanas side so we thought it was perfect – we were booked at Lanas Beach Resort. We talked to some people at Puka Beach and one boatman quoted PHP800 for 2 persons, one way. It was a good deal so we then took the number of our boatman.
We moved to Ilig-Iligan Beach during our last few days in Boracay and I also asked one boatman there if they are able to take us to Carabao Island and they also agreed. However, on the day that we were supposed to leave, they both flaked on us citing the weather condition as the reason. Getting caught by the coast guard, then getting their boat impounded, was also given as a reason. I mean, I understand, it actually started raining a little later and I’m not sure the smaller boats would survive that. In the end, we made a good decision to just take the public boat even if it took us so much longer.
Since we were located in Ilig-Iligan Beach, we had to travel for almost an hour to Tambisaan Port, where we took the boat to Tabon Port in Caticlan, and then walked to the Tabon-Baybay Port where we took the boat going to Said Port in Hambil. I must say, Kevin was really good at navigating from Tabon Port to Tabon-Baybay Port. We walked for about 10 minutes, and I almost thought we were getting lost but he really came through.
When we arrived in Carabao Island, we found out that due to regulations, it was actually not allowed to take a small boat from Boracay to Carabao Island. All visitors should come from Caticlan and land at Said Port. See, that’s what they should have told us from the start. Totally wasted our time making negotiations and changing our plans at the last minute. It’s a good thing there were still two boats going to Carabao Island that afternoon. I think this changed in October. At least that’s what the owner of the Crystal Cave told us.
Tourist Requirements:
There are really no tourist requirements. Upon arrival and leaving, visitors must pay a terminal fee at Said Port. I think it was only PHP20 per person.
Accommodation:
Lanas Beach Resort
We booked with Lanas Beach Resort and stayed with them for 5 days and 4 nights. They had a promo during our stay for PHP1500/night. The transaction was really fast, I messaged them via Instagram and paid the down payment through Gcash. I paid the rest of the money when we checked in. My friend Mayne and I were here two years ago, just right before COVID started, and had a wonderful time at the restaurant. I’m happy that I got to actually stay in the resort this time around.
Lanas Beach Resort is located on the other side of Said Port. The motorcycle rental was actually pretty expensive. They quoted PHP700 for a whole day of rental, which is twice how much it normally is whether in Palawan or Siquijor. This is even more expensive than Siargao. So we decided to just pay one-way. I also thought that I don’t think we’ll need a motorcycle during our entire stay because Carabao Island is pretty small. We paid PHP200 per person for this 15-minute motorcycle ride from Said Port to Lanas Beach Resort.
Our room was really beautiful and spacious. We booked the Double Room with Balcony and Sea View. I, unfortunately, do not have photos but you can view the pics of our exact room here on Agoda. This is located at the back of the resort. The door is facing the road, but the balcony is facing the sea. We were on the second floor so the sea view is freaking amazing.
We spent a lot of our time on these lounge chairs. Just sunbathing, eating our lunch, drinking milk tea, and Many watching the sunset. If we’re not there, we are at the restaurant. They have such comfy chairs and sofas! Funny story: one afternoon, another couple checked into the room right next to us. They got to the lounge chairs first because we spent the day at Crystal Cave. He was so bitter that he couldn’t watch the sunset from the lounge chair for one afternoon. LOL.
The sunset here is unbelievable. This is on the same side as Puka Beach so expect the sunset to be freaking amazing. There was one afternoon when you can literally see the sun’s rays.
Activities:
We pretty much spent most of our time in the resort actually, but we made it a point to go out even just for half the day. Also, there are fewer tourist spots that are open. For example, Tagaytay Viewpoint has closed and the pathway that goes to it is now a forest. There are spots that have not been maintained.
Motorcycle Diaries
We went motorcycling around Carabao Island for 2 days. On the first day, we rented a scooter and just circled the island. So happy that the roads have been a lot better since the last time I was here. By the way, they also have electricity for 24 hours now. I believe that in the past, they only had it from the afternoon until early morning. We chanced upon this little beach near the Boracay Heights area (currently under construction). The boy I talked to said this place is called “Sugod”. It’s unmarked on Google Maps, and is a residential area.
On the second day, we rented a bigger motorcycle because we wanted to explore the smaller, dirt roads that are not on Google Maps. We definitely ran into some dead ends and random people’s houses, and almost got bitten my dogs. However, we were able to see a side of Carabao Island that I haven’t seen on any blogs. we didn’t find Ngiriton Cave – a bummer! It was closed, but since we were exploring, we thought it would be nice to find it anyway. We got really close to the pin on Google Maps, but we just didn’t see any other way to get there.
We went back to the resort wet and muddy as it has been raining that day, but seeing the beautiful sunset on our way back to the resort was a perfect ending to our stay on the island.
Cathedral Cave
We spent one day just chilling at The Cathedral Cave! The original plan was to go here, then to Kuding-Kuding Point but we ended up staying here until the afternoon. We walked for around 30 minutes (or maybe more because we stopped so many times) from Lanas Beach Resort and it was a hot day, but we enjoyed the walk because of all the plants and flowers we saw on the way.
We met the owner of this tourist attraction on the way to the entrance and while at this very chill bar by the cliff-jumping area, I talked to her a lot about the current regulations between Boracay and Carabao Island. This is when we learned that it is actually illegal to go directly from Boracay to Carabao Island. She said that the local government promised that this will change by October so I hope that it has happened! I wish that they’d be part of the island hopping itinerary again. I love Carabao Island and more people should be able to come and visit.
Sea Garden
Sea Garden is right next to Lola Gloria’s Kubo, which was our accommodation when Mayne and I went to Carabao Island back in Feb 2020. It was so nostalgic to go back here and a little sad because I learned from Buboy (my motorcycle driver who took us from the port to Lanas Beach Resort) that our host back then, Mang Ben, has passed away due to COVID. This explains why Lola Gloria’s Kubo has been closed since Aug 2021. I also noticed that the coconut tree in front of the hut is now labeled as part of Sea Garden. I truly love this hut! It is as beautiful as ever and has the most amazing sea view.
Said Beach
While Lanas Beach has beautiful sunset views, I admit that the beach is not so great. Said Beach is definitely a lot more beautiful so we go here if we want to go swimming.
Poblacion
We also dropped by the Poblacion to visit the town center, and said hello to the carabaos. We also visited the market to buy some things we needed and we ended up buying some fruits, and bread for breakfast, too.
Restaurants:
There was only one other family checked in when we arrived, but many people come and go to the restaurant. Can’t blame them, the food is actually really delicious and not super expensive. Although, Kevin is not a fan of the burgers. We ate most of our meals here and I drank a lot of milk tea as well. I don’t even drink a lot of milk tea in Manila, so this is definitely a vacation thing. LOL. I also got Kevin into milk tea.
We also had lunch in one of the restaurants in Poblacion. Too bad, I have I couldn’t remember the name and it’s also not on Google Maps! It’s crazy that I didn’t even take any photos here. My meal was actually really good. I ordered a shawarma and coconut shake. Kevin had a ceviche, that was still too spicy for him.
This is the last part of my trip with Kevin last September. I find it so funny that it took me this long to complete this series. Kevin and I are actually going on another trip next week to Bali. I love making new memories with Kevin to places I have been to before and also experiencing and exploring new places with him. ^^
Ending this blog post with an Instagram Reel. LOL.
