Moalboal, Cebu: Basdaku and Pescador Island

Spontaneous unplanned trips are always the best. The adrenaline rush of going somewhere random by impulse is a perfect weekend getaway.

It was a gloomy afternoon, the streets were damp from the rain the evening before, however, it didn’t stop us from hopping into a bus to Moalboal to spend a day at the beach. The Southern part of Cebu is proud of its beautiful white sands beaches, splendid waterfalls and breath-taking adventures. An example of which is the whale shark watching/swimming in Oslob which is locally and internationally renowned.

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Moalboal is another tourist magnet in Cebu. For years, locals and foreign visitors love the spot because of the numerous water activities to revel in. As a peninsula, island hopping, dolphin watching, snorkeling, sardine run, diving, swimming are some of the water activities available for everyone’s pleasure.

Location:

Located at the Southern part of Cebu, Moalboal is 89 kilometers away from Cebu City, between the towns of Alcantara and Badian. It takes 3 hours bus ride from the city, depending on traffic.

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How to get there:

Take a jeepney or bus from your location in Cebu to Cebu South Bus Terminal
Jeepney fare: 7.00
Tax fare: 40.00 plus 4.00 every 4km.
From Cebu South Bus Terminal take a bus to Moalboal via Barili or van
Bus Fare: Non-AC – 100.00 – 115.00
With AC: 120.00 – 150.00
Van: 100.00 – 120.00

Ask the bus driver to drop you off Moalboal’s town center bus stop, from there, motorcycles and tricycles are available to take you to your destination. Discuss fare with the driver, usually they will charge 100.00 – 150.00 pesos or less.

There are few locations in Moalboal where you can choose to stay depending on what activities you want to enjoy and on how budget conscious you are.

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Basdaku is known for its long stretch 2-km white sand beach with turquoise waters. The usual crowd here are locals and few tourists enjoying a great swim. However, Basdaku gets packed oftentimes because of its convenience and less pricey accommodation. For backpackers and budget travelers, bringing of tent is permissible.  Rooms per night range from 1000 – 2500 a night with options of AC or non-AC. Souvenir shops, food stalls, carenderias, sari-sari stores and cold red horse beer with karaoke are spread everywhere in Basdaku.

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Panagsama has the most (expensive) resorts, bars, restaurants and dive shops. Since this location is quite expensive, the crowd are mostly composed of international tourists and well off local travelers. If this place is your chill, accommodations are available online for advance reservation or walk in at your preferred resort.

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Accommodations:

Turtle Bay Dive Resort
Address: Tongo, Basdiot, Moalboal, 6032 Cebu, Philippines
Phone: +63 917 323 2638

Sumisid Lodge
Address: Panagsama Beach, Basdiot, Cebu, Philippines
Phone: +63 32 406 5980

Savedra Beach Bungalows
Address: Panagsama Beach, Moalboal, 6032 Cebu, Philippines
Phone: +63 32 474 3228

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It was already late in the afternoon when we hit Moalboal’s town center, so obviously there was nothing much to do aside from sight-seeing and left island hopping for the next day. We had a free accommodation, (thank you to my companions’ friend) we didn’t have to worry about where we needed to stay that night. It was my second time in Moalboal but I didn’t have the chance to check out Panagsama the first time I visited. Glad we were able to borrow a motorbike and stroll around town that evening. I was first introduced to the bars and the night life in Panagsama Beach; it was overpriced so we went to town where there were cheaper options for food and cold beer.

The next day was the fun day, while swimming in Basdaku; we met a boatman who was looking for customers to Pescador Island, a famous diving spot. It was not part of our itinerary, (again another unplanned trip) but we took the opportunity to experience another adventure.

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We got a large boat good for 15 passengers all by ourselves. From the shores of Basdaku, we went to watch thousand of fishes; I think it was the location of the famous sardines run. After swimming with the fishes, we chased sea turtles. It was actually sad, when the boatman said the there were plenty of sea turtles around that area but because of tourists ignorance and selfishness, the turtles left and went to the deeper parts of the sea.

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We were swimming for a while looking for the fragile creatures, we were lucky to have seen one swimming from afar but quickly disappeared. On our way to Pescador Island, we en route to see the dolphins. It was amazing. The dolphins were really friendly; they were flipping while we were cheering for them as they were swimming near our boat.

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We continued to Pescador Island after enjoying the dolphin show.  The island was small without a sandbar.  And frustrating to say,  I have seen dying corals while swimming. However, Moalboal has been protective to its marine life resources that the local government is implementing a strict regulation against marine life abuse.

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Before we went back to Basdako, we had our last stop in the coral sanctuary. It was a pleasant sight under water since the area is protected and the corals were surviving better compared to other location we have been.

Pescador Island Tour

Price: 2500.00 maximum of 15 people.
Contact Number: 0947-552-2960
Look for Kuya Melvin

  • Thousands of Fish (sardine run)
  • Coral Sanctuary
  • Sea Turtle Watching
  • Dolphin Watching
  • Snorkeling in Pescador Island
  • Swimming gears (snorkel and life jacket)

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I am helping Kuya Melvin, the boatman who took us to the tour. He was really nice and reliable. We were not planning for the Pescador Island Tour but I felt he really needed food on the table for his family. If you are planning to visit Pescador Isand, contact Kuya Melvin.

Please do not haggle (seriously), Kuya Melvin gets very little from the 2500.00 pesos that you will pay for the tour because he doesn’t own the boat so he needs to pay for the rent, taxes and gas. He also has to split the remaining amount with his assistant.

The tour will take 4 hours to complete. Bring the necessary like food, water, camera, sun block and ect.

Enjoy swimming!

2 Comments Add yours

  1. karenwee says:

    Hi, may we ask permission if we can share your post in I Choose Cebu page? We would love to share information on how to get to the beautiful places in Cebu and we found your blog helpful for tourists coming over Cebu. Thank you.

    Like

    1. my_littlebackpack_adventures says:

      Sure, you definitely can. 🙂

      Like

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