THE VISAYAN TRAIL | Siquijor Divers

The Visayan Trail

The Visayan Trail is a tourist route through the center of the Philippines, known as the Visayas.

The Vasayas are a group of islands in the central Philippines, with Cebu City (The 2nd largest city in the country) in the center of them. This trail is ideally completed over at least 2 weeks to truly get a taste of each place. You can do the trail in either a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction and you can simplify the trail if you have less time by reducing the number of islands, you visit. You can also start the trail from any point. A couple of examples would be:

1. You may want to do the entire trail. You can fly into Cebu City from most major airports in the Philippines or certain foreign airports (Cebu and Bohol airports are international airports and when completed, Siquijor will also be an international airport). From there, you catch a 2 hour ferry to Bohol. Once you are ready to move on, you catch a 1hour

40minute ferry to Siquijor. After there, you catch a 40 minute ferry to Dumaguete. From Dumaguete (Sibulan port), you catch a ferry to the bottom of Cebu (Liloan port). From there you can catch a bus or organise private transportation to Oslob to swim with the Whale sharks or Moalboal. After your time there, it is again a bus or private transport back to Cebu City. How long you spend at each location is up to you, but as a general rule, 3-four days on each island would be my recommended minimum to really get to see and experience the place.

2. You may only want to do part of the trail and spend more time at each place. An example of this could be as follows. You could fly into Dumaguete from Manilla. From there you could spend time in Duin or head across to Siquijor on the ferry (40 minutes by fast boat or 2 hours by car/passenger ferry). Once you are ready to move on from Siquijor, you can catch the ferry to Bohol (1hour and 40 minutes). From Bohol you can fly back to Manilla or certain overseas destinations. This route means you are staying at least 4-5 days in each location.

Let’s have a look at each of the locations and what they offer.

Siquijor

Siquijor is the jewel in the crown of the Visayan trail. Not just for the diving, but for everything else it offers also. Don’t take my word for it. The following is taken from another site, with no connection to us at all.

“I’ve been to a lot of islands in the Philippines, but Siquijor holds a special place in my heart. It is the ideal destination for travelers looking to surround themselves in nature with just the right amount of tourist infrastructure. It is also an incredibly affordable place to go with the friendliest locals”. Source - https://suzionthemove.com/siquijor-a-guide-to-this-tiny-island-in-the-philippines/

Fast Facts:

Siquijor is a relatively small island (It takes around 2 hours to circumnavigate the island by road).
The main tourist area is San Juan (located on the south west side of the island and about 10 minutes from the main port of Siquijor. This are has a wide variety of hotels, resorts, bars and restaurants.
There are at least 10 recognised waterfalls, with most being 5 – 30 minutes from San Juan.
Siquijor is known as Isle Del Fuego (Island of fire). This is due to the fireflies that inhabit the island (Not volcanoes)
The island is also known as the mystic island as there are many Wok Wok’s (Traditional healers) that still practice the ancient ways of healing.
The island has a very relaxed feel and is not blown out by tourism like a number of other Philippine islands

have been. It actually reminds me of the 1st time I went to Bali in 1993.

Siquijor has amazing diving and snorkelling. Due to the fact that it is surrounded by other islands, it has avoided the damage that has been caused by typhoons to reefs in other areas. The coral in Siquijor is on par with the best I have seen in the Philippines. The other bonus for Siquijor is the amount of turtles we have here. It is not unusual to see up to 10 turtles on a dive. The visibility is generally around 20m and the water temperature varies between 26°C and 29°C all year round. The best part is that all the dives site are so close. Our best dive sites are generally 5 – 10 minutes by boat at most. Siquijor Divers Center also offers shore dives straight from the beach at the dive center.

Other than diving and the other features already listed on the island, there are many other attractions, such as beautiful beaches like Paliton, Tubod and Salandong, a ride or drive through the mountains, viewing the sunset from the beach, underground caves and underground rivers, scenic views over the island and so on.

Bohol / Panglao

Bohol and Panglao are two islands, connected by bridge. Bohol is generally, the quieter island (Other than the capital, Tagbilaran), while Panglao is the tourist island and is home to the largest tourist area on both islands, Alona Beach.
Alona beach is roughly a 1km long beach with wall to wall bars, restaurants and hotels from one end to the other. This beach has been described at ‘Little Borocay’ by many people.
There are other beaches on the island such as White Beach, Danao, Talisay, Dumuluan, etc, that are less touristy but most will have nice resorts on or close to the beach.
Other than scuba diving, Bohol is famous for the Chocolate Hills and tarsiers (a small primate that looks like a miniature monkey)
Located off the coast of Panglao are Balicasag and Pamilacan. Both are known for fantastic diving, giving rise to around 100 dive centers in Panglao alone.
With an international airport only 5 minutes from Alona beach, getting to Bohol / Panglao from Manila, Borocay, El Nido, Davao and selected overseas destinations is very easy.

Fast Facts:

Alona Beach can get quite busy. If you are looking for night life, a large variety of food and drink choices and resorts on the sand, this is the place for you. If you wish for a quieter holiday, there are other options nearby.
You can fly into Bohol and are only 5 minutes from the beach. You can also catch a ferry from Cebu (2 hours), Siquijor (1 hour and 40 minutes) or Dumaguete (2 hours) to Tagbilaran and from there it is around 30 minutes by road to Alona Beach. There are

If you are looking for a lively island with a lot of nightlife, bars, restaurants and a huge variety of accommodation options you will love Alona Beach. If you want access to these things, but prefer to get away from the crowds check out some of the other areas of Panglao and Bohol.

other boat options available such as going from Alona to Oslob (Cebu) to see the whale sharks.

Anda Beach, in Bohol is becoming known for diving and beautiful beaches and is a lot quieter than Panglao island.
There are now whale shark tours in Bohol.
Only 150 people are allowed to dive at Balicasag each day, so check with your dive center when booking.

Cebu

Cebu is the center of the Visayas and contains the largest city in the area and the 2nd largest in the country, Cebu City. This city has an international airport with flights to and from all parts of the Philippines and many foreign destinations, including, Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, China, Korea and Japan.
Cebu is a long, relatively narrow island with many of the tourist destinations in the North or the South of the island, which is generally around a 4 hour road trip to get to from Cebu City. In the North, you have places like Malapascua (known for thresher sharks), Bantayan (known for white sandy beaches and a relaxed atmosphere) and Camotes Islands (known for exploring and relaxing). In the Southern area, you have places like Moalboal (known for the sardine run and waterfalls) and Oslob (known for diving and snorkelling with the whale sharks and waterfalls).

Fast Facts:

Cebu City is the starting point for most people when visiting the Vasayan region of the Philippines.
The city is extremely busy, with traffic being a major factor when transiting anywhere.
The airport and the main ferry port (Pier 1) around 8km apart, however travel times between the two can range from 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on traffic conditions.
Cebu City has a number or large shopping malls, with Ayala being the largest, having 680 shops and services in the mall alone. This makes Cebu City a great place for a shopping holiday.

Most of the tourist areas in the North are islands and Bantayan and Malapascua Islands take 30 minutes by ferry from the mainland (the ports are around 4 hours by road from Cebu City). Comotes Islands are accessible by a 1 hour and 3 minute ferry from Cebu City.
Moalboal is famous for the sardines the stay close to the coastline and be seen by diving or snorkelling straight off the beach. It is also famous for Kawasan Falls, which is around 30 minutes down the coast.
Oslob is famous for the whale sharks and you can snorkel or dive with them each day until 12pm, lunchtime. They also have waterfalls and canyoneering nearby.

Overall, the Island of Cebu has a lot to offer, however, for me Cebu City is not a great holiday destination as I don’t like big cities, full of chaotic traffic, lots of noise and just too busy. For those who love shopping and a great variety of food and drinks from all over the world, you would love the place. Cebu also, has a lot of history dating back to the Spanish rule and Ferdinand Magellan, which can be seen in buildings and monuments throughout the city.

Negros

Negros is a large island, located to the West and Southwest of Cebu. It is split into 2 parts, known as Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental. The largest tourist areas are located towards the bottom part of the island, in Negros Oriental. The capital and largest city in this area is Dumaguete, which has a population of around 134,000 in 2024. As Dumaguete is a city, it has a lot of shopping, bars, restaurants and hotels, but no real tourist beaches in the city itself. There is also a large expat community here, meaning a lot of western style places to eat and drink.
30 minutes to the south of Dumaguete is the main tourist destination in the area, called Duin. Duin is famous for diving and snorkelling, especially muck diving, although it also has nice reef diving also. This is one of the few places in the area with black sand beaches, caused by volcanic eruptions long ago (don’t worry, the volcano is currently classed as being in a ‘Calm state’ with little chance of eruption). Another well known tourist area is Valencia, located around 30 minutes West of Dumaguete. This area is known for its waterfalls and thermal pools. Just of the coast of Negros is Apo Island and many people do day trips there from Duin (You can also do day trips from Siquijor).

Fast Facts:

Dumaguete is not considered a tourist town and does not have large beach resorts, however these can be found to the North and South of Dumaguete, in places such as Duin
There are 2 ports in the Dumaguete precinct. Sibulan Port (the gateway between Cebu and Dumaguete) and the main Dumaguete Port (the gateway between Dumaguete and Siquijor and Bohol). The 2 ports are around 10 minutes from each other and have busses, tricycles and cars running between them all day. If you are intending on transiting through Dumaguete to

Living in Siquijor, Dumaguete is the go to place for shopping and general business, however I don’t spend a lot of time there because, as I mentioned before, I am not a big fan of cities and Dumaguete is definitely a city with the noise, traffic and smells of a city, although not as big and busy as Cebu.

Siquijor or Bohol from Cebu, simply get of the ferry at Sibulan and catch any of the above transports to the main port for your ferry to the other islands.

Dumaguete has its own airport with regular flights to and from Manila (1 hour 30 mins) and Cebu (50 minutes). Many people fly to Dumaguete to transit to Siquijor as it is only 40 minutes by fast craft between the two islands.
If staying in Dumaguete, check out the Rizal Boulevard (near the main port) and night markets. Also worth visiting are Mount Talinis and Pulangbato Falls.

SIQUIJOR DIVERS CENTER