Ardent Hibok-Hibok Spring Resort of Mambajao, Camiguin

Ardent Hibok-Hibok Spring Resort is one of the known site in Camiguin for both local and foreign tourists. I believe it is because of its calming effect it can give to an individual.  A visit to ardent is a great way to release stress after a day or week of work.  While backpackers and adventurers will surely love soaking in this hot spring after their long travel, island exploration and adventure in the Island of Camiguin.

Ardent Hibok-Hibok Spring Resort is a natural hot spring heated by Mt Hibok Hibok, an active volcano in the country. It is located at the foot of Mt Hibok-Hibok, Mambajao, Camiguin and this natural hot spring can reach up to 40 °C in terms of water temperature.

Ardent Hibok-Hibok Spring Resort offers...

40 °C may sound pretty intense to others but not all pools here have the same temperature. There are 6 pools in Ardent with different water temperature so I am sure you'll find a pool that will suit on your standards. All 6 pools are connected to one another however they are layered or in a form of a falls so one can still identify each of the 6 pools. I find the top most layer as the hottest and the lower layer the moderate one (I couldn't say it is cold).

Mini fall that connects one pool to another

[Relaxation + bonding time] Edward, Yap and Baron

Ardent Hibok-Hibok Spring Resort is operating 24 by 7 therefore people can visit the place anytime they want. How cool is that? Aside from that, Ardent is a smoke free vicinity so please refrain from lighting your cigarettes during your stay here. The only smoke I saw during my visit in Ardent were the smokes emitted by the water due to its water temperature. As I am talking with Ardent's vicinity, let me take this chance to commend the caretakers of this place. Aside from the fallen leaves that is just natural because the place is covered with tall trees and plants, I didn't noticed any trash or waste in the place. Kudos!

Lower pools of Ardent (Photo from Thea Isabel Velasco)

Upper pools of Ardent (Photo from Thea Isabel Velasco)

If you're looking for accommodation in Camiguin, Ardent also offers affordable rooms and cottages. Since we just stayed there for a couple of hours, we only availed a nipa hut for our shed. A regular size hut with table costs us 70 pesos which is good for 3 hours. But if you'll be in a larger group, they also have a family size hut for 150 pesos for the first 3 hours as well. 10 pesos per hour will be added for the excess of 3 hours. They also have grill station at 20 pesos.

I haven't checked their rooms personally but here are the ratings of their rooms:
Single Rooms w/ AC (good for 2 pax) - 1,200 pesos/day
Family Rooms w/ AC (good for 5 pax) - 2,750 pesos/day
Dormitory Type  Rooms w/ AC (good for 7 pax) - 3,080 pesos/day
** Additional bed for single, family and dorm rooms - 175 pesos/day

I believe these are some of the accommodations at Ardent

I really recommend visiting this place. Especially after a long drive, travel or adventure in the island of Camiguin. A nice way to relax those muscles and also your mind.

Breakdown of Expenses:
Entrance Fee - 30 PhP (adult rate)
Regular size hut - 170 PhP / 9 persons (our group number) = 19 PhP per pax

Sibadan Fish Cage of Port Lamon, Hinatuan - Surigao del Sur

After a long drive from Butuan City to Hinatuan and by that I mean 4 hours straight drive, my friend, Byron, and I were searching for an accommodation/hotel to settle for an overnight stay. During that time, we have 2 factors that we need to consider in a hotel we're looking for. What are they? First, it should be affordable and cheap. We were only two in this Surigao del Sur trip and having a fancy hotel was too costly for backpackers like us. Second, it should be near the Enchanted River. In our itinerary, we planned to spend the next day at Enchanted River. Therefore, we need an accommodation that is near the place to save time in terms of travelling. So what we did were to ask the locals of Hinatuan for some advice. We told them the 2 factors I stated above and they recommended us to try out Sibadan Fish Cage.

Sibadan Fish Cage is a popular side trip in Hinatuan. Simply because it is near the Enchanted River. It is reputed as a floating restaurant in Port Lamon Bay that serves fresh seafood dishes to their customers but what we didn't know is that they also offer lodging rooms. As we heard that from the locals, we finally decided to go to Sibadan Fish Cage and spent the first night of our Surigao del Sur visit there.

The equation: 3 Persons + 1 motorcycle + baggage + rough road + 12KM = a worth it ride

How to get there?
From Bancasi Airport, ride a jeepney going to Langihan Premium Terminal. As you arrive at the terminal, look for the bus with a signboard of Mangagoy. Travel time is about 4 to 5 hours which costs 210 pesos. There are also vans available there that offer cheaper transfer. We avail the van instead of taking a bus and bargain its price with the van conductor. At the end, it only costs us 180 pesos going to Hinatuan. Just give your driver a heads up that you are going to Enchanted River. You will be dropped at the crossing going to Enchanted River where you will be renting a habal-habal (a motorcycle). It is the only public transportation going to Enchanted River so don't be picky. Habal-Habal rental costs 200 pesos/motorcycle. It is a 12km bumpy ride so be prepared and just enjoy the view going there. It is also a perfect time to ask question from your Habal-habal driver the must visit places in Hinatuan. From our talked with our driver, he told us that we can have island hopping at Port Lamon Bay. So we have an addition to our itinerary the next day. From Enchanted River, ride a pump boat going to Sibadan Fish Cage. The fare is 160 pesos per hour/boat.

Sibadan Fish Cage of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur

The location of Sibadan Fish Cage is in the middle of Port Lamon Bay so expect poor signal during your stay. Going back... As we land at Sibadan, we were approached by a smiling attendant. We ask for lodging and she gave us a tour and show us their rooms. Their rooms are really cheap. We got a room that is good for two for only 300 pesos. Though it is a fan room without a personal comfort room, we still find it fair enough on the money we spent and it's spacious for two people. By the way, there is a 5 Php entrance fee for non-lodging visitors.

Docking area of Sibadan Fish Cage

After putting our things in the room, it's time to check the place and have some chill time. We found Sibadan Fish Cage a plain and a simple place. It is a resort made of kawayan and woods in the middle of the bay. Fresh air and away from city noise. Perfect place for relaxation. Just imagine during a night stay here.

More rooms...

At the center of Sibadan lies a large pond/aquarium. The only amenities of this place that I could think of are fishing and snorkeling. Customers may do fishing and snorkeling to get their freshly sea creature cooked by the staff of Sibadan. Price of the catch will be determined by weighing in all the catch of a certain customer. After the weigh in, the attendant will suggest you what kind of dish they can do with your catch. You may also ask them if you have something in mind. Cook charge is 30 Php per dish. Cheap isin't it? Alternative to fishing and snorkeling is buying seafood straight from them. Sibadan sells wide variety of seafood. Just pick and tell them what kind of dish do you want to do with it. Us, we just brought 1 kilo of "Kasag" (small crabs) for ONLY 50 pesos and 1/4 kilo of Dano fish for 120 pesos. We requested to make a sweet and spicy Kasag and "sinabawan" for the fish. There's also a sari-sari store in Sibadan which sells canned goods, mineral water, alcoholic beverages, etc...

Other visitors of Sibadan that day. Fishing time!

Our dinner. Yum!

The only con that I found on Sibadan was there bathing water. I believe it is also a beach water so your soap, shampoo, facial wash will not bubble as you take a bath. Hahahaha. Overall, our stay at Sibadan has been a great experience. Lodging in the middle of the bay is an experience I didn't imagine on this trip.

Breakdown of Expenses:
Bus (Butuan Terminal - Hinatuan, Enchanted River) - 180.00 PhP
Habal Habal (Crossing - Enchanted River) - 200.00 PhP / 2 = 100.00 PhP per pax
Pump Boat (Enchanted River - Sibadan Fish Cage) - 160.00 PhP per hour / 2 = 80.00 PhP per pax
Fan Room (good for 2) - 300.00 PhP / 2 = 150.00 PhP per pax
Kasag (crab) - 50.00 Php (1 kilo) /2 = 25.00 Php per pax
Mang Tomas Sauce = 45 PhP (1 bottle) / 2 = 22.50 PhP per pax
Dano (a fish name) - 120.00 Php (1/4 kilo) / 2 = 60.00 PhP per pax
Cooking charge - 30.00 PhP (for kasag and fish) / 2 = 15.00 PhP per pax
Service Charge - 48.00 PhP / 2 = 24.00 PhP per pax
Mineral water - 30.00 PhP (1 liter) x 2  = 60.00 PhP / 2 = 30.00 PhP per pax
Nescafe Coffee & Nestea Iced tea - 15.00 PhP each
Rice - 10.00 PhP
Hard boiled egg - 15.00 PhP

Lola Tekla's Beach Resort of Laiya, Batangas

This trip is actually unexpected. The original plan was to go to Puerto Galera with my officemates. Unfortunately, the weather didn't permit us and so we had to think for an alternative route. We're in Batangas Port, stranded and feeling hopeless because there were no trip going to Galera that day due to a bad weather condition. I hate that LPA building up that day! Good thing we were able to use our smart phones and search for a good spot in Batangas where we can spend our weekend getaway.  We traveled for 3 hours already and turning back will be and will always be our last resort. After a couple of arguments and lay back moments in Batangas Port, we finally made up our mind -- Laiya, Batangas it is.

We chose Laiya, Batangas because there are tons of positive feedback about how beautiful this place is. Most specially its beach part.  Creamy sand, enticing clear water, water adventures/activities, and lots of resorts to choose from. These factors made Laiya, Batangas a perfect place for us who were unprepared for this change of plan.

Personal chat? Lol (Photo from Thea Velasco)

As we land on Laiya, Batangas, the beach of Laiya didn't fail to 'wow' us. Our disappointment on our Galera trip just fade away and all we can think off that time was to get a nice place to stay in. Budget friendly, lesser crowd, fun activities, accessibility to market place, and lots of freebies. These are the qualifications we wanted as we scout for a resort. Then we found Lola's Beach Resort. A public resort in Laiya, Batangas that almost fulfilled our qualifications. Trivia: Lola is a local term for grandmother. The resort is called Lola Beach Resort because the owner of this place is already a grandmother - named, Lola Tekla.

Serves as our home for an overnight (Photo from Lola Beach Resort FB Page)

Lola Beach Resort is a non-private resort so there is no entrance fee implemented in this place. Aside from that, they have 5 rooms to choose from which can accommodate large group. We were 9 in the group and we chose Room #4 to spent an overnight. It costs 5,500 Php per night which includes a refrigerator, bathroom, kitchen with stove, dinning table, spacious receiving area, and (1) AC room with 4 beds that can accommodate 3 persons each bed. A free large nipa hut near the beach was granted to us as a freebie. Yeah!

This is how it looks like as you enter Room #4 (Photo from Lola Beach Resort FB Page)

The are 4 beds in the AC room and 1 bed outside of it (Photo from Lola Beach Resort FB Page)

Small bathroom and our free hut! (Photo from Lola Beach Resort FB Page)

There is also a Sari-sari store inside the vicinity of Lola Beach Resort which is good if you need something like soap, shampoo, canned goods, alcoholic beverages, etc. Another key factor why we chose Lola is because of its accessibility to wet and dry market. Since the room we got has a stove, might as well cook our own food instead of buying ready-to-eat food which is not ideal if we wanted to save money. Fresh fish, chicken, pork, and vegies are available in a market nearby. It is just a 5-10 mins walk away from Lola Beach Resort and it is hard to miss out.

We don't have any problem with the staff of Lola. They gave us a warm welcome and were all friendly. Lola Tekla even visited us in the house. Even at her age, she still manage to walk and checked out her guests. They also let us borrowed some kitchenware like plates, spoons and forks, knife, frying pan, etc...

After doing the grocery that we will be using for our whole stay, we decided to have a swim. I don't know if it is normal but the temperature of the water there is a bit warm. However, the water level there is gradually changing from shallow to deep so it is also ideal for non-swimmers. Apart from splashing on the water, we also had some fun games like creating sand castles. We divided the group into 2 to compete and let our creativity shine! Lol.

Fun time in the water (Photo from Thea Velasco)

D' Castle builders. Which is better? (Photo from Thea Velasco)

never mind... hahaha (Photo from Thea Velasco)

It's time for some water activity. One of the facilitator of Lola Beach Resort offers us a banana boat ride. Note: Standard fee for this ride is 1500 Php for 15 mins and is good for 5 pax. Only 6 of us are willing to try the Banana Boat so we divided the group into 2 again. One group decided that they will only go for a plain ride while the other group wants the extreme ride wherein the Banana Boat will turn sideways and riders will be toss into the air (of course, I am included on the 2nd option). It was my first Banana boat ride and I really do had fun. After that, we were also offered to try the boat ride going in the snorkeling part of Laiya. Again, the weather/rain stops us from doing that. We didn't take risk. Safety first.

Photo op before the water activity starts (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Team Extreme and Team Unexpected Fall (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Love the part when we are being toss in the air! Thrill part of the Banana Boat ride (Photo from Thea Velasco)

After almost 5 hours in the water, Jean and Ate Cath (the cooks) called us for dinner. It was one of the best dinner I have ever had! It was just a grilled fish, grilled liempo, plain rice and Ferdie's sawsawan recipe but it was a perfect combo! We all ate like a construction worker and seems like there's no tomorrow. I can still imagine how good it was as I blog this entry. Yum!

After the dinner, everybody washed up while others take some short naps before we continue on our socials. We drink all night till dawn and laugh. We also celebrated Jean's birthday. By the way I would also like to mention Donna because she took the responsibility for washing our dishes for this whole trip :] Thanks Donna!

The chef, the assistant chef, the dishwasher and the lazy boy (Photo from Thea Velasco)

The next day, we were all surprised to see the big waves. I actually planned to have a boat ride that time unfortunately it was really impossible. Just simply refer on the photos below to see how dangerous those big waves are. Having said so, instead we took that chance to have a photo op.

Big waves at my back! (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Next time we'll make sure that the weather condition is clear from LPA (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Polaroid shots from Jean's Instax camera (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Our most perfect jump shot that day...  (Photo from Thea Velasco)

Trying to catch viewer's attention but Claire outstage me here. Aw

We left Lola Beach Resort at around 3:00 PM. One of the caretaker called a jeepney that took us to Alps Terminal Bus and costs 35 Php per pax. Even though it seems like everything was against this trip, we still manage to enjoy and relax away from our busy life in the city -- not bad!

Breakdown of Expense:
Accommodation: 5,500 Php (divided into 9 persons)
Banana Boat: 1500 Php (divided into 6 persons)
Food: 250 Php (group contribution) good for 4 meals
Pasalubong: 300 Php (makapuno, espasol, etc..)
Transportation: estimate of 450 Php Two way (can't give you a breakdown since we
originated in Batangas port and we just rented a private van from there)

Lola Beach Resort
Balacbacan, Laiya Aplaya, SanJuan Batangas
Contact # Alex Atienza: 0917-3643602 | Ronald Atienza: 0919-6807597

Boracay de Cavite - Marine Base Beach Resort of Ternate, Cavite

Security while having fun on the beach. That's how I would describe my experience in Boracay de Cavite Beach Resort which is also called as Marine Base Beach Resort. Yes, you read it right. Boracay de Cavite Beach Resort is situated inside a Philippine Marine Base found in Ternate, Cavite. So expect to see trainees and people in uniform while you are in the area. Having said that, you are guaranteed that this place is safe. So just enjoy!

How to get there?
From Baclaran, take a Saulog bus or a mini bus going to Ternate, Cavite. You'll be spending 85 Php if you take an AC bus and 70 Php for riding a mini bus. This will be a long drive so just charge yourself up before the actual swim. An estimate of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of traveling time before you reach Ternate bus terminal. From the bus terminal, you need to hire a jeepney because there are no public transportations available going to Boracay de Cavite. A 22 seater jeepney can be hired for 2,000 Php - 3,000 Php. This price is already round trip and may vary depending on how good you are in barking. So goodluck! As for those who'll be travelling in private vehicle, take the Coastal Road and go straight to Cavitex. Prepare 24 Php for the Coastal toll fee and 65 Php for the Cavitex toll fee. From Noveleta Exit, drive all the way going to Ternate. Before you reach Ternate, you'll be passing by the towns of Tanza and Naic. Note: Monitor your gas tank gauge because the most accessible gas station to Marine Base is in the city proper of Ternate. You'll know you're in the right direction if you got to see the jump off point of Mt Pico de Loro, Puerto Azul and Caylabne Bay Resort. Just drive until you reach the Main Gate of the Marine Base (which is hard to miss).

Main Gate of Marine Base

From the Main Gate, prepare your entrance fee. 100 Php is charge for a day swim and 200 Php for an overnight stay.  For those who'll be staying overnight, rooms (700 Php) and cottages (350 - 450 Php) are available in the beach side but if you want to cut from these fees you may bring your own tent and just set-up a camp. There's also a pay parking there - Motorcycle: 10 Php (day) / 20 Php (night), Car: 50 Php (day) / 100 Php (night). You need to go back again to your vehicle after paying all those fees because the beach part of this camp is still 2-3 kilometers away from the Main Gate.

Computing our fees :]

As we reach the beach area of Marine Base, I noticed the creamy (not white) and fine texture of its sand. And thought to myself that maybe it is one of the factor why this place is called, the Boracay of Cavite - Just maybe. The area is amazing. Never thought that Cavite has this kind of beach. Aside from the fine sand, it is surrounded by tall stone walls with waves splashing on it (like the one I see in the movies). Most importantly, the area and the water of Boracay de Cavite is clean.

Nice sand and calm water

We brought our own tent

Aside from the tent, we also rented a hut

It is also recommendable for family outings and reunions. Kids will definitely enjoy Boracay de Cavite because the water level of this beach doesn't change drastically. So, kids and teens can enjoy their swim for as long as they know their limits.

Ate Rain and her cute kids

Swimming time!

Visitors can also play beach volleyball. There is a dedicated place for this sport in the mid part of the area and I believe it is for free of use. Just bring your own ball. It is also ideal for other games and team building activities provided that it has a wide area to roam around.

Playball!

A Sari-Sari store is also available in the area. So if you forgot to bring chips and toiletries, you can buy things there. The comfort room is OK. All covered up and there's no problem with the water supply.

Look how beautiful this place is...

There's not so much amenities in Boracay de Cavite provided that it is a Marine base after all, but I truly enjoyed my visit there. The water and the view is enough for me to say that others should also stop by Boracay de Cavite - Marine Base Beach Resort.

Pack up! EOD... aw (me and my girlfriend)

Before we left Boracay de Cavite - Marine Base Beach Resort...

Breakdown of Expense:
AC Bus (Baclaran to Ternate, round trip) - 170 Php
Jeepney Rental (Ternate to Marine Base, round trip) - 2,000 Php (good for 22 people)
Entrance Fee - 100 Php
Parking Fee - 50 Php (divided by number of people)
Cottage - 450 Php (divided by number of people)
Food - **.** Php

Update!!! (March 3, 2014)

from Ehrm.Bas (Thank you for giving me and my other readers an update! =])

Some were asking for contact numbers, or how you can make reservations.

The answer is they don't entertain reservations in the Ternate Marine Base, and they don't have a landline that they'll give away. However if you have a party of 20 or so people, you can make reservations by going to Marine Barracks Rudiardo Brown (Marine Base Manila) in Fort Bonifacio, Makati. Ask the MP guarding the gate where MC7 is. That is where you can make reservations (you have to pay there also), and they'll be the ones who will contact the personnel in Marine Barracks Gregorio Lim in Ternate.

And if anyone wants to ask the "is it still open to the public" question in year 2015 or 2016, just go to the Marine Barracks in The Fort described above and ask the personnel there.

Some were asking if they will still be allowed to enter the premises if they leave Manila at night.

The gate of Marine Barracks Gregorio Lim is only open from 5AM to 10PM, daily. The MP won't let you in outside those hours. Make sure you have a reliable vehicle if going there alone as there are no street lights in the road going up, and almost no settlements - though the road is very nice.

Additional information:

• There are two stores, and one of them accepts cooking service, also from 5AM to 10PM, for a modest fee.
• Signal on Smart is erratic, at best you'll get 2 bars of 3G signal, then sometimes you get dropped to GPRS or 2G.
• Signal on Globe while on the beach front is awesome. I was consistently getting HSPA/HSPA+ signals while in there and encountered no problems uploading 3MB photos.

BORACAY DE CAVITE IS CLOSED UNTIL MAY 16,2014