Alegria-Badian/Kawasan Canyoneering Adventure

Up for a thrilling challenge in West Cebu?

First Challenge: 18 ft jump

After the 2nd (but lower) jump

Sky+Greens+Rocks+Water

Find out what you would do if you weren't afraid, and then do it! Canyoneering is one heck of an adventure for people looking for extreme water and land sports combined into one!

Badian Canyoneering Views

Badian Canyoneering Views

Beginning from upstream Kanlaob River of Alegria, and then ending in Kawasan Falls, Badian, this canyoneering activity would have your anticholinergic system in full throttle. You have to a hire a guide to help you throughout the adventure. Ours charged us for 1250 pesos per person, and met with us at Cebu South Bus Terminal, where we boarded the 7 am air-conditioned bus to Bato via Barili. The fare was 137 pesos for a regular paying adult, and 109 pesos for students (just present your ID). The ride took us 3 and a half hours. We stopped at the guide's house first where we changed our clothes, left our things for safe keeping, and took the PFD/life vest and hard hats for safety. Each of us rode a habal-habal towards the starting point where you have to register first, and then have a short trek towards the jump off site.

Before jumping to flow with the river current

Rocks and walls and perfectly clear cyan water

For the attire, I wore a long-sleeved rashguard paired with leggings/tights so that I didn't get grazed when bumping into rocks and trees, etc. But you could still wear T-shirts and shorts, or other sports attire. Wear a sturdy pair of trekking sandals or aqua shoes. I recommend going for aqua shoes because it fully covers your feet so that you don't have to worry about stepping over anything and hurting your feet. I was really comfortable all throughout the adventure and didn't have to worry about slipping or having any cuts. But I did get bruises after bumping into rocks, or after some minor slips along the way.

Crossing the stream

Squad Goals

The activity starts off with an ~18 ft dive into the river, followed by multiple jumps from different levels of rocks or cliffs, swimming along the river, crossing narrow passageways, braving the strong currents, and climbing over huge rocks. It usually lasts 4 to 5 hours, depending on the pace of your group.

Buwis buhay

~10 ft jump

Our group consisted of 4 girls with 2 guides. We began our adventure at 10 in the morning, and finished at Kawasan Falls by 3 in the afternoon. The last challenge was jumping off from an 18-20 ft jump off site just before you trek towards the 3rd level of the Kawasan Falls.

Dining area in Kawasan Falls (3rd level)

At the 3rd level of the Falls, there are wooden tables and chairs where you could enjoy your packed lunch or snacks. There is a small store that sells pancit canton, some bread, chips, hard-boiled eggs, and drinks.

You will then pass by the dam, and then trek towards the 2nd level of Falls where you could enjoy a Tarzan jump into the cool clear greenish water. They have concrete tables and chairs for dining, some stores, and comfort rooms.

Last push before the last (lower) jump

Photo after the last jump site before the long trek to Kawasan Falls

At last, you'll reach the 1st level of the Falls, which is the most commercialized part of the Falls, still having chairs and tables, stores, and comfort rooms. This is usually the most crowded level of the Falls, with the 3rd level having the least number of people.

Entrance to Kawasan Falls (1st level)

After the adventure, we had a quick lunch at a small carinderia beside the church at the entrance of Kawasan Falls. The simply cooked meals were priced around 35-50 pesos. We then went back to the guide's house to change and retrieve our things. Our transfer back to Cebu City was by riding a private van with a fare of 150 pesos per person. This time, the ride took only 2 hours and 30 minutes to get to the van terminal near Cebu South Bus Terminal.

Mini falls before the entrance to Kawasan Falls

 Costs of the day:
Bus fare to Badian: 137 pesos
Galore tours: 1250 pesos
Hard boiled egg snack (3rd level of Kawasan): 10 pesos
Lunch: 45 pesos
Van fare to Cebu: 150 pesos
TOTAL = 1592 pesos

Cebu City Tour

Wondering where to go to when visiting Cebu Island? For a short historic tour around the city, you may visit the following destinations.

Candles outside the Basilica

Start off at Magellan's Cross which is sandwiched in between the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño and the City Hall building. So that when you get here, you're already hitting 3 birds with one stone.

Magellan's Cross

The Magellan's Cross is just a small structure housing the cross that was said to have been erected by Magellan at the exact site. Travelers can go inside and look at the cross and the famous paintings that adorn the ceiling. Candle sellers would offer you candles which they would use as an offering while performing the "Sinulog" steps which would supposedly give you good luck and bless your petitions/prayers. Entrance is free.

Basilica Minore del Santo Niño

Courtyard inside the Basilica

Behind the cross is the entrance to Basilica Minore del Santo Niño, under the custody of the Augustinians. You can go inside to light a candle and say a prayer before entering the church, which was damaged by the earthquake that hit Cebu in 2014. Go inside and visit the image of Santo Niño, which is the oldest religious relic of the Philippines. This image was a gift from Magellan to Queen Juana during the baptism of the latter together with King Humabon in 1521. There is also a gorgeous courtyard inside the church beside the "Halik" to Santo Niño.

Inside Fort San Pedro

As you exit the church, turn left, and continue walking along Magallanes street. After 2 blocks, you'll see Plaza Independencia. Just beyond it is Fort San Pedro. A Spanish military defense structure, this destination has a small museum, and an open space in the middle which people can now rent to hold gatherings for different occasions. It is considered as the smallest and oldest triangular bastion of the country which used to serve as a defense against Muslim raiders. Many locals believe the existence of a rumored tunnel that runs from below the church up to the fort.

Fort San Pedro

From the Fort, you can hire either a calesa or a taxi to go to Colon, the oldest and shortest national street here in the Philippines. Named after Christopher Columbus, this street used to be the heart of the city's shopping and business activities.

Lapu-Lapu at Mactan Shrine

Then cross from Cebu City to Mactan Island via the new Marcelo Fernan Bridge. Visit the Mactan Shrine first. Built in honor of Lapu-Lapu, this shrine faces the site where this native leader defeated Portuguese conquerors led by Ferdinand Magellan during the Battle of Mactan. Entrance is free, but there is a 10-peso parking fee for those with vehicles. You could actually try to imagine the battle scenes occurring by the shore. Now, in the afternoons, you can usually spot some kids/teenagers gathering by the shore to do amateur skimboarding.

Club Ibiza

If you'd like to do hotel-hopping, continue along Punta Engaño Road towards Movenpick Hotel, then transfer to Shangri-La's Mactan Resort and Spa, or vice versa. Both hotels usually allow walk-ins to explore but not use their facilities. You could take a couple of photos, or in the case of Movenpick Hotel, you could visit Ibiza Beach Club, which has an entrance fee of 1000 pesos per person (consumable), and enjoy an afternoon of dining and or booze with a great view of the sea by the famous white nets of Ibiza. It is open from 11 am to MN for weekdays, and up to 2 am for Fridays and Saturdays. You can also feed the fishes.

Movenpick Hotel

You could have a quick bite at Movenpick's The Forum, or at Shangri-La's restaurants, and bars and lounges.

A quick stopover at a factory of handmade guitars or ukuleles can be done on the way back to the city. These factories are located in Abuno, Mactan. The most known of which is the Alegre Guitar Factory. They sell affordable but quality guitars and ukuleles.

Expect heavy traffic on the way back to the city, so be ready to go back on or before 5 in the afternoon.

Southern Cebu Adventure

Outside the city and located at the southern tip of Cebu island, Oslob is a treasure trove of adventures! Approximately 120 kilometers from Cebu City, Oslob is a municipality famous for the whale shark watching attraction, the Tumalog Falls, and Sumilon Island, among many others.

Road Trip to the South of Cebu

So for our third day in Cebu, we decided to take a trip to the South. We left Cebu City around 7 in the morning. On your way there, there are some stopovers you can take like the sandals market at Carcar, the torta cake at Argao, or the Carcar lechon! We stopped by Carcar public market to buy the famous Carcar lechon, known not only for its delicious lechon but also for its special salty sauce that is made from the juices extracted from the belly of the pig before it is grilled. One kilo of this heavenly dish is worth only 280 pesos! You can also buy puso or cooked rice wrapped in a triangular casing made up of woven coconut leaves, for only 10 pesos each.

Carcar Lechon

Carcar City Public Market

Orientation

We then continued our journey southward, with our first destination being the Whale Shark Watching attraction in Oslob. Swimming with the whale sharks would have to be the greatest highlight of Oslob! These gentle giants are hugely fascinating! Naturally, you would be scared to be near such gigantic creatures of the sea. But after seeing them, you'll want to extend the strictly imposed 30-minute watching time per visit. Local visitors are charged 300 pesos for those who will just stay at the boat and literally watch the whale sharks, while 500 pesos is but a small fee for having a chance to swim up close (about 4 meters) with the whale sharks. Visitors will first sign up on the logbook and be oriented regards rules when swimming with the whale sharks. Then, you have to pay the fee first before you get assigned to a boat with 2 guides who will maneuver the boat, and can also take your photos (don't worry, they are quite handy with the GoPro). You will then proceed to the site, and then swim/watch the whale sharks for 30 minutes. I swear, you would not be disappointed! Every peso spent, every dive we did when they were near to take a picture with them underwater, and every breath of air we inhaled when resurfacing, were all worth it!

Boats to ride towards the Whale Shark Watching spot

Swimming with the Whale Sharks

 After your precious time with the whale sharks is up, you may take a bath and change clothes in their public bathrooms, or go straight to Tumalog Falls to swim some more. During our visit, we finished changing clothes at around 15 minutes past 12 noon. So we opted to just have our lunch in one of the huts in Tumalog Falls, which was just about 15 minutes from the Whale Shark Watching attraction.

Shore at the Oslob Whale Shark Watching

You may ride a habal-habal towards the falls. Usually, the tourist buses park only at the bottom, and then you will be asked to ride the habal-habal, or your transportation would just drop you off at the entrance and then they'd park. Either way, when you get to the entrance, you have to pay 20 pesos for the entrance/environmental fee, and then have an option to walk the rest of the way to the falls or ride a habal-habal again for 25 pesos per ride.

Road towards the Tumalog Falls

Mind you, it can get really hot and humid, so you can walk towards the falls, and just ride a habal-habal on your way back, but not the other way around since it's going to be a hot uphill walk for you. There are small stores at the entrance where you can buy food and drinks. But be responsible for the disposal of your own trash if you plan on having some snacks or meals at the falls.

When we got to the falls, we immediately went to a vacant hut to have our very delicious Carcar Lechon lunch. And after a while, went up to be stunned by the amazing beauty of the Tumalog Falls. I swear it's beauty cannot be captured by photos. You really have to see it in person to be able to appreciate its magnificence.

Small pool by the entrance to Tumalog Falls

Tumalog Falls

It's a different kind of falls because the water has created some kind of military-cap looking stone formations at different points as it descends into a perfectly sky-blue pool of cool water.

Tumalog Falls and its sky blue pool

Tumalog Falls Panorama

 Since we no longer planned on swimming at the Falls, we just took some shots and enjoyed a couple more minutes of this blue tranquil spot, and then started heading back towards Cebu City. We planned on having a quick stopover at Simala-Lindogon Church at Sibonga, Cebu Island.

Simala-Lindogon Church Facade's Silhouette

Also known as Cebu's Castle Church, it's facade would definitely give you the major creeps for it gives you the vibe of a huge castle rather than a church, really. Managed by the Monks of Mary, this church is famous for miracles attested for by hundreds of testimonials on display inside the church. Aside from Marian devotees, board exam takers, persons with disabilities, and etc, flock to this place hoping for a miracle. It is best to go here during weekdays if you'd want to have some peace and quiet since a lot of people go here during weekends. Every 13th of the month is also a special day since it is during this day that the priest baptizes a special kind of oil during one of the day's eucharistic celebrations.

Inside the Simala-Lindogon Church

It's a shame that since it is famous for persons with disabilities, the facilities are not entirely PWD-friendly, and are hardly accessible at all. I hope that the constructions on-going during our visit would be the answer to this dilemma.

Walls of the Castle Church

The church is very strict regards attire, so you can't go in if you're wearing shorts, miniskirts/skirts, see-through clothes, and tubes/sleeveless tops. It is usually pretty crowded, so expect to have a hard time finding a parking space.

We left Simala at around 4 in the afternoon and arrived at Mactan-Cebu International Airport at around 8 in the evening, talk about heavy-EDSA-like Cebuano traffic! We stopped for pasalubong at Island Souvenirs and Save More before heading straight to the airport.

Costs of the day:
Gas: 500/ = 250 pesos
Carcar lechon: 280 pesos
Puso: 10 pesos
Drinks (sprite in can): 45 pesos
Whale shark watching: 500 pesos
Tumalog entrance fee: 20 pesos
Habal-habal ride: 50 pesos (round trip)
TOTAL = 1,155 pesos