snorkeling

Aloguinsan, Cebu: An Eco-Cultural Cruise Down the Bojo River

Posted on July 6, 2015

On a recent family road trip from Cebu City, I finally experienced the Bojo River Cruise in Aloguinsan, a small town along the southwestern coast of Cebu island with a big heart for environmental and heritage conservation through sustainable community-led tourism. Their flagship eco-tourism venture is a scenic cruise down the Bojo River, where visitors paddle through a well-preserved river-to-reef ecosystem with the guidance of a knowledgable local guide. For initiating the Bojo River Cruise and other eco-tourism attractions in Aloguinsan, the Department ofRead More→

Terengganu, Malaysia: Beautiful Waters of Redang Islands (Pulau Redang & Pulau Pinang)

Posted on June 12, 2015

After nearly two hours by ferryboat from mainland Terengganu, the vessel docked at the jetty of Pulau Pinang (Pinang Island), the administrative center of Redang Marine Park – one of the best places to go snorkeling and scuba diving in Peninsular Malaysia. Here, sparkling aquamarine waters immediately greeted our arrival on both sides of the jetty as we walked towards the beach. Snorkelers in bright-orange life vests bobbed in the cove, chattering in delight at the underwater views. Pulau Pinang is theRead More→

Tugawe Cove Resort: A Luxurious Nature Hideaway in Caramoan

Posted on June 3, 2015

It was love at first sight. After a 20-minute VIP transfer from Paniman Beach through the gorgeous karst islands of Caramoan, our speedboat zoomed into Tugawe Cove Resort on the easternmost tip of the Caramoan Peninsula in Camarines Sur. This luxury resort is a jungle-meets-ocean hideaway for those who want an intimate commune with nature. A broad crescent of white sand bordered by jungle-clad limestone mountains embraced turquoise waters that revealed the vibrant marine life that flourished beneath the crystal-clear surface.Read More→

Maimbung, Sulu: Island Hopping Around Maimbung Bay

Posted on November 12, 2014

Besides the atoll-like islands of Hadji Panglima Tahil, the southern coast of Jolo island in Sulu harbors a few more islets worth exploring off the coast of Maimbung. My friend and I enjoyed an exclusive island-hopping tour where we got to visit Bualu Bat Sanctuary, Takut Islets and Teomabal Island – thanks to the generous assistance of no less than the Philippine Marines! Fourteen Marines escorted me and fellow travel blogger Gay Mitra-Emami of www.pinaytraveljunkie.com aboard a 25-foot speedboat around Maimbung Bay. Unfortunately, centuriesRead More→

Hadji Panglima Tahil, Sulu: Exploring Marungas Island

Posted on November 7, 2014

A fisherman told me to snorkel past the village jetty to admire an extensive growth of coral that he said looks like “big plates”. The table coral was more impressive than described, descending towards the drop-off like the undersea counterpart of Balinese rice terraces. I float across the vibrant reef. Posses of purple-eyed cardinalfish peered from their underwater patios, while countless blue-green chromis zigzagged through their refuge of labyrinthine tree-like coral. Now and then, a shy Moorish idol or butter-coloredRead More→

Scuba Diving in Moalboal, Cebu: The Sardine Run of Pescador Island

Posted on December 17, 2013

The marvelous sardine run of Pescador Island in Moalboal, Cebu can be admired by diving or snorkeling! The term “sardine run” originally refers to the congregation of billions of sardines – or more specifically the Southern African pilchard Sardinops sagax – in southern Africa from May through July when these fish species spawn in the cool waters of the Agulhas Bank and move northward along the east coast of South Africa.But schools of a smaller scale outside South Africa have alsoRead More→