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Siargao: Things to do, sights to see, food to eat
We’re pretty sure the Metro Manila Film Fest entry “Siargao” will have the lot of us excited to visit the island in Mindanao. So allow us to make you this little travel guide.
Before listing down all the must-do's and must-see's, however, you must remember the most important detail of them all: Take care of the island. Siargao residents are among the most caring and conscious of the environment as the movie clearly demonstrates.
There are a lot of green initiatives in the island like Plastic Battle, which aims to eliminate single-use plastic from the island, the Siargao Environmental Awareness Movement aka S.E.A. Movement, a group of volunteers that keep Siargao clean and green.
There are also establishments like Paglaom Hostel and Kitya restaurant that take recycling and upcycling to a whole new level, and residents like Biboy, whom according to the Siargao episode of "Biyahe ni Drew", recycles plastic and styro to create pillows and bean bags.
All these will make sense as soon as you land in Siargao: It’s so green and precious and beautiful, taking care of the environment will feel like a moral obligation.
But we won’t bore you with the fine print. Below is our cute little guide of things to do, sights to see, and food to eat that will definitely turn you into a tree-hugger in no time. Enjoy!
EAT
Just one word: PIZZA. #onlyatkemitsiargao #kermitsiargao #sleepeatsurf #siargao #pizza #foodstagram
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Kermit Surf Resort and Restaurant. Kermit is practically a staple in all Siargao must-eat list. It boasts of excellent Italian food, chief of which is pizza – all thanks to their pugon oven.
Harana. You might be thinking of just having lunch at Harana (have their poke bowl!), but the restaurant's ambiance — coupled with P50-rumcokes — will have you staying until dinner and beyond. FYI: This is where they shot the first "party" scene in the movie. Beautiful atmosphere, fantastic food, you’d be all good.
Siargao Bleu. Right next door to Harana is Siargao Bleu. It's a resort with a restaurant that boasts of excellent intercontinental food. Have your fill of all the cordon bleus but please don’t forget to treat yourselves to their king crabs. So fatty and meaty, it’s doused in sauce that only adds sizzle. Noms.
Shaka. Another staple Siargao musts is Shaka. It calls itself “The Healthy Alternative” and with a menu full of delicious fruit shakes, fruit bowls, smoothies, and power bowls, it’s hard to argue.
Bake. Bake not only provides excellent coffee and baked goods. It also offers a high probability of seeing of Binibining Pilipinas Universe Rachel Peter, as she owns the place! Comfortable, instagrammable, and delicious, what more can you ask for?
La Carinderia. Another restaurant featured in the movie, La Carinderia is a casual roadside eatery serving Italian-Filipino fare. Eggplant polpetta, parmegiana, tuna tataki all get an A score.
DO
Surfing. But of course. Siargao is among the most eastern islands of the Philippines. It faces the Pacific, and as such, it is blessed with beautiful, enormous waves. It is home to Cloud 9, a kind of mecca to surfers that members of Red Hot Chili Peppers, voracious surfers that they are, visited when they performed in the Philippines a few years ago.
Diving. While not as popular as diving, Siargao boasts of more than 12 dive spots, including Pansukian Reef. Various exotic schools of fish have rock formations and coral gardens are their playground.
Shop/Art. Siargao is teeming with so much creativity! While Felice is popular as a shop where people can buy handmade clothes, cards, and accessories, it also spearheads sporadic art workshops in the island.
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Most recently, Felice turned its studio into a pop-up kitchen, where people can enjoy a cone of ice cream, merienda, or something lighter like conversations with strangers and friends.
Take Surfing lessons. Where else to learn surfing than in a surf mecca? Surfista Travels offers professional surfing lessons as well as weeklong surf camps, surf guiding, and even island tours and day packages.
GO
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The islands Guyam, Dako, and Naked. Siargao boasts of three islands visitors must hop to. Guyam is an isolated island shaped like a tear. Nobody lives here and as such, you much bring your own food and bottle if you wish to stay.
Dako, meanwhile, the biggest of the three. There are residents here, who already tourist-savvy. They’ve made their pet pig. Procopio, available for everybody’s petting, while they’ve also opened their services to visitors who may want some lunch. Uh huh: you can actually ask them to cook you a boodle lunch, if so desired.
Finally, the Naked Island, a small tree-less formation that could’ve been just a sandbar.
Tayangban Cave. An hour away from General Luna, Tayangban Cave gives visitors the opportunity to go splenkung. During lowtide, the water in Tayangban Cave is but knee-high, but it can go up to chest-high when high-tide.
Sugba Lagoon. The famous Sugba Lagoon is in Del Carmen town, about an hour away from General Luna. Drew compares it to Coron, Palawan, where there are a lot of lagoons too. Here, visitors can enjoy water sports that require flat and calm water, such as kayaking, paddleboarding, and so on.
Magpupungko Rock Pools. In the town of Pilar, are are these natural aquamarine pools formed by huge underwater boulders that trap the water into its crevices during low tide. They vary in depth, with the deepest reaching about 18 feet. — LA, GMA News
