Samal Island and Hagimit Falls
We woke up at 7AM. After a hot shower, we went to a nearby McDonalds for breakfast.
After which, we went back to the hotel, packed our things and asked the guard to get 2 taxis for our next destination - Paradise Island Resort.
Tip:We thought, as indicated in most blog posts, that we need to go to Sasa wharf. According to the driver, we're supposed to go to Sasa Ferry which has trips to Samal Island while Sasa wharf trips are bound to Manila. In my stupidity, I did not mention we are going to Paradise Island Resort. THE RESORT HAVE THEIR EXCLUSIVE EMBARKATION!!! They have a tarp along the highway so you won't get lost :(
We end up paying PhP 160.00 going to Sasa ferry plus PhP 60.00 going back to Paradise Island Resort wharf. (grrrrr!!!) What a waste of money!
Upon arriving at the port, you will be asked by the personnel if you have a reservation. If you have, you'll get free passes going to the resort, otherwise you have to pay PhP 15.00 per head. They are very welcoming and will assist you with your baggage.
In just 5 mins or less, we reached Paradise Island Resort. They gave us welcome necklace-token, drinks and cold towel. We arrived around 10AM but our check in time is 2PM. We were given a table where we can wait, use their wifi and order food for lunch. While waiting, we took the advantage of taking pictures by the beach.
We had sea foods for lunch! We pushed for it even most in the menu are NOT AVAILABLE! No crabs, no prawns, no tuna, so we opted for bariles sour soup, pinaputok na bangus belly, grilled pusit and others. Most of their servings are good for 2. Price averages at PhP 180.
Tip: Do not order frappe or smoothies, they are artificially flavored and very sweet.
We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming, listening to the band and playing billiards which is free for 30 mins per room = 1.5 hours.
Time for dinner and the first in the menu is fire dance! Paradise Island does this regularly.
The food? yes! we never got tired of sea foods. That happens when you indulge yourself to too much work and too much city life. DO NOT FORGET TO ENJOY GOD's GIFTS TO US!
We ordered Crispy kangkong, Paella Marinara, Paella Negra, Sea food carbonara and others.
Note:Paella Negra - nothing so special about it. Regular rice and the squid ink to give the rice black color against a a regular paella.
Samal, if it is, is far quiet than Bohol or Boracay at night. It's also funny that all the tables except ours had Caucasian/s (not againts it, just amazed! maybe Samal are for foreigners - hehehe). Listening to old songs was relaxing.
I woke up 2AM and took a shower. I really can't sleep if it's not my bed, as always so I was up til sunrise. Our fist activity was to go to Hagimit Falls. We got out of the resort and made a deal with the habal habals waiting just outside the gate of Paradise Island. We had it at PhP 150 per habal habal (max of 2 passengers) plus PhP 40 entrance fee in Hagimit Falls.
Hagimit Falls is about 20 mins away from the resort. You also have to hike down to the falls from the main road. Good thing the people maintaining this spot made a long concrete stairway. Swimming in Hagimit is really refreshing! The water is cold and a bit murky. It was worth the experience.
When we got back to the resort, we had a kayak activity until we checked out.
What we skipped in Samal: Bat cave, Tarpauline slide and water sports, and Pearl Farm.
Again, free ride back to Davao. We went directly to Aldevinco to buy pasalubong but looking at the quality of the products there, I would say it's not worth it (just an opinion). We also bought pomelo, durian and mangosteen at a nearby fruit section but the price was way too high if they know you're a tourist. I would recommend buying from sidewalk vendors along the way to the airport. Prices are 1/3 of those in the fruit section of Aldevinco. We almost missed the flight (heheh). We arrived at NAIA T3 35 mins ahead of time (kudos pilot!) We took a metered taxi and only cost us PhP 100.00 (x2 taxi = PhP 200). Always go to the departure area where the metered taxi cabs are.
After which, we went back to the hotel, packed our things and asked the guard to get 2 taxis for our next destination - Paradise Island Resort.
Tip:We thought, as indicated in most blog posts, that we need to go to Sasa wharf. According to the driver, we're supposed to go to Sasa Ferry which has trips to Samal Island while Sasa wharf trips are bound to Manila. In my stupidity, I did not mention we are going to Paradise Island Resort. THE RESORT HAVE THEIR EXCLUSIVE EMBARKATION!!! They have a tarp along the highway so you won't get lost :(
We end up paying PhP 160.00 going to Sasa ferry plus PhP 60.00 going back to Paradise Island Resort wharf. (grrrrr!!!) What a waste of money!
Upon arriving at the port, you will be asked by the personnel if you have a reservation. If you have, you'll get free passes going to the resort, otherwise you have to pay PhP 15.00 per head. They are very welcoming and will assist you with your baggage.
In just 5 mins or less, we reached Paradise Island Resort. They gave us welcome necklace-token, drinks and cold towel. We arrived around 10AM but our check in time is 2PM. We were given a table where we can wait, use their wifi and order food for lunch. While waiting, we took the advantage of taking pictures by the beach.
 |
| Panoramic view of the Paradise Island beach |
We had sea foods for lunch! We pushed for it even most in the menu are NOT AVAILABLE! No crabs, no prawns, no tuna, so we opted for bariles sour soup, pinaputok na bangus belly, grilled pusit and others. Most of their servings are good for 2. Price averages at PhP 180.
Tip: Do not order frappe or smoothies, they are artificially flavored and very sweet.
After lunch, we went to our assigned rooms. Their deluxe rooms are spacious enough for two. We booked 3 deluxe rooms at PhP 3,500.00 per room per night. The bathroom/cr is just ok, with towels, complete dental kits, soap and shampoo just like other hotels. TV and AC are working fine and so are the lights. However, there are only 2 power outlets inconveniently located near the windows. From my researches, other resorts nearby is almost the same in price so I only booked Paradise Island based on its ratings and reviews from other travelers.
We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming, listening to the band and playing billiards which is free for 30 mins per room = 1.5 hours.
Time for dinner and the first in the menu is fire dance! Paradise Island does this regularly.
The food? yes! we never got tired of sea foods. That happens when you indulge yourself to too much work and too much city life. DO NOT FORGET TO ENJOY GOD's GIFTS TO US!
We ordered Crispy kangkong, Paella Marinara, Paella Negra, Sea food carbonara and others.
Note:Paella Negra - nothing so special about it. Regular rice and the squid ink to give the rice black color against a a regular paella.
Samal, if it is, is far quiet than Bohol or Boracay at night. It's also funny that all the tables except ours had Caucasian/s (not againts it, just amazed! maybe Samal are for foreigners - hehehe). Listening to old songs was relaxing.
I woke up 2AM and took a shower. I really can't sleep if it's not my bed, as always so I was up til sunrise. Our fist activity was to go to Hagimit Falls. We got out of the resort and made a deal with the habal habals waiting just outside the gate of Paradise Island. We had it at PhP 150 per habal habal (max of 2 passengers) plus PhP 40 entrance fee in Hagimit Falls.
Hagimit Falls is about 20 mins away from the resort. You also have to hike down to the falls from the main road. Good thing the people maintaining this spot made a long concrete stairway. Swimming in Hagimit is really refreshing! The water is cold and a bit murky. It was worth the experience.
When we got back to the resort, we had a kayak activity until we checked out.
Finally...it's time to check out...
What we skipped in Samal: Bat cave, Tarpauline slide and water sports, and Pearl Farm.
Again, free ride back to Davao. We went directly to Aldevinco to buy pasalubong but looking at the quality of the products there, I would say it's not worth it (just an opinion). We also bought pomelo, durian and mangosteen at a nearby fruit section but the price was way too high if they know you're a tourist. I would recommend buying from sidewalk vendors along the way to the airport. Prices are 1/3 of those in the fruit section of Aldevinco. We almost missed the flight (heheh). We arrived at NAIA T3 35 mins ahead of time (kudos pilot!) We took a metered taxi and only cost us PhP 100.00 (x2 taxi = PhP 200). Always go to the departure area where the metered taxi cabs are.
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