READ: 6D5N Backpacking Siquijor-Negros Oriental-South Cebu Itinerary. PDF, EPUB online free reviews.

Hello guys, this will be the budget breakdown and sample itinerary for my first backpacking experience in Siquijor-Negros Oriental-South Cebu. This took place last 25-30 January 2017

Sample Itinerary: 1st day Manila-Dumaguete 4:50am to 6:30am- Manila to Dumaguete via Cebu Pacific 6:40am to 6:55am - Dumaguete Airport to Dumaguete port (we missed the 7am ferry trip to Siquijor, so we decided to roam around Dumaguete until the next trip) NOTE: typhoon signal #1 at the time of our trip, ferry trips to Siquijor was limited at the time so 7:00am to 8:30am - quick tour to Bantay Bell Tower, Silliman University, Famous Sans Rival Restaurant and Rizal Boulevard, quick breaky at Jollibee) 8:30am to 9:30am - long queue to get ferry tickets 10:00am - 11:30am- ferry ride from Dumaguete to Siquijor 11:45am - 12:30pm - Hostel hunting with our contact person, Kuya Loloy (+63) 0935 362 3541. 12:45 pm - Check in at The Bruce located in San Juan, SIquijor 1:30pm - went out to find the nearest grocery store, bought food for Lunch, Dinner and Breakfast the following morning (We have stove and other kitchen utensils in the villa) 2:30pm - arrival at the resort, cooked late lunch 3:30pm - bum around the beach 5:00pm - wash up before sunset (too scared to be outside by dark :D) 7:00pm - light dinner 9:30pm - lights off Expenses for 1st day Php 150.00 Dumaguete Airport to Port Php 725.00 Ferry trip from Dumaguete to Siquijor Php 300.00 - trike from port to hotel Php 2,000.00 - 1 night hotel accommodation Php 60.00 - trike from hotel to grocery store Php 1,244.00 - grocery for late lunch, dinner and breakfast the following day Php 60.00 - trike from grocery store to Hotel Total for Day 1 : Php 4,539.00 / 5pax Php 907.80 per pax

For complete activity details, you can read my Siquijor Adventure HERE

Itinerary: 2nd day Siquijor Day tour to Dumaguete 5:00am - call time, breakfast, pack up 6:00am to 6:30am - travel to Cantabon Cave for Spelunking activity 6:30am to 7:00am - registration and travel to start up point 7:30am to 8:30am - Spelunking Experience 8:30am to 9:15am - Fish Spa experience at the Old Balete Tree, town of Lazi 9:20am to 9:45am - quick visit to Lazi Church, one of the oldest in Siquijor 10:00am to 11:30am - Cambugahay Falls experience 11:30am to 01:00pm - Lunch 01:15pm to 02:30pm - Salagdoong Beach experience 02:45pm to 03:20pm - Snack at Lilibeth Pan Bisaya (famous bakery in town) 03:20pm to 03:55pm - travel to port 04:00pm to 05:30pm - Siquijor port to Dumaguete Port 05:30pm to 06:00pm - Hotel hunting but ended up in Harold's Mansion (we arranged it prior to our trip) 06:00pm to 07:00pm - wash up and rest 07:00pm to 08:30pm - roam around in search of a good place to have dinner (ended up in hepa lane (bbq by the road)) 09:30pm - lights out Expenses for 2nd day Php 1,000.00 - Cantabon cave package (including environmental fee,gear rental and tips) Php 100.00 - Cambugahay falls tip Php 30.00 - Cambugahay falls parking fee Php 50.00 - Balete tree parking fee Php 565.00 - Lunch (including tour guide and driver's) Php 175.00 - Salagdoong Beach entrance Php 448.00 - breads from Lilibeth Pan Bisaya (panic buying diba? haha) Php 2,355 - whole day tour including tips for the driver and guide (originally Php 1,800 yung package) Php 725.00 - boat fare with terminal fee Php 60.00 - Dumaguete port (from Siquijor) to Harold's Mansion Php 1,800.00 - 1 night stay at Harold's Php 100.00 - Harold's to Rizal Boulevard (ihaw Ihaw food trip) Php 80.00 - BBQ, isaw and hotdog for dinner (Kanya kanya, not included in total expense) Php 159.00 - Groceries Php 50.00 - trike from ihaw ihaw to Harold's Total for Day 2: Php 7,697 / 5 pax Php 1,539.4 pax Itinerary for 3rd day: Manjuyod Sandbar/Casaroro Falls/Pulang Bato Falls/Redrock Hot Spring 3:15am - call time/prep 3:45am to 4:00am - trike to bus terminal 4:00am to 5:50am - Dumaguete terminal to Bais via Ceres bus (4am first trip) 6:00am to 6:30am - haggled for cheaper trike, travel from national road to port 6:30am to 6:50am - travel time to Sandbar, just in time for perfect sunrise <3 7:00am to 10:30am - walked along the 7km pristine sandbar, swim and chill at the boat, ate seafood and fresh coconut 10:30am to 10:50am - travel back to port 10:50am to 11:20am - port to Bais terminal 11:20am to 1:00pm - Bais to Dumaguete via Ceres bus 1:00pm to 1:30pm - quick break and bought food for lunch 1:30pm to 1:50pm - travel from terminal to Valencia 1:50pm to 2:20pm - haggled for the cheapest habal habal package, travel to Casaroro start up point 2:20pm to 4:00pm - Casaroro trek (difficulty 6/10, beginner here! :) ) 4:00pm to 4:35pm - travel to Pulang Bato twin falls 4:35pm to 5:15pm - chill at the twin falls 5:15pm to 5:30pm - travel to redrock hot spring 5:30pm to 6:45pm - chill and relax in the hot spring 6:45 to 7:00pm - quick wash up 7:00pm to 7:30pm - travel from redrock hot spring to Harold's Mansion (the 3 drivers offered to take us to the city for an additional fee) 7:30pm to 8:30pm - wash up 8:30pm to 9:30pm - dinner 9:30pm to 9:40pm - travel to spa parlor 10:00pm to 11:30pm - sweddish/thai massage (1.5hr for Php300 (S$10.00)) 12:00mn - lights off Expenses for 3rd day: Php 100.00 - trike from Harold's to Ceres Bus terminal Php 345.00 - Bus to Manjuyod Php 400.00 (v.v) - trike from road to port of Manjuyod Php 2,500.00 - Boat rental Php 800.00 - Snack in Manjuyod (buko, crabs, oysters) Php 360.00 - Bus from Manjuyod to City Php 315.00 - Lunch at bus terminal Php 150.00 - Trike from terminal to Valencia town proper Php 1,500.00 - Tour and guide package to Casaroro Falls, Twin falls and Pulang Bato Hot Spring Php 300.00 - Habal habal (trike) from Hot spring to Harold's Php 45.00 - Hotel to BPI Php 40.00 - BPI to Spa Php 40.00 - Spa to Hotel Total for day 3: Php 6,895.00 / 5 pax Php 1,379.00 / pax (PS: The hotel staff asked us to pay the hotel accomodation before we check out as we were uncertain on the time of our return the following day, late check out fee will apply) Itinerary for 4th day: Apo Island day tour to South Cebu 6:30am - call time 6:30am to 7:30am - local buffet bfast c/o Harold's Mansion 7:45am to 8:45am - trike from Harold's mansion to Malatapay 8:45am to 10:00am - waited for the boats to arrive, bought bbq for lunch 10:00am to 11:00am - boat travel from port to Apo Island (bad weather, took us longer than the usual) 11:am to 11:30am - since it was raining hard, we decided to have lunch first before getting in the water 11:45am to 12:30pm - first attempt to find the turtles, but failed 12:30pm to 1:00pm - roam around the island, bought souvenirs 1:00pm to 1:30pm - turtle hunting again, and we've finally saw a few of them 1:30pm to 2:30pm - travel to Malatapay 2:30pm to 2:50pm - quick wash up, bought group souvenirs 2:50pm to 3:15pm - waited for the jeepney going to the city, bought snacks as well 3:15pm to 4:15pm - travel to the city 4:15pm to 5:00pm - quick wash up at the hotel, packed up 5:00pm to 6:30pm - didn't miss to try the famous Sans Rival restaurant and bought pasalubong 6:30pm to 7:15pm - travel to Sibulan port 7:30pm to 8:20pm - travel to Liloan Cebu via fast craft (slightly delayed because of the bad weather) 8:40pm to 11:00pm - travel from Liloan to Ging Ging tourist Inn, Badian (we were stranded for about 15 minutes, multicab broke down. would you believe our luck??) 11:00pm to 11:30pm - light dinner/snack 11:30pm - lights off Expenses for 4th day Php 350.00 - Trike from Harold's to Bais port Php 380.00 - BBQ lunch Php 2,120.00 - Boat rental Php 500.00 - Environmental fee Php 700.00 - Gear and Vest rental Php 300.00 - Table rental Php 300.00 - Guide Fee Php 80.00 - Snacks Php 320.00 - Mango Shake Php 150.00 - jeep from Malatapay to Harold's Php 50.00 - Terminal to Harold's Php 1,800.00 + Php 500.00 - Hotel accomodation and late check out fee Php 250.00 - trike from Harold's to Sans Rival to Sibulan Port Php 310.00 - Boat from Sibulan Port to Liloan Cebu Port Php 750.00 - Multicab (Liloan Port to Hotel) Php 1,800.00 - Hotel accomodation for 1 night (Ging Ging tourist Inn) Total for day 4 = Php 10,660.00 / 5pax Php 2,132.00/pax

For complete activity details, you can read my Negros Oriental Adventure HERE

Itinerary for 5th day: Canyoneering/Pescador Island/Sardine Run 6:00am - call time/bfast 7:00am to 8:00am - travel to the guide's house, prep 8:00am to 8:45am - travel to registration area 8:45am to 9:30am - trek from registration area to start up point 9:30am to 1:00pm - canyoneering experience 1:00pm to 1:45pm - lunch 1:45pm to 2:15pm - trek back to guide's house 2:15pm to 2:45pm - travel from Badian to Moalboal 2:45pm to 4:00pm - Sardine Run experience 4:00pm to 5:30pm - Snorkeling at Pescador Island 5:45pm to 6:20pm - travel from Moalboal to Badian 6:20pm to 7:30pm - wash up 7:30pm to 9:00pm - light dinner/free time 9:30pm - lights off Expenses for 5th day Php 6,500.00 - Canyoneering Package for 5pax Php 375.00 - Canyoneering Snack (Bfast-bread from Siquijor, Lunch included in canyoneering package) Php 3,000.00 - Pescador Island and Sardine Run package (including fees and boat rental) (light snack for dinner, too tired to eat, kanya kanya) Php 1,800.00 - Hotel accomodation for 1 night (Ging Ging tourist Inn) Total for Day 5 = Php 11,610.00 / 5pax = Php 2,322.00 / pax Itinerary for 6th day: 3:30am - call time/packed bags for check out 4:00am to 6:00am - travel from Badian to Dalaguete via Van 6:00am to 9:00am - hike to Osmeña peak (muddy and slippery because of overnight heavy rain) 9:00am to 10:00am - travel from Dalaguete to Oslob 10:00am to 11:00am - short orientation/waiting in queue/Whale shark encounter 11:00am to 11:20am - Travel to port to Sumilon Island 11:20am to 11:35am - Port to Sumilon Island 11:35am to 1:00pm - beach bumming (stranded, no boats arrived on schedule) 1:00pm to 1:15pm - travel from port to Whale shark encounter area (van was parked there) 1:15pm to 1:30pm - quick wash up/changed clean/dry clothes 1:30pm to 5:40pm - reached city and decided to go to pasalubong center 5:40pm to 6:00pm - reached airport/checked in (just to find out that our flight was delayed for more than an hour) 8:00pm to 9:15pm - Cebu to Manila via Cebu Pacific Expenses for Day 6 (Osmeña/Oslob/Sumilon) Php 10,250.00 - Oslob whale shark encounter, Osmeña peak and Sumilon Island (Including environmental fee and boat rental, multicab and van transfer to airport) Total Expenses for 6th day = Php 10,250.00 / 5pax Php 2,050.00/pax PS: This does not include the KKB meals (kanya kanyang bayad light meals) and Pasalubong

For complete activity details, you can read my South Cebu adventure HERE

There was a promotion on Cebu Pacific by the time we bought our tickets, which we got for Php 784.00 (Manila to Cebu, ) and Php 599.00 (Cebu to Manila). Total of Php 1,383.00 per person for a round trip ticket, Not bad, eh?

Assuming that my calculations are correct (haha):

Expenses as a group = Php 51,651.00 / 5 pax

Expenses per person = Php 10,330.20

Round trip tickets = Php 1,383.00

All-In Expenses = Php 11,713.20
(Airfare+accommodation+food+transpo)

Not bad for a multiple destination adventure right?! On top of that, I’ve learned a few positive things during this excursion;

Better research prior to your trip, where you want to go/what you want to do/where to stay, it will save you time and a few bucks. They say some beautiful paths can’t be discovered without getting lost, but for me it’s better to be prepared sometimes, especially when you really want to maximize your time (for an OFW like me who flew all the way to Philippines to have this one of a kind adventure, every second counts! lol)

Be open minded, there will be someone in your group who is sensitive even in the smallest of things, like being late for a couple of minutes prior to call time; accept that some things will never happen the way you want it. There are items in your itinerary that you’ll skip, whether one of your companion doesn’t want to do/come, they don’t have enough budget for a particular activity and you ended up not doing it too, the weather doesn’t permit etc etc. Just look forward to what’s next on your list and make the most out of it. Always look on the bright side!

It doesn’t matter what you’ll wear. On my previous vacations, I was always literally a backpacker type of person, meaning, regardless of how many days my vacations are, (max. 5 days, Maldives), I only bring a big backpack with 2-3 sets of clothes as spare (if I stay for 2 days, I bring 4 sets of clothes). And mind you, I usually didn’t use them, I was just paranoid that I’ll have to use it for emergency (lol idk), and for instagram/facebook purposes. You know, the more different clothes you wear, the more they’ll think you’ve been to everywhere during the trip (lol famewhore?) Like models/artists in photoshoots, they’re changing like for how many times and photos come out really cool like they’ve been to many places where in fact it was just in the same place. But now that the situation was quite different, 6 full days and we needed to travel to different islands and towns/cities, I needed to plan my outfits so that I’ll carry a light backpack, perfect for the long walks and crossing from island to island. I’d wore the same top/shorts twice and my rashguard for like everyday (cos everyday is beach day. haha!) Comfort is my priority now.