Prior to my being an adopted son of Cebu, I had heard of the beautiful beaches that supposedly abound in the island province but paid no mind as I assumed this was simply another marketing ploy by tourism agencies.
Like, it can’t be ~that~ breathtaking compared to the ones I’ve previously been in (and to be fair, I haven’t been to many, just the usual garbage-ridden ones in and around metro Iloilo and Oton area. The only true beautiful beaches I’ve visited prior to this point are those in Palawan and Bohol).
When our adventurous shift decided to have a team outing (“team building”) in Malapascua Island, I got high key excited because 1.) it’s the freaking beach; 2.) I’ve heard of stories about how the waters surrounding Malapascua Island are the only place in the world where thresher sharks are regularly found (and I’m an animal nerd); 3.) it’s the freaking beaaaach!!
Background
Malapascua is a small island that is found about 6 kilometers off the coast of northern Cebu. It is a part of the municipality of Daanbantayan. According to the stories of locals that our team talked to, the island is named as such because in the olden towns, a group of Portuguese sailors were stranded there on Christmas day because of a storm — hence Malapascua, Malas sa Pasko (lit. “badluck on Christmas”). They claim that most of the inhabitants there are descendants of those sailors (I guess The Portuguese found something to do while the storm raged on… not so unlucky now, eh boys? 😏).
One can reach Malapascua from Metro Cebu by boarding a bus at the Cebu North Bus Terminal in Subangdaku, Mandaue City. The bus ride to Daanbantayan takes about four hours, then travelers can take motorboats from Daanbantayan to Malapascua. Another option for people planning to go to the island is renting tourist vans, like what our team did.
One of our officemates is from Daanbantayan and has relatives in Malapascua, and we stayed at her aunt’s place. There are plenty of resorts that offer lodging for tourists, though. All one needs is to be diligent in Googling them. Habal-habal drivers are in abundance around the island as well. They will offer services to take you around the island to the beaches and resorts of your choice.
What To Do
To tell you the truth, there isn’t much to do in Malapascua (compared to other Cebuano destinations like say Bantayan Island or Camotes Island) besides beachin’.
The most popular activity is the thresher shark diving. This is done early in the morning when these pelagic sharks are active. You have to be a certified diver (and maybe a little bit insane) if you want to swim with these prehistoric beauties. Also, you have to cough up a lot of dough because this stuff is expensive.
You can also dive with hammerhead sharks if you really are into hanging out with apex predators, but this is a seasonal activity as hammerheads are migratory and visit Malapascua during a specific period of the year.
If you’re not in Malapascua for extreme (insane) activities like diving with giant predatory fish and just want to chill, then you’re in luck because the beaches around the island is perfect for that. This isn’t like Boracay where every night is a party. No sir, it’s a quaint little community where you can get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Maybe put out a blanket, apply sunscreen and (deliberately) get a tan… assuming people still do that nowadays. Or take a dip in the beach?
The “resort” we visited was actually an abandoned one because it was mostly destroyed by Typhoon Yolanda back in 2013. It’s really got this cool Tomb Raider ruins feels to it, although there are a number of people around. It’s not as densely populated by tourists compared to the side where the diving spots are. It gets creepy once the Malapascuan sunset has come and gone. Like Jeepers Creepers creepy.
There was no electricity at that side of the island, or most of it anyway. But it’s fine. We didn’t encounter the Flying Dutchman or something like that.
Every summer, when people start asking “where to next?” when discussing which tourist-y spot to check off of their bucket lists, I would definitely recommend Malapascua Island. The beaches are great, the ambiance is cool, the people are extremely friendly. It sure as heck can cure burnout for a lot of weary city folks, yours truly included.
Keep scrolling for more pictures
patrickkennan.com 