As tourism to the Philippines increases, much of the focus is around two islands. One of them is Boracay, which I discussed in a previous post. The other is Palawan, located west of Cebu, which is consistently ranked at or near the top of the best islands to visit in the world. Sadly, I didn’t get the chance to experience Palawan during my time in the Philippines. However, with almost 7,200 islands to explore, there are plenty of hidden gems.

Bantayan is one of those hidden gems.

Bantayan is located northwest of Cebu. Ferries over to the island take about 90 minutes and leave from Hagnaya Port, four hours north of Cebu. There are frequent buses from the North Bus Terminal.

The trip was a class outing, and we all met at the Bus Terminal and set off for Hagnaya. The bus makes stops in a few cities along the way, but the drive was pretty uneventful.

After arriving at the port, we got our ferry tickets and then waited about 30 minutes for the ferry to arrive.

There are many resorts on the island, and most have transportation from the ferry landing to the hotel. If transportation isn’t available, there are also motorbikes with sidecars to transport you to the hotel.

I had booked a beachfront cottage at Kota Beach. The ride to the hotel was quick, and check-in was smooth.

The beach is private, with a little sandbar as well if you just want to get your feet wet.

Shortly after arrival, a storm moved through and it rained pretty heavily for a couple hours. Thankfully, it did pass and left behind a beautiful rainbow.

After the rain moved out, we enjoyed a great dinner of rice, fish, and chicken that the class cooked and then spent the evening enjoying drinks on the beach.

The following morning was simply perfect for relaxing on the beach.

The class prepared an amazing breakfast.

Sadly, I had to take the bus back to Cebu City for work after breakfast, as I had an early shift. Much of the class did some island hopping around Bantayan before heading home.

For those looking for a relaxing beach, I can’t recommend Bantayan enough. Boracay’s beaches are stunning to be sure, but they are very crowded. This was the last major destination I visited during my 16 weeks in and around Cebu and it was paradise.