[To say that Carnaza Island is The Next Summer Getaway is an understatement. As of this writing, numerous photos taken in Carnaza circulate different social media sites. The thing is, even though Carnaza Island has been slowly gaining the attention it deserves, it is still underrated. As for the reasons why, please continue reading.]
When we talk about islands surrounding Cebu, we can think about Bantayan Island, Camotes, or Malapascua Island. After all, these three islands are the most famous when it comes to summer escapades. You can't blame tourists for flocking in these islands because they are part of the many reasons why Cebu is considered as one of the best islands in the world.
Without a doubt, those three islands mentioned were a league of their own. Bantayan Island is famous for its pristine white beaches. Camotes is famous for its caves and cliff jumping. Malapascua Island is famous for its diving spots and thresher sharks. Most tourists go to these islands during summer, aside from the south of Cebu. Now, I would like to add another island to the list. As I've said, it's slowly gaining attention specially that people are now posting magnificent photos of the island on Facebook. That island is Carnaza.
Let's get down to business.
I just coined the term "The Next Summer Getaway" because I couldn't find a better name that would suit the island. I also couldn't find any source that give a specific moniker of the island.
Carnaza's Location
Carnaza Island is located that the heart of Visayan Sea. It's specifically located west of the tip of Leyte, south of Masbate, and north of Cebu. It's the northernmost part of Cebu, under the municipality of Daanbantayan. It's further north of Malapascua Island.
Carnaza Island is a 173.5-hectare turtle-shaped island barangay that is composed of six sitios namely Carnaza, Candionesio, Daanbaryo, Pantao, Liog-Liog, and Linao. As the island is small, you can travel from one sitio to another on foot or via motorcycle, which is readily available on the island.
I think the location of the island is what makes it less known to tourists. There are usually island tours at Malapascua Island to Carnaza, but this option is only famous to foreigners especially Koreans. Only a handful of people go to the island with the sole purpose of exploring it.
How to Get There
If you're from Cebu City, the rendezvous point is at the North Bus Terminal. From the terminal, a bus to Daanbantayan would take about three to four hours depending on the traffic at Consolacion. Once in Daanbantayan, you can tell the bus driver to drop you off at Tapilon Port.
Tapilon Port is not really an official port. It's just a designated area where small motor boats dock. Going to Carnaza, you can choose a public 30-seater motor boat for 50-70 pesos or have a private small fishing boat rented. Rent varies from 1000 pesos to 1400 pesos depending on negotiation. Small fishing boats are good for a maximum of 8 people. The downside of a public boat is that it only travels once a day to Carnaza at 10 in the morning. Travel time takes about 3-4 hours depending on the calmness of the sea.
We chose to rent a small fishing boat to take us to the island as we can't afford to wait for the public boat. Since we only have a limited time, we chose to maximize it. This came to be a bad decision because we were 10 in the group and the maximum capacity was supposed to be 8. With the sea becoming rough as we were about halfway through, we were slightly worried, but we were told not to panic. If you're not comfortable with the idea of being in the middle of the sea, it's better to take the first option.
Good thing we reached Carnaza after 4 hours in the sea. Take note that it was one of the roughest ride we had, involving one of the smallest water vehicles available. It's part of the quest. It's part of my quest to find hidden gems in Cebu and share it to the world.
The mode of transportation is another factor that contributed to reasons why Carnaza is not yet well-known to tourists. It's something that the local government unit and tourism office of Daanbantayan should consider if they want Carnaza to be the next island summer paradise.
What the Island Has to Offer
Let's start with "unlimited" white sand beaches. The whole shoreline surrounding the island is white sand, with occasional cliffs and rock formations, plus several coves and hidden beaches. Most these beaches are known only by the locals. All of you have to do is ask them where you can possibly find a hidden beach or cove.
The moment that small fishing boat we rented docked the island, we were greeted with a pristine white beach and the shy smiles of the locals indicate that they're not yet accustomed to tourists. But it doesn't mean they're not accommodating. Take note that the island has no restaurant or even an eatery. We just requested one household to cook for us and we'll just pay them. They gladly obliged, but they didn't accept our payment. They even invited us to come back when it's fiesta in their barangay.
Although basic commodities are available, they're slightly marked up due to transportation costs. You can just ask the locals where the barangay captain's house is and he will give you some directions on where to go around the island. His daughter's house is available for homestay at a very affordable price. We availed one room, but we chose to pitch a tent at the beach for the night. The room was just for our belongings. After arranging everything, we hired motorcycles to tour us around the island.
The interior of the island is mostly forest, with ipil-ipil trees as the major species occupying a large area of the island. There's a depression at the center where there's stagnant water forming like a lake, but I think it is connected to the sea. At the east side of the island is an airstrip that can accommodate small private plans. They said that it was owned by the Osmeñas, a prominent political family here in Cebu. At the north and west of the island, Carnaza Eco Park is located. This is the only resort in the island and is also owned by the Osmeñas. There's an entrance fee of 200 pesos if you wish to explore the whole property.
Exploring the west side of the island lead us to Twin Beach. A back-to-back beach with a hill at the tip. It's hard to explain, but I was really struck by that beach. At west side, still under Carnaza Eco Park, was Skull Cove. It was called as such because there's a sort of a shrine with a human skull at the center. No one could tell who put it there, but according to the stories, the cove was an isolation area for those who had leprosy in the island.
At the east, back to the main settlement of the island, was a cemetery by the beach and beyond that was a cliff overlooking Dakit-Dakit Island. Everything there is still pristine and not yet touched by tourism. There's so much to explore in the island, but it was getting dark. We head back to the beach where we pitched our tent and prepared our meal.
Did I mention that you can do cliff jumping in the island? It was one of the purest ecstatic feeling I had. Just let the young boys take you to the cliff where they do cliff jumping almost every day. Just be careful because the waves might get bigger than usual and it's difficult to climb back to the sharp and rugged rocks. If you're not an adrenaline junkie like me, watching those young boys enjoying their youth will also be satisfying. As for me, I tried to be one of them by jumping twice before calling it a day.
Carnaza at night is another sight to behold. It was relaxing as it was meditating. The sound of the waves crashing will lull you to sleep. That exhausting day was all worth it as we were all sound asleep even at 8 PM. The decision to pitch a tent at the beach ended up to be a wrong one as we were caught by a localized thunderstorm. Overall, it was still a good night.
Bonus - La Manok Island, Esperanza, Masbate
The next day, we hired a boat to take us to La Manok Island. We requested to tour around the island by boat before heading to La Manok. It was another experience to be etched in my memory. Touring the island by boat made me decide to go back someday as there are other areas I should visit.
Carnaza Island alone was enough for me. I had the one of best experiences while in Carnaza, but we decided to top it off with another island that's not really part of Cebu. On the northwestern part of Carnaza Island, another string of islands that are connected with a shifting sandbar is located. It's about 30 minutes to 1 hour ride from Carnaza, depending on the calmness of the sea. The locals call the island La Manok or Manoc-Manoc.
The island serves a pit stop for fishermen specially during storms or rough seas. It's still located in the Visayan Sea, in the middle of Cebu and Masbate, but geographically part of the municipality of Esperanza, Masbate.
According to our boatman, the island was called as such because fishermen would sometimes hear a crowing rooster on the island. This adds a mystic appeal to the island since the it has no inhabitants. Another story which our boatman also told us, a plausible one for me, was that the island got its name from its shape when looked from afar. Those 3 islands looked like a crown of a rooster when viewed at a certain direction. La Manok Island looked like a rooster submerged in the sea with only its crown can be seen above the water.
Good thing the sea was relatively calm so we reached the island after about 1 hour. If Carnaza was amazing, La Manok was pure and spotless. That sandbar that connects the three islands shifts and changes depending on the direction of the waves. It was so mesmerizing that I hope people are going to preserve the island.
I guess I should just let the photos do the talking. If you have a drone, the island is jaw-dropping when viewed from the top.
Parting Words
I just hope that the local government and the tourists would do their part in preserving both islands now that they are slowly getting the attention they deserve.
As much as I wanted to post on a daily basis, my current situation would not allow me to do so. Besides, travel posts take a considerable amount of time to craft. There are also times when I would have to scrap my work because I am satisfied with the outcome. Anyway, enough with the excuses. I hope that you will still enjoy my posts.
Note: I chose not to put captions on the photos this time because I think they're standalone.
See you in my next adventure!
Best Regards,
Kim