Moalboal : Where to Start your Philippines Tour
Welcome to Moalboal, where diving, canyoneering and cheap eats all meet
Snorkel the Sardine Run
The Sardine run happens just off the shore of Moalboal, so many folks just snorkel out to it (20 meters from the shore) . The Scuba diving is great here too with a very impressive wall. When the sardines swim over you, expect the lights to dim. It’s incredible. Fins and masks can be rented from many shops, and dont forget you’ll need money for the marine fee 100 pesos
Sardine run is 25 meters from the shore, you can see the snorkelers on the right.
Canyoneering
You can’t walk more than 5 feet without seeing a sign or someone offering a canyoneering tour. Again, choice here can be overwhelming. On the street tours are offered for 1800 pesos, online they can go for a lot more. For safety we went for an online outfitter where reviews were easy to see. It was 200 pesos more per person.
Canyonering at Kawasan Falls is the most popular option
The tours pick up at 6am, 9am and 12pm. Our outfitter picked us up and we drove to their office site where you could lock up your bags. Then a drive to the Badian Canyon (which is the same river that flows into Kawasan Falls). We had 15 people in our crew, and 8 guides. So once we started the guides split the groups up and it was great as your guide took your phone and got many photos of you. There were lots of cliff jumps (all skippable), and rope swings too. Along the way several vendors sell snack and drinks too. At the end a very good meal was provided. I would highly recommend PH Kawasan Canyoneering.
Waterfalls
Waterfalls of Cebu are quite stunning, and once again the paradox of choice hits hard here. So we did two. Kawasan (typically included with canyoneering tours) and Inambakan Falls, a recommendation from our scuba instructor.
Inambakan
By scooter be ready for at least 90 min ride (all depending how fast you go) down the coast through some really scenic area. Upon arrival there are two entrances where one parking is 20 and the other is 70 pesos, Im not sure how to get to either. Both have guides that offer you a tour for around 400 pesos (park fees included). To note you can easily do this hike on your own to all the falls, but the money goes to locals and they can get some good photos of you too.
Inambakan falls, 1 of 7 falls
Kawasan
This is the more popular of the waterfalls, but if your canyoneering, typically the tour ends here.
Diving in Moalboal
Moalboal is famous for several things, but diving is the top of the list. We stayed here for 7 days to get ourr diving certificate and I would highly recommend you do the same if you have the time
Open Water Course
This course (offered through Padi) has eLearning you can do ahead of time, followed by a 3 day course (most websites say 3-5 days just incase of weather of other factors). In Moalboal there are an overwhelming number of diveshops. So to keep it simple I’d recommend Cebu Fun Divers. We took our course here and they have a great setup. (pic of cebu)
How to get to Moalboal
From Cebu - 3.5 hour drive, that is bumpy
Car hire (through accomodation) - $50
Bus (need to take a taxi to the bus terminal)- $5-7
Car hire - $50
