A Rainy Summer Night in Calaguas

A second attempt this year to see the paradise beach in Daet, Camarines Norte.

Unlike my last year's visit in Calaguas, this year's trip was traveled by bus. But it's the same DIY trip.

I hate traveling for long hours, specially when there's another option. But this Comfortec by Benz Elite made me so willing.

Penafrancia's Comfortec by Benz Elite

One thing I need to mention is that - you need to purchase your tickets in advance. And that means going to the ever busy bus station in Cubao.

A seat in this Comfortec costs P980 each, per way. Expensive I know! The airfare is actually cheaper. But my friend Chris, who lives in NYC and flew for 22 hours to reach Manila, has a flying disorder. So weird, right? ^_^

I didn't regret taking the bus anyway. Among the bus and plane travels I made in the past, this is the most convenient and comfortable so far.

26-seater bus, with restroom

seats are so spacious and comfortable

few shots wont hurt ^_^

It's the first time I slept for about 8 hours straight, while traveling. Ansarap ng tulog ko grabe! I so love this Comfortec Bus.


At 5:00am, we took another bus to Daet. Fare is P120. Travel time is 2 hours.
In Daet, we took a van to Paracale. Fare is P50. Travel time is 1 hour.
And finally in Paracale, I met Mang Nelson again. He's our boatman last year. He charged us P2,300 then. I asked him if he could give me a discount. He said of course. He charged me P1,000 only! Wow! Travel time from Paracale to Calaguas is 2 hours.

for the record, the boat has life jackets. and it can fit 10 persons at max.

P1,000 for a private boat from Paracale to Calaguas - awesome discounted price!

looking for a boatman in Calaguas?
try Mang Nelson. he owns many sailing and fishing boats.
contact number: 0920.3179315

It was a sunny afternoon when we arrived. And since it's a Monday, only 5 people, aside from us were there.

hello again, gorgeous beach.

Entrance fee is P75 each. There's also a P50 fee to be collected by the barangay (daw). I asked Mang Nelson if we really needed to pay that, he said NO. So we didnt pay for it. Haha

The cottage rental is P150. Again, we didn't bring a tent because we dont have one. We planned to sleep in the sand again. In case you still dont know, there are no resorts / guesthouses, homestays in Calaguas.

I dont remember seeing these last year..

Mang Nelson also shared that the caretaker Mang Bert is nowhere to be found now after selling parts of this island which is not his.

We settled in the cottage nearest to the water pump and the sari-sari store.

i wish we had jellyace too ^_^

Oh by the way, this made us very curious..

sino may alam ng sagot: bakit ang haba ng tubo na ginamit sa poso nila?

Moving on..
I dont know but I think I the beach is more gorgeous the first time I saw it. Hindi ako masyado na-wow this time. (yesss, taas ng expectations. hehe)

but it's still lovely of course.

uso daw ang "tan" sa NYC

low tide in the afternoon

We spent the whole afternoon in the shore. Feeling mapuputi lang. ^_^

look there's a rainbow!

Before the night came, we ate our dinner and prepared our sarongs. We're ready to sleep in the sand. Too bad, just after 2 hours, the rain poured hard.

rainy summer night in the island, and we dont have a tent!

We rushed to the open cottage. But it didnt help much. The rain didnt stop too. It actually poured harder. We found ourselves sleeping on each side of the small bench. I was so cold and scared. I felt every drop of the rain on me. Ang ginaw!

Lesson learned: You cant get lucky everyday. I have enjoyed sleeping in the bare sand of this island last year, but it's not the case this time. It's always better to bring a tent (pag wala, dapat mag-effort manghiram at magbitbit. Else humanda kang matulog ng basa ang katawan.)



After many hours, the rain stopped at last. Thanks be to God! I was calling His name that time, kasi ilang oras na akong ginaw na ginaw at basang-basa na ko. And I thought I wouldnt be able to survive it.

this is the actual bench where I slept.

The next morning, we were informed by the boatman that there might be a typhoon. We immediately left the island. Good thing, the waves were still very calm that time.

It was still an unforgettable beach bumming experience after all.


Thanks Chris for this bday treat. Next uwi mo ng Pinas, eto gusto kong regalo...

kahit 2nd hand, ok lang naman sakin. hindi ako choosy! ^_^

next: SG-Bali series