Discovering Masbate

Philippines is well-known for its beautiful beaches... 

some of which are hidden and untouched. 

Every time we're having our yearly reunion, our relatives (mom side) always invite us to visit their province in Masbate. 

Masbate is an island province in the Philippines, located in the Bicol Region.

You can ride a plane straight to Masbate City, but since it is cheaper and more adventurous, we went there through plane from Manila to Albay and a Fast-Craft Vessel to Masbate. That way, we can get a glimpse of the famous mountain in Albay.

We had a quick stop-over in Albay and visited Bicol's pride, Mt. Mayon. 
I'll be posting a separate blog on our Albay visit soon.

Mount Mayon is renowned as the "perfect cone" because of its almost symmetric conical shape

Masbate Adventure

 I've seen a couple of Masbate beach blogs and the picture looks amazing! 

Masbate is a huge island. At times, it is much faster to travel through water than on land.
In all our boat ride... every shore is naturally captivating even from afar... even the huge limestone formation tells its story.

In our 5-day stay, we were able to visit two beaches:

1. Tinigban, Masbate

 My cousin lives in Tinigban together with her husband and son. It is a 2-hour boat ride from Aroroy, Masbate. Dolphins and flying fishes welcome us and made a couple of appearances. We haven't seen any butanding (Whale shark) around but according to my cousin, they occasionally swim near the boat. 
Tinigban, Masbate is a hidden paradise where majority of the locals live in native houses. Electricity is limited through a generator, powered by their LGU's at night. For some, they have solar-powered lights as back up when the generator turns off. The beach is beautiful, though, according to my cousins, we haven't seen much yet because the waves were stronger than usual. It's clear sky, White sand and pristine and cold water is perfect for a summer getaway.

My dad, enjoying the view

 Sunset at Tinigban

(no filter)

2. Buntod Reef

A day before going back to Manila, we visited Buntod Reef. A Marine Sanctuary located in the middle of the seawater and one of Masbate's tourist spot. Like most of the Masbate shore, it has white sand and clear, pristine waters.

 

clean, clear, cold water

Mangroves with visible school of fishes around

 Recreations are also available. 

My cousins tried kayaking since the pedal boat was not available.

We also tried snorkeling. 2 locals were our reef guides and showed us how they culture corals and maintain it as beautiful and rich as possible. I've tried snorkeling in Boracay, but this was more interesting and beautiful.

Snorkeling with cousins

Kayaking

My 5-day vacation was not enough to explore Masbate but I definitely enjoyed it. 

I had so much fun and adventure with my family.

I want to go back. We will go back and explore more! 
I haven't seen The Rodeo festival yet and other untouched beaches in Masbate.

We would like to thank VinzErnest Travel and Tours for the hassle-free trip.
Please like and visit their facebook page for promos and other affordable travels.

This year is a family-packed summer vacay and I love it!