Chinese New Year was coming up and this meant a long weekend for us. So why not take it as opportunity to travel, right? We tried searching for unfamiliar, non-touristy places and boom… we found a winner. ROMBLON.
But we only had 4 days to spend in this place, how do we maximize our adventure? Here is a quick rundown of our itinerary in Romblon.
*Note that because we wanted to see and do many activities, we had to change hotels every night to be prepared for the next activity the following day. It was a little bit tiring, but worked out for us because we didn’t have to wake up very early in the morning.
GETTING THERE
For this travel, we only explored Tablas Island as we had limited time (but this means more reasons for us to make a return trip, yay!). Getting to Tablas (Tugdan Airport) is an easy 1hr 20m flight from Manila and is serviced by Cebu Pacific Airlines.
OUR ROMBLON ITINERARY
We booked a local travel guide to help us out in our journey. Deo Fausto of Deo's Islands Adventures ToursnTravels (+639990020806) loves exploring Mother Nature and knows Romblon like the back of his hand. Check out his Facebook page to see what his company can offer. They have all-in packages from as short as 1day to as long as 5days, and everything will be taken care by him.
Interesting enough, Deo uses a doorless van as his means of transportation. So get ready for some whirlwind of an adventure! Seat belts on, please!
Day 1: Manila – Tablas (Binucot Beach)
12:00 nn Arrival at Tablas Airport, Romblon
1:00 pm Check in hotel and have lunch at Binucot Beach
3:00 pm Explore and snorkel at Binucot Beach
Dinner and stay at Escape Eco Resort
Day 2: Tablas Island (Calatrava Island Hopping)
8:00 am Go on Calatrava Island Hopping
9:00 am Visit White Rock Beach
12:00 nn Lunch at White Rock Beach
2:00 pm Explore Calatrava Blue Hole
3:00 pm Visit Pearl of Melody Cave
4:00 pm Hike Gorda Point
6:00 pm Enjoy Sunset at Tinagong Dagat Island
8:00 pm Dinner in Odiongan
Check in at hotel Wave Front Resort
Day 3: Tablas Island (Marble Market, Linao di Vecto Waterfalls)
9:00 am Check out marble souvenirs downtown
12:00 nn Lunch at Deli Hunter, Odiongan
1:00 pm Visit Linao di Vecto Waterfalls
8:00 pm Dinner at Cummings Highlands
Check in at hotel Cummings Highlands
Day 4: Tablas – Manila (Looc Marine Sanctuary, Aglicay Beach Resort)
9:00 am Feed fish at Looc Marine Sanctuary (closed at time of visit due to rehabilitation of raft)
11:00 am Visit Aglicay Beach
2:00 pm Depart Tablas back to Manila
AGUIVENTURE FAMILY TRAVEL TIPS
If you plan to do DIY, just remember that the sights and attractions in Romblon are a bit far from each other. Best way to travel is to hire a van or motorcycle. Van rental is roughly PHP 5,000/ day.
Smaller airports (like Tugdan Airport TNH) require smaller planes. And smaller planes have smaller overhead compartments. If you plan to bring a small day luggage – make sure it’s a soft case. We had a hard case with us, so we needed to check in ours.
Bring cash – there are available ATMs in Odiongan Town but it may be far away from your next travel.
Small marble souvenirs are okay to be hand carried. But larger ones like mugs, mortar and pestle are required to be checked in by the airlines.
If travelling with kids, make sure to bring child size life vests. We had a hard time finding the right size for our little one because the available vests were only for adults.
Best season to visit Romblon is during the summer season as you would need calm waters when you go island hopping. Hard to travel on a boat when it’s all wavy and bumpy, your kids might not like it.
Don't forget to bring your first aid kit. Just like the ATM, drugstores can only be found in Odiongan town.
We hope to be back again here soon to explore the two other islands namely, Romblon and Sibuyan. We would love to see Bonbon Beach, Cresta de Gallo, Carabao Island and Mt. Guiting-Guiting which is said to be the Galapagos of Asia.