Byaheng Takaw Tikim: Quezon Province

Another Memorable Weekend at Paradiso Amadeo, Cagbalete Island

By nickahtolentino - June 04, 2019

The weekend warriors headed to Cagbalete Island. Cagbalete is an island off the east coast of Luzon, the Philippines on Lamon Bay. It is part of Quezon Province and administered by the municipality of Mauban.

HOW TO GET THERE:

Mauban Port

From Cubao:

Ride a bus (JAC Liner) bound to Lucena Grand Terminal. Fare: 278pesos($6)
Ride a Van bound to Mauban Port. If you're more than 10pax you can rent the whole van. Fare: 200pesos ($4)
Boat Bound to Cagbalete Island Fare: 4,000 pesos that's back and forth to Mauban Port.
Environmental Fee: 450 pesos

Grand Terminal

We left Cubao around 1:00A.M. and arrived at Grand Terminal around 4:00A.M. There were food stalls open at that hour and decided to have our breakfast and headed to Mauban Port.

From Grand Terminal, look for the Van or Bus heading to Mauban Port. Since we are a group of 10, we rented the whole van for 220php each. Travel time is around 1 hour or less

Mauban Port

We already reserved our boat beforehand. it was a tip from the resort we are heading to. The line was long in the port, that's another cost of our time.

Pancit Hab-hab

At the port, you can also find some food stalls where you can buy food/ eat while waiting for your turn to ride the boat. Luckily, we found this Pancit Habhab and they are serving it the Quezon way. As they say, eat it like how locals eat it.

Paradiso Amadeo

Upon arriving, I was amazed by the clear blue water. If you arrived earlier than 9AM in Mauban port you'll not walk with your heavy loads to your room. The water starting to dismiss when we arrived because it's low tide until 4PM.

This is our home for the weekend, Acacia Tree House, It cost around 8,000 for 10pax.

It doesn't have air condition and thick foam to sleep, We only had Kulambo (Mosquito Net), Electric Fan, and Banig. What an island life I dream of.

The tree house has 3 floors, First floor, where we can chill and dine. Second Floor is for Sleeping Area and where we can leave our things. Mezzanine, Another sleeping area

Second Floor and Stairs to Mezzanine. (Left Photo) Hammock from the first floor. (Right Photo)

Enjoying the waters before it will vanish.

Instagrammable / Picture Perfect Spot

We found some Instagrammable spot around the island, We are just heading nowhere until we found this branch of trees and bushes. don't be scared if you're passing thru a cemetery, because after that you'll see a Macopa Tree just perfect for picture taking.

At the back of Paradiso Amadeo, we are heading again nowhere but just explore the island. We saw these Coconut trees, and I feel like I'm in Siargao already. I suggest go there before the sunset.

As we are heading farther more, there are locals offer us a ride going to the City proper. We were amazed because it wasn't just an Island with resorts. There are locals who live there, there are a school and more establishment near the Cagbalete Port.

When we went back to the resort, we rented a motorcycle for 50php only. We also bought some snack at the store we passed by.

Sunset at Cagbalete Port

Way to Cagbalete Port

FOOD

Thinking about food? Paradiso Amadeo also offers 3 meals for 900php, quite pricey but the thought of bringing or doing the market before heading to the island can be a hassle for us also. There are locals also will offer seafood for a low price and let the resort cook it for you, you'll just pay for their labor.