Siargao: Mostly Surf & Hype

 

After having spent a lovely time in Bukidnon, Rick, Louis and I made our way to Siargao. Siargao is an island in the Eastern part of the province of Mindanao that has appeared sharply into focus on the tourist radar in recent years. Going from tourist desert to hip-and-happening travel destination, I think the three of us had quite high expectations after having heard fabulous stories.

 

Different Group Dynamics

In Siargao we were reunited with other members of the Magnificent Seven with whom we had fabulous adventures in Palawan and Cebu two years ago. There were three more people, so together we were a group of ten. In addition to Magnificent Seven members cousins Lara, Melody and Cherry, Lara’s boyfriend Jason, Rick, Louis and I, Cherry’s boyfriend and Lara’s sister May and her boyfriend completed the group of ten. Although the same people were involved, it was a different place and time and the group dynamic was completely different.

Increased Prices & Filipino Surf

Siargao is not expensive if your’re coming straight from Europe, but travelling from Davao it all seemed rather dear. We shared wonderfully decorated studios in an attractive resort with absolutely lovely staff. I paid the equivalent of €30 per night for the privilege of sharing a bed (a large and comfy bed, yet shared nevertheless). This is pretty expensive for Southeast Asian standards, and dorm beds in the same tourist area of General Luna are not much cheaper. Even private AirBnB rooms in remote corners of the island are relatively steeply priced.

Siargao is a popular surf destination and international surf competitions are held at famous Cloud 9, which has raised the island’s profile. I had a couple of great surf sessions. I went to Stimpy’s, which is a break located a 10 minute boat ride out. I think it would’ve been too advanced for me if the swell had been bigger, but absolutely surfable this time of year. Fast but not too furious waves going left is how the Dark Fairy Goofy Foot* likes it. With the exception of Cloud 9 and neighbouring Quicksilver, which are accessible from the beach, all other breaks can only be reached by boat, which can make surfing around Siargao time consuming and relatively costly. As I don’t own a board, I need to rent one. I need to pay for boat transport and as I don’t know the break I need a guide. This guide tends to be a lovely guy who doesn’t do an awful lot, yet you need to pay for his presence. This way a surf session of 1.5 to 2 hours sets you back about €22, which I don’t consider nothing in a country where you can have a meal for €3. I also had a surf session with a few members of the troupe including Rick for whom it was the first time. I found it important that his first experience was a good one. I was absolutely appalled that they let him loose above the reef without any introduction or appropriate gear as they had given him a surf board that was too small for an absolute beginner. Luckily he had fun, which was all due to his own positive attitude.

How to be ripped off as a Tourist

The day before Louis, Rick and I left the island to return to Davao, all ten of us went on something that was labelled as an island-hopping trip. This trip was a great example of how a Dark Fairy doesn’t want to spend her time and money and a lesson on how following the herd is not necessarily a good thing. More on this in the next post.

*Goofy is the stance on the board riding with your right foot forward.

 

top image: siargao.surf