Discovering the uncharted Sambawan Island

Introduction 

Sambawan Island was initially part of our family’s Leyte tour last November 2019. Unfortunately, because of the bad weather, we decided to make the last-minute change from Sambawan Island to Kalanggaman Island, which was not a bad idea!

For those who are new here on my site, welcome! To get you up to speed with my latest travel blogs, I’ll be sharing a few DIY tours I’ve done in the past years which include our family’s Leyte tour!

Get to Know Biliran, Visayas 

For many years, the Province of Biliran has been under the shadow of its parent province, Leyte. It stayed off the tourist radar for a long time until the globe became aware of the province’s natural beauty. True beauty has a way of becoming noticed. For a place as gorgeous as Biliran, it is unavoidable for the rest of the world to overlook its charm.

About Sambawan Island 

Sambawan is a tiny deserted island west of Maripipi’s island municipality. It is a network of interconnected little shorelines surrounded by blue and abundant waters – a marine sanctuary alive with vibrant marine life. Sambawan’s two main islands include rugged and mountainous terrain blanketed with grass, providing a panoramic view of dawn and sunset against Maripipi, Biliran, Masbate, Samar, and Leyte.

Requirements to Travel to Sambawan Island

I highly recommend that you get in touch with tourism offices in Sambawan or Biliran to know if the island is open for tourists on your desired date. Fortunately, a tour guide we came across shared that the Island is officially open for tourists since February this year. 

How to Get to Sambawan Island 

From Manila/Cebu- Tacloban

If traveling from Manila, to get to Sambawan Island you must fly from Manila Airport to Tacloban City. Be sure to keep your eyes open for Airline seat sales which are money savers, especially for travelers like me! Here are a few airline websites you can look into to book your trip to Tacloban City. 

• Philippine Airlines 
• Cebu Pacific
• AirAsia

If you’re from Cebu, you can fly from Cebu Airport to Tacloban Airport or go to Ormoc City and transfer to a van bound for Tacloban City.

If you don’t want the hassle of looking for cheap flights or flight reservations, you can always visit Filo Online Ticketing to help you with that!

[OPTION 1] Tacloban – Naval – Maripipi Island – Sambawan Island 

1. From Tacloban City, you should catch a van to Naval at a price of Php 120 (USD 2.5) with approximately 2.5 hours of travel time.
   
2. From Naval, you need to travel via boat to Maripipi Island at a price of Php 70 (USD 1.4) with approximately 2 hours of travel time. 

3. Once at Maripipi Island, you need to ride a motorbike at Php 30/ person (USD 0.6) to bring you to the area where they have the boats ready to travel to Sambawan Island 

4. Your very last ride to Sambawan Island is a boat at a price of Php 500 (USD 10) which holds around 6-7 passengers. 

[OPTION 2] Tacloban – Naval – Sambawan Island 

You may also charter a boat from Naval that will take you directly to Sambawan Island. Boat rentals range from P10,000 to P12,000 (USD 200-240) for groups of 10-15 people, and from P12,000 to P14,000 (USD 240-280)  for groups of 30-60 people.

This is more convenient but a more expensive way to get from Tacloban to Sambawan. But for bigger groups, I highly suggest riding a boat directly. 

Getting Around Sambawan 

Sambawan is a small island and because of the pandemic, it was closed for a while. Getting around Sambawan is easy if you have a guide and someone who can coordinate on your behalf. Luckily, we were able to connect with Kuya Joery. Sharing with you his contact information here: 

• Guide Name: Kuya Joery 
• Mobile Number: 0905-699-4461

It’s also important to know that the island is solar-powered, and there is limited access to electricity. Their power runs from 6 PM to 6 AM.

Where to Stay in Sambawan Island 

Sambawan Island has no hotels or luxury AirBnB rooms, but you may pitch a tent along the beach or rent a cottage if you want to stay overnight. In our case, we stayed for a night and rented a cabin that had a bathroom.

Accommodations and Fees Available in Sambawan 

Cottages 

1. An open-air cottage costs P500 (USD 10) per night, 
2. Enclosed cottage
   1. For 6 Pax  P1500 (USD 30) per night
      (includes two beds, beddings, toilet and bath, fresh water and electricity at night).
   2. For 12 Pax costs P2500 (USD 40)  per night
      (includes three beds, beddings, toilet and bath, freshwater, and electricity at night) 

Tent Pitching 

The charge for pitching a tent is P100 (USD 2) per day. 

Other Costs

• Table and Bench Rental is P300 (USD 6) per day.
• Entrance Fee P80 (~USD1.6) per person 
• Environmental Fee P20 (~USD 0.4) per person
• Boat Docking Fee P50 (USD 1) per boat

My Trip to Sambawan

Before Sambawan

Before visiting Sambawan, I took the liberty to check if the island was open for tourists, and luckily, it was. As someone who enjoys DIY tours, I decided to reach out to someone from Sambawan for the tour package.

I have shared contact information in an earlier section of the blog. Kuya Joery’s package is only PHP 2,500 (USD 50) per head, including food (breakfast, lunch, and dinner).

At Sambawan 

During our overnight stay on the island, there wasn’t much crowd and the sea was clean. So my friends and I enjoyed our trip. It was as if we rented an island all to ourselves!

Reminders I want to share when you visit Sambawan: 

• They say waves are relatively stronger in Sambawan compared to other islands. Fortunately when we arrived, the waves weren’t as strong as expected. 
• For me, the best time to visit the island is in the summertime 
• It’s not a white-sand beach. But it will not affect the quality of your trip. 
• The sand is quite rocky. Best to bring aqua shoes to prevent your feet from hurting.

Other places you may visit

San Juanico Bridge 

The San Juanico Bridge is a project pushed by late Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos; it was even known as the Marcos Bridge until its current name was adopted. The president announced it to be a love present for his First Lady, Imelda Marcos, a Waray-Waray.

MacArthur Landing Area

We were able to visit MacArthur Park after our Sambawan trip. MacArthur Park is a notable monument on the island of Leyte. It is the location of General Douglas MacArthur’s iconic bronze statue, which honors his dramatic return to the island of Leyte on the early afternoon of October 20, 1944.

Higatangan Island

We weren’t able to visit Higatangan Island. It’s one of the least traveled beaches in Biliran. Higatangan Island, Naval, Biliran, the Philippines conveniently placed between the island’s two main barrios. The famed sandbar is only a short walk away.

Ulan-Ulan Falls 

After the overnight trip to Sambawan, we had a side trip to Ulan-ulan Falls.

The trip to see the Ulan-ulan Falls begins with a 3 to 5-minute short stroll along a river, a mountain, and numerous lesser waterfalls. There is a 20php entrance fee. Getting there is half the fun.

Biliran Tour in Sambawan Island 🏝️

Itinerary:

Day 1

0700H – Pick up from Tacloban airport

0800H – San Juanico bridge

0900H – Mac Arthur park

1000H – Leaving for Sambawan island

1300H – Late lunch

1400H – Swimming etc.

1800H – Dinner

2200H – Lights out

Day 2

0700H – Breakfast

0800H – Free time swimming, picture 2

1000H – Back to port tabunan north Kawayan

1200H – Ulan-ulan falls

1300H – Back to Tacloban airport drop off

Other places you may visit

The Philippines is a treasure trove of majestic nature destinations. One should only be adventurous, resourceful, and creative! Hopefully through this blog entry, you’ll be inspired and motivated to go outdoors and explore what the Philippines has to offer.

I hope you found my Sambawan Island travel guide fun and helpful! If you have any questions feel free to comment here or reach me through my social media for questions and clarifications! I’d be more than happy to help!