Panay Island: Antique, Iloilo, Guimaras, Capiz

I decided to have a trip to Panay as a birthday treat to myself. This was also like an annual trip with two of my friends from my previous job at NGOs.

At 2am, I was picked up at my residence. We arrived at exactly 2:30am at the NAIA3.  Surprisingly, there were a lot of people queued at the airport's entrance. We had our breakfast at my favorite kiosk (you want to name it?).

We arrived on time at Iloilo International Airport and we left the place at 6:30 am.  We took the van going to Molo, Iloilo (fare Php50.00).  The trip lasted for 30 minutes. From the Molo terminal, we waited for 30 minutes and we were not sure of the mode of transportation available whether a non air-conditioned bus or a van.  Luckily, there was a van available going to Anini-y.  The travel time lasted for two hours due to traffic and the fare was PhP130.00. I was able to get the contact number of Joe, the van owner (0905.9039743).

When we arrived at Anini-y, we still do not have accommodation since I failed to contact the government owned resort and the local tourism office.  We inquired at Sira-an Hot Spring but it was fully booked and we were advised by our fellow van passengers to try Gerbo Beach Resort (mobile 0926.9161081). We booked at the said resort and the quaint resort was perfect for three of us. It has a very relaxing ambiance and the owners were very hospitable.  We ordered for our lunch earlier since the resort managers still had to buy everything at the market.  We ordered for grilled fish and squid, and pancit.  We just have to pay PhP250 for the cook. 

At lunch time,I had a very simple birthday celebration with my friends. I received some calls and sms greetings but I was sure that I have not received all the messages since the phone signal was erratic. 

At 3pm, we rented a boat (rental PhP500) to Nogas Island.  It was a 15-minute boat ride.  The island was very beautiful with white sand but sad to say the local government failed to protect the island against garbages left by visitors. Calachuchi trees were line up the pathway leading to the lighthouse.   The lighthouse was no longer functioning and there were vandalisms on the wall.  We went up the lighthouse to see tha magnificent view from top. From the top, we could see the island surrounded by trees. We snorkeled and we saw some beautiful fish since it was low tide. I also walked along the shore to photograph the scenery. 

At 5pm, we went back to the resort so that we could go to the town plaza. As we walked towards the Church resort's entrance, we found out that our neighbor was cemetery. We rode a tricycle (fare PhP21.00) in going to the Church. It was already 5:30pm when we arrived at the Church and unfortunately, it was closed. From the facade, we could tell that this old Church must be very beautiful inside and it was also surrounded by trees. We walked towards the market to see what we could buy.  I wanted to order a hamburger from a stand but at 6pm the stores were already closing. So, we had no other choice but to re-heat our food from our lunch leftovers.

On our second day, we woke up at 4:30am since we will be picked up by the van at 5:30am.  It was already 6am, when the van arrived. We decided to alight at Miag-ao Church and from the church, we took a jeepney going to Supercenter (fare PhP50.00). From the Supercenter, a tricycle (PhP40.00 fare) ride to Ortiz port. At the port, we lined up at the ticketing booth for the outtrigger boat ride to Jordan (fare PhP14.00).  At Jordan, Guimaras, we registered at the Tourism booth.  We were assisted on the multicab rental for the tour. Initially, we stopped at the Capitol to purchase mangoes. I bought four kilos of mangoes at Php60 per kilo.  Then we had our lunch at the nearby carinderia. We passed by the Trappist monastery for our pasalubong.  We also dropped by Camp Alfredo and we paid PhP30.00 for the entrance.  There was nothing to see in the camp and the zipline was expensive. 

When we arrived at the Raymen Resort (0918.5207271), we immediately settled the bill at PhP2,200.00 and we proceeded to island hopping.  Initially, we went snorkelling there were only a few fishes but the corals were beautiful.  We were supposed to go to the turtle sanctuary but we cancelled it since only one turtle was available in an enclosed environment. We felt it was unnatural setting and it will just disappoint us if we will drop by the turtle sanctuary.  What we enjoyed the most was the trip to the Baras cave.  The boat entered the cave and the water was clear from the inside.  We passed by the different island resorts like Naburot and Baras. We paid for the 2 hours boat rental at PhP550.  At the resort, we took our early dinner since one of our friends will go back to Manila. It was difficult to find a good phone signal at the resort and the comfort rooms were not clean.

On day three, we left the resort at 7am. We rented a tricycle (Php300) in going to Jordan wharf.  We seated at the back of the tricycle to give way for our bags which we placed at the front. From the Ortiz port, we took a cab to go to Jaro, Iloilo. I visited some of my relatives and left our bags in order to shop for more souvenir items. We went to the Cathedral and Gaisano mall.  I purchased butter scotch at Biscocho House. It was a must for me to buy my favorite butter scotch of Iloilo! From the mall, we rode a cab in going to Jaro and we asked the driver to also bring us to Tagbac terminal. 

From the terminal, we took a van to Roxas City. The van was cramped and we paid for 4 seats in order to accommodate our belongings. Unfortunately, we were seated at the end of the van and my head was already touching the van's ceiling.  It was a two-hour land trip and the fare was PhP140 each.   We arrived at 2pm for our resort check-in.  We checked in at San Antonio Beach resort (0920.9825377).  The resort rate was 1,750.00. 

We asked the tricycle driver to wait for us while my friend and I prepare to go to Panay Church.  At Panay or Santa Monica Church, we were toured at the bell tower.  The bell tower contained the largest bell in Asia. Across the church, there was a souvenir shop of local Capiz products. We bought bag and capiz shell product. We were supposed to take a snack but due to limited time we had to go to dried fish stalls. I bought kilos of dried squid and fish. We also went to the town area and we had our snacks at Ted's batchoy Gaisano mall. In the evening, we walked along the People's Park to observe the activities.  The park was just in front of the Roxas family mansion. The park has also a fountain which served as another attraction. We also noticed that there were people swimming just in front of the park and it was well lighted with visible police personnel.  From the park, it was walking distance to the seafood restaurants. As suggested by a friend, we chose the Alma's Ihaw-ihaw restaurant.  We ordered for fish, squid, scallops and talaba. The food preparation lasted for 30 minutes but it was worth the wait.

On our last day, we had our breakfast at the resort. The complimentary breakfast was very simple and with very limited choices. Anyway, it was good enough and the management could still improve the food choices. I bought a souvenir shirt from the resort and reminded the personnel of our van in going to the airport. With still enough time, we walked along the shore to catch a glimpse of the fishermen with their catch. However, we did not see any catch as they were still pulling the net from sea. At 10am, I received a call from the receptionist. We were advised that the van was already waiting for us. We immediately went out of the room but the van already left. We complained at the counter and they called the driver to return immediately. When the van arrived, the other passengers already alighted at the airport. We complained at the counter and the driver explained that the other passengers pressured him. We told the driver that it was us who initially reserved the van. The driver apologized and we accepted his apology.

The Cebu Pacific flight left as scheduled but we still arrived at NAIA3 30 minutes later than the expected time of arrival. This could probably be due to the take-off and landing traffic at the airport.

Hopefully, we can still go back to Roxas and Iloilo to explore the other islands of the province.


View Iloilo, Guimaras, Capiz, Antique Photos

Visited last April 28 - May 1, 2012