Central Visayas: Romancing with the island paradise

Details

Category: Destination

Published on Monday, 23 January 2012 08:34

Bohol • Cebu • Negros • Oriental • Siquijor

About the region

Central Visayas is located in the heart of the Philippines and is composed of Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor provinces. Its beautiful pristine white beaches with clear blue waters, rich marine life and white corals make them great scuba, snorkeling, and diving sites. The region's cultural sites and festivals also gives visitors a glimpse of its rich history and proud traditions. Furthermore, the region offers numerous waterfalls, mountain trails and caves for mountain trekking, spelunking and other outdoor activities.

How to get there and go around

By Air. Central Visayas can be reached by air through the Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Metro Cebu; Dumaguete Airport in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental; and Tagbilaran Airport in Tagbilaran City, Bohol. Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines serve the Manila-Tagbilaran routes. The Manila-Dumaguete route, on the other hand, is served by Air Philippines and Cebu Pacific.

By Sea. The Port of Cebu is the region's main gateway. There are also ports in Dumaguete in Negros Oriental, Tagbilaran in Bohol and Larena in Siquijor. Inter-island shipping is served by numerous shipping lines, two of them fastcraft companies that serve all the provinces in the region.

Inland public transportation is available on a daily basis. Buses and vans for hire ply the route to all points of the islands. Short trips or town-to-town travel are served by small vehicles such as multi-cabs or jeepneys aside from the big buses that pass by the towns enroute to other places.

To learn more, click the following links:
Bohol Transportation
Siquijor Transportation
Cebu Transportation

 

Where to stay

Hotels, inns, and homestays are available in major urban and tourist centers of Central Visayas. The Philippine Department of Tourism maintains a list of accredited establishments in the region for the tourist to choose from.

To learn more, click the following links:
Bohol Accommodations
Siquijor Accommodations
Negros Oriental Accomodations
Cebu Accomodations

What to eat

The Central Visayas Region is known for its seafoods. Visitors can try what locals call SUTUKIL (acronym for Sugba, Tula, Kilaw), the preparation of one fish into three dishes. Sugba means “grilled”, Tula is a kind of soup, and Kilaw is raw fish mixed with vinegar or calamansi, salt, pepper, onions and tomatoes. Other seafood like oysters, shrimps, prawns, crabs, shells and seaweeds are also available in the wet markets that dot the region.

For meat-lovers, try Lechon Cebu, one of the most popular pig roasts in the Philippines. Lechon Cebu is stuffed with lemongrass, saba (local variety of banana) or taro plant, green and regular onions, garlic, black pepper, salt, and other herbs and spices, which gives its unique crispy and sweet taste that visitors will surely love.

For those with a sweet tooth, visitors can try Bohol's delicacies such as Peanut Kisses, Calamay, Broa, Bibingka, Maruya, Biko, and Torta.
 
 

What to buy

There is an abundance of souvenir shops and malls in the provincial capitals, making shopping easy.

Shopping in Bohol
Shopping in Bohol can be done in the Sunday Market, Carmen Dry Market, Bohol Quality Mall, Plaza Marcela, Shoppers Mart, and Island City Mall.

Shopping in Cebu
In Mambaling, travelers can find lepido-mosaic paintings. Stunning carpets and embroidery works can be found in Minglanilla. For Cebu's famous guitars, visit Mactan and Maribago. Rattan furniture is also a must buy in Cebu. Colon Street in Cebu City is a good place for buying clothes. Visitors can also shop and bargain to their heart's content in Carbon Market.

Shopping in Siquijor
Siquijor visitors can buy handcrafted native items made by local manufacturers. These include woven mats, hats and handbags, baskets of all shapes and sizes, jewelry and accessories fashioned from indigenous materials and house decors made of wood and wood carvings.

 

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