The "ber-months" are once again here with its cold wind, and grey sky and I can't help but reminisce the few times I was able to enjoy the sun and the sea.
Yep. Life has been pretty hectic that I could count on only one hand the number of times I was able to kick off my steel-toed shoes to feel sand and seawater beneath my feet.
One of these occasions was when J and I decided to visit Tinago Island, which was located in Tagana-an, Surigao del Norte.
J has visited the place with his friends before and he swore with his life that I would love it there, and I sure did!
I was awestrucked with everything from the moment our rented boat started to speed through the waves towards our destination. It was a sunny day with a clear sky and the wind was strong enough to create a cool breeze yet the sea remained calm. It was just so perfect.
Upon arrival, I could only say that Tinago Island took my breath away. It was peaceful and the air is so fresh, which was a definite upgrade from the one we have at work.
Tinago is actually composed of a group of islands which form different explorable lagoons.
One of these lagoons is the Jellyfish Lagoon which is famous for the many jellyfish that visit the area (their numbers differ in evey season though). What makes it attractive to tourists is that it's "stingless", that is you can swim with it and observe them upclose without fearing that you'll get poisoned or something. Cool, right?
Many tourists were already calling Tinago as a "mini El Nido" for it will surely remind you of the popular island in Palawan. But Tinago for me needs to be given credit for its own charm.
Lapsay Lagoon
Out of the many attractions Tinago has to offer, J and I decided to go directly to Lapsay Lagoon.
We went there on a weekday so we almost had the whole place to ourselves (a group was there celebrating a birthday or something), and because of that the caretaker allowed us to choose whatever cottage we'd like to occupy. Sweet, right?
We chose a cottage at the farthest part of the lagoon so we could enjoy the humbling, quite atmosphere of the place (the other group were a bit noisy given they're having a party), and proceeded to prepare our food.
The caretaker mentioned that if we're interested, we can check out the hiking trail towards the highest point of the island. And so after our lunch, we went for a hike. And when we arrived at the top, boy did it take our breath away, literally and figuratively.
You can see the lagoon and the ocean beyond it from the spot we found. The whole experience was very relaxing since it was so quiet. It was really a perfect place to just relax and soak in the calming sounds of nature.
The view of the lagoon from the top.
Can you see the ❤️ shape the trees are creating? Or was it just us. 😅
Look at how tiny the boats looked from above.
After a short rest, we went back down to our cottage and prepared to take a dip on the lagoon's cool water.
We spent our remaining time there (the place is only open up to 5pm) swimming, kayaking, and of course a photo shoot.
After the events of that day, I could only say that Tinago Island is something you should all put in your travel bucketlist.
So to help you cross it out that list...
How To Get There
If you're not from Mindanao, the nearest airport and seaport would be in Surigao City. But due to the limited number of flights per day, you can also choose Butuan City's airport and as for the seaport, there's also one at Nasipit, Agusan del Norte (~45mins away from Butuan City's center).
From Surigao City, you can ride a multicab, jeepney, or van and ask the driver to drop you at the crossroad to Taganaan. Travel time would take around 30 minutes from Surigao's bus terminal.
Once you get to the crossroad, a number of tricycles are parked which you can hire to bring you to Taganaan port. Take note that the tricycle would only depart for Taganaan once it reaches its seating capacity (7 max). If you're in a hurry, you can pay for the vacant seats (Php10/$0.20 per person) so you can leave immediately.
On Taganaan's port, you can hire a boat for Php1,000.00 ($18.52), which would be good for 6-8 people, for the complete Tinago experience i.e. island hopping. This island hopping includes a visit to the Jellyfish Lagoon, Lapsay lagoon, fish sanctuaries, and many more. You can even request your boatman to stop in the middle of the sea, where you can jump in and enjoy the cool water.
If you're like us who's limited on time (unfortunately) and budget ahem, you can still rent a boat for Php500.00 ($9.25) to take you back and forth to whichever destination in Tinago you'd like to explore, (which was Lapsay Lagoon for us).
Once you get there, just relax and let nature pamper you with this beauty.
Just don't forget the fundamental rules when visiting new places i.e. take care and help preserve its beauty, so don't leave anything especially your trash. And also, listen to the safety briefing the caretaker will give you. It's imperative to out be safety conscious when exploring new places as well.
Stay tuned for more of our adventures. Til next time. ❤️
K.
Disclaimer: I'm not an expert of the place so some of my information here might be wrong e.g. prices, geography, etc. I only based all these on my own experience. Any corrections or comments are very welcome below.
