Camiguin, Philippines

Camiguin is a tiny island in the Central Visayas/Mindanao region of the Philippines in the Bohol Sea. Yes, its a pain in the butt to get to. But its totally worth it! Camiguin is best managed island we've seen in South-east Asia. Each tourist site is taken care of by government employees who provide receipts for everything, there are trashcans everywhere which people actually use, and facilities are well maintained. The resorts also have helped make the island "more eco" by not using straws and limiting the use of plastic, which really shows. The sea surrounding Camiguin is so much cleaner than Bali and Lombok.

In addition to the general cleanliness, Camiguin is great because the island doesn't survive on tourism. People actually live here. Which means that prices are super reasonable (see below) and locals aren't looking to make a buck off you at every turn. The food is also surprisingly good because many expats have settled down in Camiguin and opened up resort+restaurants. There's plenty to do like hiking one of the seven volcanoes on the island, scuba diving, free diving, riding around on scooters for sightseeing, snorkeling with giant clams, and taking a boat to tiny Mantigue Island nearby for beach chilling. We spent nine days here from July 17th to 26th.

Things to know if you visit

• If you're travelling in from outside the Philippines, your cheapest path is probably going to be through Cebu City. CebuGo has a daily flight to Camiguin at the convenient time of 5:25am. You can also take a ferry from Bohol.
• Getting from the airport to your hotel/homestay is straightforward. Once you step out of the tiny airport, you'll be greeted by several local tricycle or jeepney drivers. They know all of the homestays on the island and there are fixed prices for getting a jeepney to yourself (called "special ride") written on a board. But you can also take a jeepney with others and the price is a like 1/10th.
• Getting around the island is once again done by scooters/motorcycles. Its actually a pretty good island to learn if you aren't too comfortable with handling a scooter since traffic is light and the main road is well maintained. A scooter from our Airbnb cost 250 php/day ($5.)
• We paid $18/night for an Airbnb (Mountain View Cottages) that included an A/C room, bathroom, and attached kitchen. Definitely recommend staying here since the staff are very welcoming, the A/C is powerful, and the kitchen is super helpful for cooking up breakfast.
• Things to recommend doing while here include:
• Scuba diving - Black Forest and Old Volcano are our favorite sites. Johnny's Dive N Fun has good prices. The instructor Fate had was good but he's a freelancer. The divemasters are Johnny's are locals who know what they are doing but don't expect the full on PADI safety checks, dive planning, etc.
• Tausan Falls - A nice small (<100 foot) waterfall which has several pools below it for swimming, though the water is pretty cold.
• Katibawasan Falls - A much larger waterfall than Tausan with a beautiful surrounding jungle/forest that has some wild monkeys.
• Giant Clam Sanctuary - Learn a bit about giant clams from the young guides and then snorkel in the sea to see the giant clams up close with a guide. A little pricey (~350php per person) but totally worth it.
• Old Spanish Church Ruins - A free, quick walk around the ruins of an old church.
• Ardent Hot Springs - Don't expect hot tub like waters but a good place to swim and relax in fresh water pools. 
• Old Volcano Walk - Provides nice views of the ocean and volcanoes. But be prepared for a steep, sweaty walk. 
• Katunggan Park - Walk around the mangroves and take some scenic pictures.
• Mambajao Market - Get them fresh mangoes and bananas for cheap!
• Our favorite restaurants include: Kurma for healthy options that are reasonably priced ($4 per entree), Guerrera's for awesome Thai and Indian flavors ($6.50 per entree), and La Dolce Vita for homemade pasta and pizza ($7 per entree). 

Fun facts

• A family van = a motorcycle with attached side cart
• Make sure the place you rent your scooter provides actual motorcycle helmets not skateboarding helmets, which many locals support with flowery patterns painted on top. I guess they're more airy?
• Old white men move to Camiguin to marry Filipinas who are around half their age.
• The hippies are now all about freediving instead of scuba diving since its all natural. But don't worry, a one day class still costs $140 pp.
• Sunday appears to be trash burning day on Camiguin.
• Giant clams are hermaphrodites. 

Summary of pictures

Mountain View Cottages

View of White Island from Paradiso Resort's Restaurant (food is meh)

Fancy vegetarian burger at Kurma

Stephen, our awesome guide at the Giant Clam Sanctuary

Another viewpoint on the main road of Camiguin

Distant view of Hibok Hibok volcano

Mangroves!

Tausan Falls

View of the Old Volcano during the torture that is Old Volcano Walk

Fate barely let Mohit take this picture due to her face melting in the heat

Agent Zahura chilling after a filling lunch at Kurma

Nemo spotted during diving

Old Spanish Church ruin