On our recent trip to The Philippines, we spent a good five days or so in Cebu. Our main motivation for visiting the island was to attend our friends’ wedding ceremony. Since we knew that our main priorities were hanging out with our friends and reuniting a couple of long lost playmates, we put very little (i.e. none at all) thought into what we should see or do in Cebu.

Our slack attitude totally paid off though. With nothing planned, we were totally and completely free to do whatever our friends suggested. Laziness pays off! For once!

:: STAY ::

We stayed at the Shangri-la Mactan Resort, on Mactan Island, which is just a couple of kilometres from Cebu City. The resort is really close to the airport, which was a major plus considering that traffic in The Philippines rivals that of Indonesia for “Most God Awful EVER.”

The resort seems to be THE PLACE to stay with young kids, and if you ask my children, was a veritable paradise on Earth. There were two swimming pools, a water playground, a beach with almost no surf (perfect for little ones, although Hugo remained steadfast in his opinion that sand is THE WORST THING IN THE WORLD.)

I will tell you, though, that this resort is a factory. There are like 1000 beds, and the place is heaving on the weekends. And as with most hospitality institutions of mass production, the food is not good. As in REALLY not good. Which is disappointing, because it is one thing to pay top dollar for fresh, delicious, expertly prepared food. But to pay top dollar for cheap, tepid, pre-ready meals? Well, that's not something I'm willing to do.

I suggest if you stay there, stock up on groceries. And don’t bother with the club lounge upgrade. The lounge is packed the minute the doors open, and the guests dive-bomb the buffet, scavenging morsels of cold, barely palatable food as though it were made of gold most rare. *just fyi, i’m including myself in that crowd.*

:: DO ::

Enjoy the Hotel Facilities

Our arrival day was reserved for frolicking in the water park and eating too much ice cream. Day two was the wedding, and so we had a quick swim in the morning, and then spent the rest of the day being super excited about wearing pretty dresses (Stella) and being super excited about attending a pretty event (me.) But, Cebu offers some amazing opportunity for things to see and do.

My children would have been completely happy to spend five days frolicking on the splash pad at the hotel. It was incredibly fun, to be fair. And reserving one or two slow days for this type of thing is just about right, I think.

When the kids get tired off all that sun, there is also a phenomenal indoor playground for bigger kids, with a drop slide, bouncy castles, ball cribs, and other amazing fun playthings various and sundry. Next door was also a little play room for toddlers. However, make sure you bring socks. They're required for using the indoor play gound.

Right off the shore of the hotel beach, there's a coral reef, a fish sanctuary of sorts. It's not in the very best shape (I imagine that it gets a lot of traffic from inexperienced snorkelers) BUT it is quite amazing to be able to step out for an hour and float around and fish watch. And even though this site is right next to a huge resort, it is teaming with life. I spotted a few new to me fish, including some kind of cool looking water snake.

Island Hopping in Cebu

Island hopping is a must do, in Cebu. The day after the wedding, the lovely couple organised an island hopping trip for us and a few other friends. This was easily a highlight of our trip, and an experience I can not recommend highly enough. We rented a repurposed fishing boat and bobbed around the waters just off Cebu. (More on this in another post.)

Swimming with the Whale Sharks in Oslob

Swimming with Whale Sharks in Oslob was an unforgettable part of our trip to Cebu. We drove with our friends about 120 KM South-West of Cebu City to Oslob. We got to swim literally meters away from wild whale sharks, watching them right up close, feeding and diving, and drifting along in the water. It was phenomenal, and so worth the early morning, and the long drive out there.

Tumalog Falls

These stunning waterfalls in Oslob are worth a stop if you're visiting for the whale sharks. The cool, freshwater pools, turquoise water, and stunning views make this place a standout.

:: EAT::

I don't know if this is fair to say, but I wasn't overly wowed with the food in the Philippines. Maybe it's because food here doesn't get much press and I don't know what to look out for? Or maybe because i had the flu and couldn't taste of smell anything for the first half of the trip? Whatever the reason, I was a bit meh about the food options.

However, I did go quite mental for Lechon, which is beautiful roast pork, cooked whole on a spit, and served with liver sauce. You guys, it's seriously something else.

I also ate my weight in mangos, which were amongst the best I've ever had. So.

:: BRING ::

You'll find basically everything you need in Cebu City. It's the second largest city in the Philippines, and totally well stocked. Of course, if your kids need a special kind of diapers or formula, bring that. But you'll be able to find anything you need here.

Much to my surprise, I found a lot of hippie BS food items and packaged baby food nonsense that I can never find in Jakarta.

Suit yourselves up well for the sun. Rashies, hats, sunglasses, and water shoes are all a must. And seriously, bring like two tubes extra of sunscreen.

I'd also suggest activities for the car if you're planning on taking the kids on any day trips. Traffic is really slow.

Also, speaking of traffic, car seats are not really a thing in South-East Asia. So, If you will be doing any car travel and are uncomfortable with your kids rattling around in the back seat, think about bringing car seats.

Cebu was a great place to travel with kids. Easily accessible, lots of things to do, good infrastructure, and totally unintimidating. I'll write more next week about island hopping and the whale sharks. Those experiences were so special, I feel like they need their own posts.

Travelogue {Cebu City, The Philippines)