Wide-Eyed Again at White Island Camiguin

View of Mt Hibok Hibok (center), Mt Vulcan (right) and Mt Mambajao (left) from the White island in Camiguin
View of Mt Hibok Hibok (center), Mt Vulcan (right) and Mt Mambajao (left) from the White island in Camiguin

Pure sands, sun, sea and a whole lotta fun is what one can expect from this almost unadulterated White Island Camiguin. At first I wasn’t really excited to return to this island but once there, the only thing to do is enjoy. Best visited at low-tide when more sand would emerge and the waves would shape the island like a horse shoe seen from the sky. The high tide however gives an exciting opportunity to traverse the shallow sand bridge to both edges.

The edible innards of a swaki (sea urchin)
The edible innards of a swaki (sea urchin)

Fresh Swaki Anyone?

White Island is devoid of any facilities. There are however some stalls locals would set up on the island to serve food from chips, yam, coffee and other drinks. End of the day, they would bring their wares back to land. If you’re lucky, you might chance upon a fisherman selling his recently harvested Swaki or Sea Urchins.

Whenever I go underwater, I hate crossing into these thorny creatures with small orange eyes that seems to follow wherever you go. It’s hard to imagine that these is also a source of food for people especially those living in the coastal areas. First I tried eating a Swaki was in El Nido in a household. It has these yellow-orange gooey insides which were edible. At first taste I was expecting something salty but it was surprisingly clean, smooth and rather sweet. I wanted to eat more but I was warned it was high in cholesterol.

In White Island Camiguin, my travel blogger friends got a chance to try a swaki infused with vinegar. My companions have mixed impression I guess this is one of the foods with acquired taste. Nevertheless it was one of our fun moments on the island aside from enjoying the clear turquoise waters and stunning view of Mt. Hibok hibok from the island.

Approaching White Island
Approaching White Island

Essential Info

To get to White Island Camiguin, make your way to Yumbing in Mambajao. The port for White Island is near the Paras Resort. Boat rental for the island is Php 540 roundtrip that can take a maximum of 6 persons each. There’s a Php 20 entrance fee for each person.

Flight info:

The Philippines’ largest national flag carrier, Cebu Pacific Air is the only airline offering direct flights to Camiguin. It operates flights from Cebu to Camiguin every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, for as low as P588. For the latest seat sales and promos, go to www.cebupacificair.com, call (02)7020-888 or check Cebu Pacific Air’s officialFacebook and Twitter pages.

Juan for Fun info:

Cebu Pacific Air is looking for five teams of three university students each, who are raring to go on the 2013 Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge. Video entries may be sent from June 14 to July 29, 2013, and the top five teams will get to go on a week-long all expenses paid trip to six Philippine destinations. Visit www.juanforfun.com or Cebu Pacific Air’s official Facebook and Twitter pages for more challenge details.

The Juan for Fun Backpacker Challenge is presented by Department of Tourism, and supported by Canon and Wenger.

Arriving at White Island
Arriving at White Island
Enjoying the wide sand expanse of the island
Enjoying the wide sand expanse of the island
Boat on the island
Boat on the island