Several threshold events in the history of the nation occurred in the Visayas. Magellan landed off the Cebu coast in 1521, marking the Philippines’ first contact with Europeans, and MacArthur fulfilled his vow to return to the country during WWII, landing near Tacloban on Leyte.
While it’s the political capital of Leyte, this bustling city is the geographic and commercial centre of both Leyte and Samar. Smack in the middle of this pair of islands separated only by the San Juanico Strait, Tacloban is a relatively cosmopolitan outpost in a large underdeveloped and poor territory.
Leyte’s bowlegged rump straddles Sogod Bay, where whale sharks frolic from about mid-October to late April. The sharks here are fewer and more elusive than their more famous cousins in Donsol, but for many this just makes the thrill of spotting one that much greater. For now the village of Pintuyan, where the whale sharks congregate, is a far cry from the butanding-chasing frenzy of Donsol. That’s largely because whale sharks only recently started coming to Pintuyan. They were once further north, near Lilo-an, but have gradually moved south – some say because of increased boat traffic around Lilo-an. The hope is that Pintuyan is too remote to draw Donsol’s hordes. If you go, tread softly around these beasts and go only with sanctioned operators, who are collectively working to control the number of visitors.
The Spaniards called it Isla del Fuego (Island of Fire) because of the soft glow generated by the island’s abundant firefly population. To Filipinos, Siquior (see-kee-hor) has an aura of mystery and magic; its mountainous interior is home to a number of mangkukulam (healers) who practise not with spooky incantations but with smelly herbs and soothing oils. This little island, the smallest of the four Central Visayas provinces, is dotted with laid-back beach resorts. A sealed 72km coastal road circumnavigates the island, affording unobstructed ocean vistas and an opportunity to pause and take in truly low-key village life.
About 200km from both Bacolod and Dumaguete, the remote seaside town of Sipalay (si-pah-lie) is surrounded by spectacular white-sand beaches, secluded coves, scattered islets, dive reefs and waters teeming with marlin, trevally and tuna.
‘Rugged’ is usually the word you hear associated with these two eastern Visayan provinces, separated from each other by the narrowest of straits near Leyte’s capital, Tacloban. It’s an apt tag. The interior of both islands is consumed by virtually impenetrable forest. This naturally creates opportunities for adventure, although you either have to learn advanced backcountry navigation or scrounge up one of the region’s few qualified guides to take advantage of it.
Panglao Island is generally associated with Alona Beach, a congested strip of resorts and dive centres on the far west side. While Alona doesn’t necessarily afford much sunbathing privacy, it’s a logical choice for those who demand tropical drinks at beachside bars after diving.
Even though Panay is a microcosm of everything the Visayas has to offer, the long white-sand beach at Boracay is all that many visitors to the region, or for that matter the country, ever see. The rest of the region keeps a low tourism profile, which helps explain the appeal of tropical Guimaras – just a short commute from the pleasant and lively regional capital of Iloilo City. Panay’s little-explored interior is ringed by a rugged coastline to the south and west and a more domesticated one, dotted with impressive Spanish churches, to the north and east. Adventure sports (particularly mountain biking, trekking, kayaking and rock climbing) can be arranged out of Iloilo City.
This is considered by many to be one of the premier dive spots in the Philippines, with pristine coral reefs, deep wall dives and an abundance and variety of big fish. Padre Burgos also has some good beaches with offshore snorkelling, including Tangkaan Point, to the south of town. A few local leaders have take the initiative with the help of the internationally run Coral Cay Conservation programme to stop dynamite and cyanide fishing and are in the process of setting up a marine reserve.
The diverse, ruggedly beautiful island of Negros is a place we’d unhesitatingly recommend to any traveller. Wedged between Panay and Cebu, it’s treated by too many as a mere stepping stone. Surprisingly few stop to refuel in the charming (yes, you heard right) campus town of Dumaguete, or to enjoy its surrounding dive resorts. Word is only now spreading about the stunning beach havens around Sipalay, on the remote southwest coast. And very few foreigners make it as far as the forested hill stations of Mt Kanlaon, or the ‘living museums’ of Silay. Which is all rather strange because, wherever you look, you’ll find plenty on Negros to make you want to linger.