The Philippines is a country comprised of over 7,000 islands, and while destinations like Boracay, Palawan and Cebu are internationally well-known, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Siargao before. Even as a 100% Filipina who grew up surrounded by Filipinos, I only learned about Siargao from my non-Filipino friends when I moved to Hong Kong 7 years ago, but it’s since been at the top of my bucket list to visit.
What’s so special about Siargao?
Siargao has been the surfing capital of the Philippines for decades, but in more recent years this up-and-coming island in the northeast of the southern Mindanao region has developed its own vibrant mix of chill island life, adventurous activities, a dynamic food & beverage scene, and buzzing nightlife that we absolutely fell in love with during our 5 day trip.
It’s honestly the type of place you want to gatekeep because you don’t want the island to lose its unique charm, the way places like Bali have succumbed to overtourism with traffic and dirty beaches. Besides the main “Tourism Road” that stretches from Siargao’s famed Cloud 9 surfing spot, much of Siargao is still underdeveloped.
If you want a taste of this island paradise and are willing to deal with occasional power outages, terrible cellular data in town, and ATMs being out of cash when you need them, then you may just get the “Siargao curse” that makes people want to return again and again, or even stay on the island for good. We’re already planning our next trip back since there’s a lot we still haven’t covered!
JUMP AHEAD:
How to get to Siargao
You will need to fly to Siargao Airport (IAO) in Del Carmen, which is about a 45 minute ride into the main part of town. To get to Siargao Airport, you can connect from Cebu (1 hour flight), Manila (2 hour flight), or Clark (2.5 hour flight).
We chose to fly into Manila around dinnertime with a long overnight layover so we could spend 1 night and morning in the city to eat and drink. We usually stay at the Belmont Hotel near the airport, which is walking distance to Resorts World Casino, but this time we stayed in the hip Poblacion neighborhood at the super affordable 1898 Hotel. We then we flew through Clark on the way back from Siargao since it’s a shorter connection time (7 hour total flight time from IAO to HKG including layover).
I would generally recommend connecting through Clark both ways to minimize travel time, plus it’s a newer airport with a nice Priority Pass Lounge and the flights seem to have less delays. If you have to do an overnight layover in Clark, you can stay at the comfortable Widus Hotel, which is near plenty of restaurants and is also connected to a casino.
Where to stay in Siargao
General Luna is the main area of Siargao where you will find endless restaurants, cafes, shops and nightlife. All of the tours will also pick up and drop off from General Luna. Almost everything is situated along the main Tourism Road within a 5-20 minute tricycle ride.
We chose to stay in the northern Catangnan neighborhood of General Luna at Kalipay Resort, a small boutique resort with king bed suites, a tranquil pool and garden area, and affordable prices. This worked great for us since we wanted to have a lot of space, and we could walk to dinner at CEV and Roots, and walk home from Happiness Beach Resort’s infamous Sunday Funday party. It’s also a shorter tricycle ride to Cloud 9 and Harana Surf Resort, which are recommended to stay near if surfing is your priority.
If you’d prefer a beachfront option in Catangnan, you can check out the affordable queen bed rooms at Reef Beach Resort (pictured below) or Woody’s Place, the floating cottages at Siargao Bleu, or splurge on the private pool villas of Kanilaw Resort.
There is definitely a higher concentration of restaurants and nightlife in the main section of General Luna though, so I would recommend staying there if you want to be walking distance to the thick of the action. Recommended resorts in this area include Siargao Island Villas (which I would have booked but they were sold out of king beds by the time we booked, so plan ahead!), Isla Cabana Resort or Siago Beach Resort (which also has an excellent restaurant as pictured above) for boho luxe beachfront options, and Kajali for an affordable option away from the beach.
Top Things to Do in Siargao
Experience the Philippines’ Best Surfing
Siargao isn’t known as the surfing capital for nothing! Whether you’re a total beginner in need of surfing lessons or a professional, there’s something for everyone here. Cloud 9 is the most famous spot, where there is a long boardwalk that stretches over the shallow waters until you get to where the waves begin, with a variety of calmer and more intense waves to accommodate all levels. Even if you don’t plan to surf, you can watch the surfers from the viewing deck the end of the boardwalk.
Go Island Hopping to Guyam, Daku & Naked Island
The 3 main islands to visit off the coast of Siargao are Guyam Island (pictured near the top of this post), Daku Island, and Naked Island. There are cheaper group tours that will take you to all 3 for as low as US$25 per head including a boodle fight lunch, but if you’re willing to spend more I cannot recommend booking a private tour enough.
We went on our Private Tri-Island Tour courtesy of Guide to the Philippines so this was gifted, though we would have happily paid for our tour as we got to all of the islands BEFORE the group tours arrive. We arrived at Guyam Island before 7:30AM, so we snagged one of the few beach chairs with views of the water and had over an hour of peace before the big tour groups arrived starting at 8:30AM. At Guyam Island, you can relax in a covered hut, enjoy delicious mango shakes that you can spike with alcohol if you dare, play volleyball and basketball, and take photos from swings hanging above the water.
From there, you get to set the schedule for the rest of the day with your guide instead of being beholden to strangers taking a long time for photos or being stuck on an island you don’t want to be at. Our guide set us up at a prime elevated cabana at Daku Island where we had an epic boodle fight lunch—a must in Siargao! Daku Island is a great spot for swimming and relaxing in your shaded cabana, and you can also walk around the vast shoreline to pick up a tasty avocado shake and other treats from little stands on the beach (though I would skip the fresh coconuts as they were warm!)
My new Insta360 camera and 3 meter selfie stick came in clutch for getting these drone-like shots at the beach even if it does look pretty crazy behind the scenes 😂
Next we stopped at Naked Island, which is basically a giant sandbar completely bare of trees. We just took some photos here and did a quick dip since it was quite hot. While you could wait for low tide to visit a 4th Secret Island that is only accessible in the afternoon, we chose to just end our private tour early so we could go back to town for massages. Another benefit of booking a private tour!
Explore Siargao Island on a Land Tour
The second-most popular tour in Siargao is to drive around the island itself to take in sights that include Maasin River, the Coconut Plantation Mountain View, Magpupungko Rock Pools, and Cloud 9, all of which I recommend visiting for their natural beauty.
We again did a Private Siargao Land Tour with Guide to the Philippines, so we had the comfort of our own spacious air conditioned private van to take naps in between each activity. Being able to set our own schedule was particularly beneficial for the beautiful Maasin River, where you do a relaxing 15-20 minute river cruise through mangrove trees.
Wait times to take photos at the Secret Lagoon at the end of river cruise can be very long since the photographer literally climbs a tree to get these cool aerial shots in the lagoon (there’s a BBQ shack that had a deck of cards where we killed the time while waiting). If you’re on a group tour, you likely have to wait even longer since you have to wait for others in your group to take their photos, so a private tour is a great way to go. In retrospect, we could have started our private tour earlier in the day (we chose to start at 8AM to sleep in a bit) to avoid the wait times at the Secret Lagoon.
The Magpupungko Rock Pools were our favorite stop on this tour, with beautiful rock formations and a fun environment for swimming. You can even cliff jump from the big rocks into the pool if you dare. There are plenty of local beachfront restaurants and street food stands at Magpupungko Beach, but we chose to have our driver bring us to the beautiful Trogon’s Perch for lunch instead. So by booking a private tour, you can also choose your preferred lunch stop.
Spend the day at Sugba Lagoon, Kawhagan Island & Pamomoan Beach
The western part of Siargao Island is home to this stunning lagoon that reminds me of El Nido, where you can kayak, paddleboard or float on bamboo rafts. We wanted to do this private tour that includes relaxing at Pamomoan Beach and Kawhagan Island but ran out of time, so definitely planning it for next time!
Visit Bucas Grande Island and Sohoten Cove
We planned to do another private tour of this southern island that has unique caves to explore but decided to have a chill day in town instead.
Where to Eat – Best Restaurants in Siargao
The food scene in Siargao is truly special, with such a diverse mix of cuisines, local eateries, trendy restaurants, and beachfront resort bars with quality drinks and dining. The list is so extensive, so I’ve pulled all my favorite places together into a full guide of the best restaurants in Siargao.
Where to Drink – Best Bars in Siargao
Last Chance
I waxed poetic about this space with the most gorgeous bar made from capiz in my Siargao restaurant guide, but it’s a great spot for quality cocktails and vibes with a long bar and comfortable lounge seating both inside and at their outdoor patio.
Paraluman
This gin speakeasy at Harana Surf Resort is hidden in a small shack next to their main beach bar. Ring the old school telephone to be taken into the intimate space inspired by 1940-50s actress Paraluman. They only serve 4 cocktails, including the must-try negroni on tap that is poured from a lion’s head mantle on the wall. Perfect for a nightcap after dinner at Bayani restaurant a few steps away.
Manu
This retro Filipino craft cocktail bar pays homage to the tiki bar scene in a rustic island-inspired space.
The Ext Siargao
Hidden up a staircase from Las Barricas restaurant is Ext (Extension on Google Maps), a red lit second floor bar overlooking Tourism Road. They have excellent cocktails and play live music from 9:30PM every night if you’re looking for a more chill party vibe.
Where to Party – Siargao Party Schedule
The nightlife scene in Siargao is quite special, as the local establishments actually have an agreed upon party schedule so that business gets spread to different clubs across the island. This means that there is a bumping party that is guaranteed to draw a big crowd every single night of the week. There’s a mix of larger beach clubs, smaller nightclubs, and live music bars so there’s something for everyone. We were there from Thursday through Sunday night, so here are the spots we got to check out. Be sure to bring a fan if you plan to dance as these parties get steamy!
Thursday – Bed & Brew
This 3 floor space (pictured above left) plays top 40 and mainstream EDM to a mostly young crowd. The dance floor gets crowded and hot, but there’s a rooftop plus outdoor area with seating and a BBQ stand if you want a more laidback vibe or a late night snack.
Friday – Barbosa, Mama Coco & El Lobo
Barbosa is a small second floor club (pictured below) that has their Friday night party playing a mix of funky, melodic and acid house music with a wall of records behind the DJ booth. It gave us the same vibe as our favorite club in Hong Kong, Cassio, to the point that the DJ was actually scheduled to play at Cassio the week after we saw him in Siargao. A line to get in starts to form around 11PM (as pictured above right) so go early if you don’t want to wait.
Mama Coco is a ground floor club (pictured below) that’s open to Tourism Road and has more of an underground warehouse vibe for their Friday house/techno night.
We didn’t make it to El Lobo, which has their Friday night rager playing hip hop and top 40.
Saturday – Siargao Beach Club & Harana Surf
I have never seen anything quite like Siargao Beach Club’s Saturday night foam party (that also happens on Tuesday nights). The beach club itself is massive, with a big dance floor, tons of tables, and multiple bars spanning the beach. The predominantly local Filipino crowd is firmly seated and calm until 10PM, when a fire show happens on the dance floor. This is immediately followed by a complete turn up as bubbles and pyrotechnics start shooting out from the stage, balloons are handed out to the crowd to wave in the air, a hype man starts pouring free shots in people’s mouths in front of the DJ booth, and the DJ starts throwing down EDM and top 40 hits for the crowd to dance to. We didn’t stick around for the foam, which starts at midnight, but this would be a lot of fun with a group and also just to witness something different.
The Saturday night party at Harana Surf Resort was much more our vibe, with a younger crowd of mostly foreigners spread across two stages (a top 40/hip hop stage that took over where Bayani restaurant usually is and a house/techno stage by the beach) in a more laidback environment, with plenty of areas for either dancing or sitting and chatting and also lots of street food stands.
Sunday Funday – Happiness Beach Resort
With a house/techno stage at their beach bar and a hip hop/top 40 stage across the street at their hostel, Happiness Beach Resort’s Sunday Funday party is the perfect place to end the week
