This place is very popular and has been featured in “Survivor,” the TV show. Undeniably, “Survivor” helped Caramoan to be known internationally, which has been a huge help to our local community and our country.

Caramoan Island is located at the eastern part of Camarines Sur, one of the popular provinces in the Philippines. It has a lot of breathtaking and untouched beaches and islands. Every island has a unique identity that makes you want to visit it again. Caramoan Island is a place where you can enjoy and relax your mind. You can get here via land, which will take you around 10 hours from Manila to Sabang port. Then, another 2 hours boat ride to Guijalo port in Caramoan. You can also arrive via air from Manila to Naga, which will only take you 2 hours travel time. Then, 2 hours boat ride to Guijalo port in Caramoan.

We stayed at Paniman Island, where most of the locals live. There are several hotel, hostels or a private houses that you can book or rent on this island. Our guest house was so relaxing and very close to nature; we really enjoyed our stay there. We spent our first day relaxing and eating fresh seafood prepared by our tour guide. Later, we explored the islands of Lahos island, Matukad Island and Gota beach.

Each island is very unique from each other. My friends and I enjoyed taking selfies and swimming; we stayed 20 to 30 minutes on each island. We also enjoyed watching the sunsets. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures of the sunset because my battery became empty.

We woke up early on our day 2. Our breakfast was prepared by our tour guide and it was very delicious. But what I really loved was watching the sunrise with my coffee; the feeling was very fresh and so relaxing. We went island hopping and our first stop was Cotivas Island. We ate our Lunch there, again prepared by our tour guide. The food was very delicious. We took pictures, videos and most of all, we relaxed and enjoyed the powdery white sand of the island.

Our next island was Guinahoan Island, where we enjoyed trekking. We trekked for 30 to 50 minutes and the view was breathtaking. They say “The best view comes after the hardest climb.” Indeed, the view was worth it. The last Island we visited was Manlawi Sand bar. It is the longest and widest sandbar in the Philippines. Here, we enjoyed swimming and playing for 2 hours. Good thing that it was not too sunny at that time! The view and the weather was so perfect. We went back to our guesthouse around 4PM and we are very exhausted. But my friends and I wanted to maximize our stay so we went exploring on the island. We planned to buy some tequila and enjoy the rest of the night.

Our 3rd day, our last day in the Island, we went souvenir shopping and visited one of the oldest Church in the Philippines. St. Michael the Archangel was built during the Spanish colonization nearly 400 years ago. It was built in 1619! I was really amazed by the structure of the Church and how the locals and the municipality shed importance on it. It is our national treasure!

I will be forever grateful to get a chance to explore my homeland. I am looking forward to exploring the Philippines more!