Sometimes referred to as the ‘poor man’s
Boracay,’ the beaches of Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro offers the same
white sand and busy beach front but at a lesser cost than Aklan’s pride. Well,
not unless your neighbors with Caticlan and wouldn’t need to board a plane to
the island. :)
Travel
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Port of Batangas
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Puerto Galera is just about 3 hours away
from Metro Manila (err… longer depending on traffic) with 2 hours driving to
Batangas (if you’re a fan of express ways - SLEX and Star Tollways) and more
than an hour by boat from the Batangas port. You can safely leave your vehicle at the care of paid parking areas like Park and Sail inside the port or through nearby businesses offering this service. Lastly, you'd ride a boat towards the beach. Smaller boats are naturally
cheaper than larger ferries. Other than the usually Php500 two-way boat ride to
the beach, you should also prepare funds for various fees like the terminal fee
and even an environment fee.
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| one of the terminals, boats, and inside a boat |
Lodging
Accommodation is cheaper if you scour the
place for cheap rented rooms in homes of local residents as well as other buildings
located farther from the beach front. You’d save thousands if you bring your
own tent and camp at a designated area within the beach. I’ve even seen local
fisher folks who brought their own boats to enjoy the beach and camped at their
makeshift beds inside the parked boats at night.
Food
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| the only gourmet coffee available |
Bars and restaurants are plenty along the
beach line but you won’t find popular brands unlike in Boracay. Most are
locally owned business establishments. Most offer grilled dishes like seafood,
meat, and eggplants. There’s also an abundance of itlog na maalat or what foreigners prefer to call red egg with tomatoes.
If you drink, make sure to try Mindoro Sling. It’s a mix of Tanduay rhum, mango
puree, and grenadine syrup specifically concocted for Puerto Galera. Plus,
bekis are everywhere particularly in restos and bars. :)
Like lodging, it will save you money to
dine at food places farther from the beach. You can also cook your own meal by
purchasing ingredients at a community within the beach’s proximity or through
the town proper. The town is accessible via rented motorcycles, tricycles, and
jeepneys. You’d be lucky if a jeep passes by because motorcycles are a bit expensive.
The same applies to tricycles that are hired for a single trip but you pay only
Php25 a ride for tricycles that are already on their way to town with other
passengers.
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| Mindoro Sling |
Activities
Other than swimming, pigging out, drinking,
and partying at night, you can also enjoy activities like diving, banana boat
ride, Jet Ski, para-sailing, rock climbing, and more. There’s an interesting
beach (Tamaraw) you can check out too. It’s hidden by rocks on the far left side
of the beach which offers more privacy. Be careful when crossing over through
those rocks though, they’re slippery. The floating restaurant Liki Tiki is an
eye catcher as well.
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| I made this... not! :) |
As for me, it’s the photo opportunity I
enjoyed the most. You’ll fall in love with the scenic spots to capture on film
in this paradise.
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