A Lifestyle guide to Bohol | Lifestyle.INQ

OCTOBER 27, 2022

once the tourists and local folk at Chocolate Hills realize it is Pia doing the shoot, they do their own selfies.
once the tourists and local folk at Chocolate Hills realize it is Pia doing the shoot, they do their own selfies.
Pia Wurtzbach doing a shoot at Chocolate Hills 

 

 

 

Best places to grab a bite

 

Bohol Bee Farm

Tarsier Botanika

Coco Vida

Saffron Restaurant (Amorita)

Giuseppe

Garden Café

L’Elephant Bleu

Buzz Café

Biergarten

Old Heidelberg Restaurant

Hayahay Pizza

JJ Seafood Restaurant

Gerarda’s

 

What to eat

 

Chicken Halang Halang—chicken cooked with coconut meat, hot chili, lemongrass and ginger

Lechon

Sutukil, or fish prepared three ways—grilled, in a soup or raw with vine

 

What to see

 

The Chocolate Hills have three viewpoints: Sagbayan Peak, the Chocolate Hills Complex in Carmen and the recently built Chocolate Hills Adventure Park, also in Carmen.

 

The Bilar man-made forest is densely planted to mahogany, stretching 2 kilometers between Loboc and Bilar. Part of the Loboc Watershed Reforestation Project, it was developed through the combined efforts of government employees, laborers, students, scouts and civic volunteers who came in droves from 1968 to the late ’70s to plant seedlings.

 

Tarsier Foundation in Corella, where you can see the famous Philippine tarsier (Carlito syrichta), measuring between 3.3 and 6.3 inches in height.

 

Dolphins off Pamilacan Island

Butterfly Farm

Punta Cruz Watchtower

Ancient cave paintings on Lamanoc Island in Anda

 

Beaches

 

Alona Beach, 40 minutes from Tagbilaran City, is one of the most developed beaches in Bohol, with shops, stores and restaurants lining the shore. It is like a little Boracay.

Doljo Beach, on the northwest side of Panglao Island, is 15 minutes from Alona beach.

Anda, roughly two hours from Tagbilaran

Balicasag Island, crystal-clear waters and a snow-white beach surround the island.

Virgin Island, 15 minutes by boat from Panglao

Momo Beach, next to Doljo Beach, offers a more rustic and private setting.

 

Where to shop for ‘pasalubong’

 

Aproniana

Nova Shell Museum Shop

Bohol Bee Farm

Baclayon church

Nicole’s Souvenirs and Gift Shop

 

For adventure seekers

 

Loboc Eco Adventure Park—zip-line/cable car above the Loboc River

Chocolate Hills Adventure Park—adventure trail/bike zip-line

Danao Adventure Park—zip-line/rappelling/wakeboarding/ATVs/horseback-riding/camping

Chocolate Hills ATVs in Carmen

 

Dive locations

Balicasag Island

Anda

Pamilacan Island

Panglao Island

Cabilao

 

Churches

 

Sta. Monica Parish Church, Albuquerque

Immaculate Conception Church, Baclayon

Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Antiquera

Our Lady of Assumption Church, Dauis

 

Heavily damaged churches

 

Sta. Cruz Parish Church, Maribojoc

Our Lady of Light Church, Loon

San Pedro Church, Loboc

The Church of Santisima Trinidad, Loay

St. Nicholas of Tolentino Church, Dimiao

St. Michael the Archangel Parish Church, Clarin

 

Where to stay

 

Panglao Island

Amorita Resort

South Palms Panglao

Bellevue Resort Bohol

Ananyana Beach Resort

Bohol Beach Club

Panglao Blue Water

 

Baclayon

Peacock Garden

Astoria Bohol Resort

 

Anda

Amun Ini Beach Resort

Anda White Beach Resort

Anda de Boracay

Amihan Resort

 

Fast facts

 

Bohol, with 47 municipalities and 1,114 barangays, is 630 km from Manila and 72 km from Cebu.

 

The Chocolate Hills number 1,776— spread over 50 square kilometers covering the towns of Carmen, Sagbayan and Batuan.   The hills are actually grass-covered limestone hills varying in size, from 30 to 50 meters in height.

 

Bohol has 47 major churches, with the ones in Baclayon, Loboc, Loon and Maribojoc declared as National Cultural Treasures. Unfortunately, the Oct. 15, 2013, earthquake damaged all of them, with the Loon and Maribojoc churches reduced to rubble.

 

The Sta. Monica Parish Church of Albuquerque, or Albur church, was constructed in 1856. The National Historical Institute declared it a National Historical Landmark in 2014.

 

The Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary Parish Church in Baclayon was first built in 1596, making it the second oldest church in the Philippines after San Agustin in Intramuros. The current structure built of coral stones was completed in 1727. Its portico and bell tower collapsed during the October 2013 earthquake.

 

 

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