Twin Rock Resort, Catanduanes

Catanduanes is an island province located in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the 12th-largest Island in the Philippines. Its capital is Virac and the province lies to the east of Camarines Sur across Maqueda Channel (Source: Wikipedia).

Where is it located?

Location: Barangay Igang in Virac Catanduanes.

How to get to Catanduanes from Manila

2019 Fare rates

By Air

A couple of months before there was a seat sale in Philippine airlines. Luckily I was able to book a flight for 3 people amounting ₱400.00. Dates we’ve chosen were October 15 to 18, 2019 and to me it’s not enough to enjoy the happiness we can get from this wonderful island. As far as I know, there are two operating airlines to Virac Catanduanes which are CebuPacific and Philippine airlines.

The usual Airfare from Manila to Virac is ranging from ₱1,500 to ₱3,000 depends on the chosen dates. Once you get to Viract Airport, there are tricycles outside and it would cost ₱100 to get you to Viract Center.

By Land

Source: thepinaysolobackpacker.com

Step 1:

Several buses leave from Manila (Cubao, Pasay, and Alabang) to Tabaco, Albay. Depending on the company, buses from Cubao and Pasay may pick up a booked passenger in Alabang. RSL, Philtranco, and DLTB have offices in Alabang in front of Starmall and they usually do this. So if you live in south Manila, you can ride in Alabang, no need to go to Pasay or Cubao.

Bus fare for air-conditioned buses ranges from ₱840 to ₱1,215 depending on the bus company and type of bus. Non-air-conditioned buses are way cheaper. Travel time is approximately 11 – 12 hours.

Alternatively, if you miss the bus to Tabaco from Manila, you can just ride any bus route to Legazpi. At Legazpi City bus terminal, walk to the van terminal or jeep terminal and ride the van or jeep to Tabaco.

Step 2:

From Tabaco, ride a pedicab to Tabaco Port. Take note that Catanduanes has two ports: Virac Port and San Andres Port.

Ferry fare to Virac is ₱320 (air-con) and ₱240 (non-aircon), travel time is about 4 hours. I recommend Virac as a base due to the abundance of hotels there. Meanwhile, ferry fare to San Andres is roughly ₱290 (air-con), ₱ 220 (non-aircon) and discounted-Student/Senior Citizen fare is ₱176. The terminal fee is ₱30. See the ferry schedule between Tabaco and Catanduanes below.

At Tabaco Port. Buy your ferry tickets and pay the terminal fee.

There’s also a fast craft ferry from Tabaco to Catanduanes. The transit time is roughly 2 hours. See fast craft schedule below.

Tabaco to Catanduanes Ferry Schedule

Ferry and fast craft schedules may change without prior notice.

Our Itinerary consists of two days of travel to different parts of Catanduanes. The first day was to spend the whole day in Twin Rock resort. This blog is all about Twinrock Resort.

The green hills envelopes it as it feels secured and serene under the guardianship of its two sentinels the Viracnons call the twin rock. They don’t look like twins, with the inner rock much bigger than the outer one, anyone can imagine that they must have been born years apart. Nature must have so designed them to stand majestically.

How to get to Twin Rock Resort

Location: Barangay Igang in Virac Catanduanes.

It is so difficult to find someone who could offer you reasonable fare rates. Instead, what we did is to take local transportation. The most tricycle has the list of fare cost for a specific distance that can make them ashame if they would ask for more. From the city proper to TwinRock Resort we paid ₱100 for the three of us, that’s not bad because the first couple of drivers we have spoken with asking us to pay ₱300 or more.

Twin Rock Resort Rates 2018

Beach Entrance Fee: ₱50/person (Adults) ₱35/person (Children)
Pool Entrance Fee: (Until 10:00 pm only) Php75/person (Adults) ₱50/person (Children)
Open Cottage Lawn Cottage Regular: Php300/whole day -good for 5-6 persons
Lawn Cottage Big: ₱500/whole day -good for 10-15 persons
Bench Beachfront: ₱150/whole day -good for 2-4 persons
Corkage Fee: Drinks beer Php150/case Php10/bottle * Soft drinks Php100/case Php10/bottle * Hard liquor Php100/bottle

Water Sports Activities:

• Kayak Big ₱150/hour (good for 2 persons) Small ₱100/hour(good for 1 person)
• Zipline (Until 5:00 pm only) ₱100 per head/ride
• Wall Climb (Until 5:00 pm only) ₱50/climb
• Rappel (Until 5:00 pm only) ₱50 per head/jump
• Body Surf ₱50/head

Where to stay

Just so you know TwinRock resort also offers a room where you could stay overnight. Please Click Here to see their updated rates.

It’s kinda difficult to find a cheap hotel through online booking. What I did was to find someone who lives in Catanduanes and ask her if she has something to refer to. Luckily, her family has an Inn and they have a facebook page (Villa Tolledo Tourist Inn) where you could inquire and see the rooms. We took advantage of their regular fan room good for 3 people since it’s not that hot when we went to Catanduanes.

But if you are the type of person who would prefer to spend money on luxury hotels, you can try to search for it on the banner below.

How to get back to Virac Center

If you don’t have a service you can take their public transportation, however the only available is a tricycle that could accommodate up to 5 people. This part is rural so please expect you would have to wait that long before you can ride. Fare per person is ₱20 that would take you to Virac center.