Samar is located is an island in the Visayas, within central Philippines and the third largest island in the country. The island is divided into three provinces: Samar province (the western two-fifths of the island of Samar), Northern Samar province, and Eastern Samar province. These three provinces, along with the provinces on the nearby islands of Leyte and Biliran are part of the Eastern Visayas region. It is also known for river trips and white water rafting in Borongan and Guiuan, and diving in Divinuvo Island. The rare and valuable Golden Cowry Shell can be found in Sulangan beach. Other natural attractions include Hamorawon Spring and Suhutan, Locso-on and Ganap Caves. Historical sites include Homonhon Island, where Magellan first landed, and the Eugenio Salazar House. Churches include Guiuan's Church of the Immaculate Conception, built in the 16th century, and Borongan Cathedral.
Sohoton Cave
GETTING THERE By Land:
There are bus terminals in Pasay City and in the Cubao area in Quezon City. Buses here travel daily with trips scheduled to leave night and day. The bus ride will last for 12 hours until you get to the southernmost town in Luzon Island, which is Matnog in the province of Sorsogon. From Matnog, you'll take the ferry. Your bus will take you to the terminal in Samar after getting off the ferry. The bus you take will usually stop every three or four hours at a restaurant or other terminal that you'll pass by along the way. You have a chance to stretch your legs and eat along the way to make the trip a bit easier. Some of the bus companies that take this route are Victory Liner, CUL Transport, Philtranco Bus, Silverstar, and Eaglestar bus.
By Air:
There are flights from Manila going to Tacloban City scheduled daily. The flight from Manila will take one hour and thirty minutes. Ticket costs for this flight will range from P2,000 to P3,500 for a one way trip. However, there are many flight promos so it will be worth your while to take a bit of time to scout for promotional offers from various airlines. Some promotional offers even slash the prices down even lower than P2,000 for that same one way ticket. Philippine Airlines are Cebu Pacific examples of airlines in the country that have flights scheduled to Tacloban City.
Biri Island
GETTING AROUND Local mini buses ply from Catbalogan City to Tacloban City in Leyte and vice-versa and from Catbalogan to Calbayog and Catarman, Northern Samar and vice-versa. The schedule of inter-provincial run of local mini buses is irregular since it is dependent on the volume passengers and the pace of passengers loading into the buses.
Lobo Cave
LET’S GO TO FESTIVAL & EVENTS
Embajada Festival – this festival portray the Christianization of the Spanish conquistadores and the native Filipinos who embraced the religion after putting up a courageous resistance. During the festivities, people fill the streets dancing to the tunes of both old and new music. Generous servings of food are prepared by the people and are served at the town center before night falls.
Northern Samar Founding Anniversary - A week-long celebration that ends every 19th of June, this a celebration of the founding anniversary of Northern Samar.
Padul-ong – Held on September 8 of every year to commemorate the Lady of Nativity, the patroness of Borongan. The festival is a mythological re-enactment of how the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary mysteriously arrived in Borongan fromPortugal and its connection to the Lady in white who stayed in the Hamorawon Spring and caused it to have its miraculous powers.
Embajada Festival
Facts and Trivia’s
Biri Island is World Famous for its Rock Formations & Surfing, while there are many good Scuba Diving Reefs, fishing, Fresh Fish & Sea Foods on offer. It was in Eastern Samar where Ferdinand Magellan landed in Homonhon Island in the town of Guiuan on March 16, 1521. Calbiga Cave – the Philippines’ biggest karst formations and one of the largest in Asia, the 2,968-hectare cave system is composed of 12 caves with wide underground spaces, unique rock formations and sub-terranean watercourse.
BEST TIME TO TRAVEL
The best time to go to Samar is between the months of January and September. The island towns of San Antonio, Capul, San Vicente and Biri are along the San Bernardino Strait, notorious for its rampaging currents during the monsoon months of October to December.
Divinubo Island
