Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach are two incredible spots near Siargao Island and part of the island-hopping day-trip, which includes Sugba Lagoon. Kawhagan is a stand-alone island with a short sandbar, it’s incredible at low-tide. Pamomoan is a fantastic beach on Caob Island with a small restaurant, huts to relax in and, of course, hundreds of coconut palms.
I visited both Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach as part of my day-trip tour that includes Sugba Lagoon. In this blog post, I’ll detail how to book the same tour, what was included and what to expect at each of the locations.
WHERE ARE KAWHAGAN ISLAND & PAMOMOAN BEACH
Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach are west of the popular surf island Siargao in the south of the Philippines. There are a number of smaller islands nearby Siargao that are popular for island hopping, the most popular route is the day-trip to Daku, Guyam, and Naked Island. However, to reach Kawhagan Island and nearby Pamomoan Beach from Siargao, you will drive up to Del Carmen port and take the boat from there so it is a shorter ride. There is a map with the pin-point direction at the bottom of this blog post.
HOW TO BOOK YOUR TOUR
The best way to reach Kawhagan and Pamomoan is with part of a tour that takes you to both locations and Sugba Lagoon all in one day. This is the tour that I did and it’s pretty nice. After being driven in a van from General Luna you cruise through the mangroves to Sugba Lagoon where you get 2-3 hours to enjoy and jump on the diving boards. Then in the afternoon, you relax at Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach.
You can book a tour online pretty simply. The best one I know if is online with Klook (all the others online are overpriced). I’ll drop the link here to the activity booking page for the tour I went on: Sugba Lagoon Day Tour (+2 other islands) The tour also includes a visit to Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach. You can also book at one of the vendors or tour operators in General Luna.
Back in 2017, we had mopeds and managed to source a local boat driver to take us to Sugba Lagoon and back for 1500 pesos total for the entire boat. We found the boat driver at the wharf near Del Carmen overlooking the mangrove forest. This is definitely the DIY version of visiting Sugba Lagoon and it isn’t super easy to figure out but all things going well you should be able to find a local at Del Carmen or the wharf who will be willing. There was no cheap tour like the one I linked above, which we definitely would have chosen. I think back then it was around $50 USD per person from what we heard so we made our own route but for just $20 USD you can get there with the online booking here: Sugba Lagoon Day Tour (+2 other islands)
MY EXPERIENCE AT KAWHAGAN ISLAND AND PAMOMOAN BEACH
I’ve written a pretty extensive blog post about Sugba Lagoon, so if you want to read about that location you can do so at the following link: SUGBA LAGOON FROM SIARGAO ISLAND
However, in this blog post, I will focus on Kawhagan Island and Pamomoan Beach even though you can do all three spots on the one tour as I detailed above.
PAMOMOAN BEACH
Our tour began at Sugba Lagoon, which was awesome but the second half of the day was all about the beaches. Our first stop was to Pamomoan Beach where we would have lunch. It was a great spot for lunch because the eating area at Sugba Lagoon can be a bit hectic and it isn’t known for its kitchen. When we arrived at Pamomoan, we had a nice table under the coconut palms, which looked out over towards Kawhagan Island. It was lunch with a view and doesn’t get much better.
The lunch was pretty good considering it was on a remote beach in the middle of nowhere. We had vegetarian curries, but there were lots to choose from on the menu. Beware the portions are huge.
The activities to do here at Pamomoan are sun-baking on the beach, swimming, snorkeling and exploring the hundreds of palm trees. While we were waiting for lunch, I sent the drone up to capture some images of the island and the surrounding reef. The beach itself is connected to Caob Island, which is actually the same landmass where you find Sugba Lagoon. It’s on the other side, separated by dense forest and hills.
KAWHAGAN ISLAND
In my opinion, this is one of the prettiest islands in the vicinity of Siargao. Like many of the islands around it is covered in coconut palms and has just a few huts inside. However, the island has a beautiful sandbar, which at the correct low tide, you can walk out on and look back at the island. In the pictures below you can see us sitting out in a couple of inches of water looking back towards Kawhagan. It was incredibly relaxing and such a unique experience.
You can purchase a beer or a coconut on Kawhagan Island and it’s a great spot to watch sunset aswell. You can swim here and snorkel also but it isn’t the most incredible reef as you can see from the aerial shots.
We stayed out here till about 4 pm, which is when we had to make tracks back to Del Carmen for the 5 pm curfew time for the boats to be back. However, if you can find a way, sunset out on Kawhagan is meant to be magical.
KAWHAGAN ISLAND & PAMOMOAN BEACH MAP LOCATION
WHERE I SUGGEST TO STAY ON SIARGAO
Budget Hostel in General Luna: The White House: The best budget option for dorm style/hostel accommodation on Siargao Island is called The White House in General Luna. For just $10 a night you can grab yourself a dorm bed.
Value Pick in General Luna: Lampara Siargao Boutique Hostel: Lampara Siargao is an oceanfront boutique hostel conveniently situated on the exotic island of Siargao.
Luxury Pick in General Luna: Nay Palad Hideaway: Nay Palad Hideaway is one of the most luxurious accommodations in the Philippines. With its beautiful outdoor pool, terrace with either garden or ocean views, comfy seating areas, and is the resort you will see featured on Instagram all the time!
Nay Palad Hideaway Resort
WHERE I STAYED ON SIARGAO ISLAND
Siargao is pretty straightforward when it comes to picking a region to stay. 90% of people choose to stay somewhere near General Luna. All of the bars, restaurants, tours, ports, and hotels are near General Luna and Cloud 9 surf break. There are a couple of other regions you could stay in like Pacifico but unless you are purposely looking for isolation, General Luna is your spot. So what are my suggestions for where to stay in General Luna?
First, I’ll tell you where I stayed. Because I stayed for over a month, I managed to find an Airbnb. It was 4 blocks back from the beach, had wi-fi, A/C, a private bathroom, patio and inside were just two bunk beds. It was super basic and I stayed here with two mates and my sister. It was 900 USD for the entire month, which we split four ways so it was just $225 each. There’s a photo below of our sweet Airbnb pad on Siargao Island.
Save money in Siargao by staying at an Airbnb! Get a FREE $40 Airbnb Coupon by using my code when you book!
Best time to visit Siargao Island
The best time to visit Siargao depends on what you are looking for. Many consider the best time of year when the weather is best but that also means crowds. I will give you a few options below about when is the best month to visit Siargao Island:
September: Siargao hosts the ‘Cloud 9 Surfing Cup’ each September, an official WSL Pro event
July – November: The best time period for surfing in Siargao is July until November. The easterly Mindanao current provides the islands with waves that came from the deepest regions of the Pacific.
March-May: If you aren’t as interested in the surf but are craving that sun. March until May should bring you guaranteed sunny days. But it’s the Philippines so you can’t guarantee it.
Where is Siargao Island Located
Siargao is located in the region of Mindanao in the Philippines. Mindanao is the southern region of the Philippines.
How to get to Siargao Island
When I visited in 2017 there was only one flight a day from Manila and one from Cebu. Now there are 10-15 flights a day so the question of how to get to Siargao has become much easier. Without going into deep detail on every single option. These are the options for how to get to Siargao:
- Fly from Manila $90-$100
- Fry from Cebu $90-$100
- Ferry from Surigao City to Siargao Island $5
There are ferries that leave from Manila and Cebu but they go to Surigao City first and then Siargao Island.
ARE YOU FOLLOWING MY SIARGAO SERIES OF BLOGS
Sunset: 11 AWESOME SUNSET SPOTS ON SIARGAO ISLAND
Cliff Jumps: 9 CLIFF JUMPING SPOTS IN SIARGAO
Where to Stay: WHERE TO STAY ON SIARGAO ISLAND
Island Hopping: SIARGAO ISLAND HOPPING – GUYAM, DAKU & NAKED ISLAND
Ultimate Guide: 40 AWESOME THINGS TO DO ON SIARGAO
Itinerary & Expenses: SIARGAO ITINERARY & EXPENSES ULTIMATE TRAVEL GUIDE
Sohoton Cove Itinerary: SOHOTON COVE NATIONAL PARK TOUR – CAVES AND LAGOONS
Visit Sugba Lagoon: SUGBA LAGOON FROM SIARGAO ISLAND
Hidden Lake on Poneas Island: DISCOVER THE HIDDEN LAKE OF PONEAS ISLAND, SIARGAO
MORE PHILIPPINES BLOGS
I have also visited many other places in the Philippines that you may want to add to your itinerary and remove one of. the locations I visited. There is no right way to travel to the Philippines. The reality is that you will miss some awesome places no matter what Philippines backpacking route you take. You can check out the links below to my other Philippines backpacking guides.
Caramoan: CARAMOAN ISLAND HOPPING
Romblon Island: ROMBLON TRAVEL GUIDE: 17 AWESOME THINGS TO DO
Tablas Island: TABLAS ISLAND TRAVEL GUIDE: 20 AWESOME THINGS TO DO
Sibuyan Island: SIBUYAN ISLAND TRAVEL GUIDE: 9 AWESOME THINGS TO DO
Sohoton Cove: SOHOTON COVE NATIONAL PARK TOUR – CAVES AND LAGOONS
Carabao Island: CARABAO ISLAND TRAVEL GUIDE: 5 THINGS TO DO
Cebu Itinerary: CEBU 5-DAY ITINERARY – DETAILED ADVENTURE TRAVEL GUIDE
Cebu Things To Do: 16 AWESOME THINGS TO DO ON CEBU
Philippines Backpacking Guide: PHILIPPINES BACKPACKING: 2019 BUDGET TRAVEL GUIDE
Ultimate Philippines Itinerary: ULTIMATE PHILIPPINES TRAVEL ITINERARY FOR 3-4 WEEKS