If on your trip to the Philippines you’re thinking of including these 2 beautiful islands, you’re bound to wonder at some point how to get from Siargao to Malapascua. Located quite far from each other and with no direct connections, here we’re going to tell you how to link them step by step.
The first thing you need to know is that you’ll have no choice but to go via Cebu if you want to do it reasonably fast and “direct”. Another alternative is to take a fairly long route via Leyte, which may interest you if you want to include stops along the way such as Pintuyan (to swim with the whale shark) or Kalanggaman. We only recommend this itinerary if you have plenty of days, as the trip is more tiring.
At the end of the article you’ll also be able to see the reverse journey, that is, how to get from Malapascua to Siargao.
How to get from Siargao to Malapascua fast: plane + bus/van/taxi + boat
This is the fastest way to get from Siargao to Malapascua. Here’s the route step by step:
- Book a flight from Siargao to Cebu: they depart from Sayak Airport in Siargao (remember to arrange the vans with your hotel; they charge 250–300 pesos per person). Flights take roughly 1 hour and are operated by Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific Air.
There are now several flights each day, but it’s advisable to book in advance, especially if you want to save money. On dates with normal demand, if bought well in advance they usually cost €25–€30.
⚠️ We recommend taking the first flight of the morning to make sure you’ll reach Maya (the port from which boats to Malapascua depart) in time to catch the boat. Keep in mind that after 17:00–17:30 there are no more bangkas (traditional Filipino outrigger boats) to the island. Some travelers do manage, by notifying their hotels, to arrange a private boat (over 2,000 pesos), but be aware this is not guaranteed.
- Take a taxi or a bus from the airport to the North Bus Terminal: in How to get from Cebu Airport to the city center we talk about this in more detail, but you should allow around 30 minutes by taxi and about 200 pesos.
- Take a bus or a van from Cebu to Maya: these run 24 hours a day, with more frequency between 6:00 and 18:00. Buses are much more comfortable than vans, but also slower. You should allow at least 5 hours and it may be more depending on traffic leaving Cebu. With the van it’s common to save an hour. Bus fares are around 250 pesos, depending on the type. Vans charge 350 pesos.
If you want comfort and to reach Malapascua from Siargao faster, an alternative is to hire a car with driver from the airport to the port of Maya. This way you may take about 4 hours to do this leg in total. Consider that they charge around 2,500–3,500 pesos. We have the contact for one of them. If you want, leave us a comment and we’ll tell you more.
- Take the bangka from Maya to Malapascua: most likely, the bus will drop you at the new port of Maya, from where the bangkas to Malapascua depart. There you’ll see a small office where you’ll have to register as a passenger and pay. The crossing costs 200 pesos per person (plus a 120‑peso environmental fee), although, heads up, they’ll often tell you that since there aren’t enough passengers (10), you need to pay more for the boat to depart, as it costs 2,000 pesos. If you’re not in a hurry, tell them you can wait. Boats leave roughly every half hour between 7:00 and 17:00 or 17:30. They used to run at night, but it’s now common that they don’t go past 17:40—though you never know… The trip takes 30–45 minutes depending on sea conditions.
Boats usually arrive at Logon or “Barrio” beach, where a new pier has been built. We don’t know why, but sometimes they also drop off at Bounty, even though disembarking is less comfortable.
If there are no early‑morning flights and you don’t make it in time for the boats from Maya to Malapascua, don’t worry, you can stay overnight in Maya. There you have this lodging and this one are handy and right on the seafront.
How to get from Siargao to Malapascua cheap: ferry + ferry + bus/van/taxi + boat
Those who want to save a bit to get from Siargao to Malapascua because they have time or because flights from Siargao to Cebu are extremely expensive can opt to take a ferry from Surigao to Cebu. This boat runs overnight, so you also save a night’s accommodation.
Let’s go—here’s how to get from Siargao to Malapascua cheaply, step by step:
- Take a boat from Siargao (Dapa) to Surigao: the journey takes between 2 and 3 hours, depending on the type of boat. There are several a day, usually between 4:00 and 15:30. There are various companies; the only one you can book online is Evaristo and Sons, which runs a fast boat at 6:00, 9:30, 10:00 and 13:00. They take 90 minutes.
- Take a ferry from Surigao to Cebu: there are 2 companies covering this route. Cockalion Shipping departs every day except Sundays at 19:00. Starlite Ferries operates every day except Sundays at 9:00 (in the morning). In all of them you have the option to sleep in a bed, with choices between air‑conditioned or non‑air‑conditioned areas and private cabins. Prices start at 1,200 pesos. You can book online tickets for Starlite, but not for Cockalion—you’ll have to buy those at the port. The trip takes about 10 hours and they usually arrive at pier 3 or 4.
- Take a taxi from the port to the North Bus Terminal: at those hours we recommend taking a white taxi or a GRAB car. The ride will take about 10 minutes and costs approximately 100 pesos.
- Take a bus or van to Maya: we explain everything in the previous section. Here you can also opt for a car with driver. (Leave us a comment if you want us to share our contact.)
- Take a bangka from Maya to Malapascua: it’s also detailed above.
As you can see, this route to get from Siargao to Malapascua will make you invest quite a few hours.
Remember that in the Philippines things can change from one day to the next, so try to reconfirm schedules whenever possible. We try to keep articles up to date, but it’s best to double‑check with the companies.
How to get from Siargao to Malapascua via Leyte and Kalanggaman
Another way to get from Siargao to Malapascua is via Leyte. If you look at the map, you’ll see this is a huge, elongated island, so you’ll need to invest quite a few hours crossing it almost end to end. Even so, it’s a good option for those who have time and want to discover less touristic areas. In addition, if you were planning to go to Kalanggaman from Malapascua, it also gives you the option to pass through—and even stay the night to enjoy it more.
So you don’t get lost—since it can be quite confusing—here we explain in detail how to get from Siargao to Malapascua:
- Take the boat from Siargao to Surigao (from Dapa): they depart between 4:00 and 15:30. The only one you can book online is Evaristo and Sons. Some are slow and others fast; the latter are better as they take only 90 minutes.
- Take a tricycle or walk from the Eva Macapagal Passenger Terminal to Luneta Park: this shouldn’t cost you more than 10 pesos per person.
- Take a jeepney to Lipata port: at the corner of Borromeo Street and Luneta these leave as they fill up. The journey is barely 8 kilometers.
- Take a boat from Lipata to San Ricardo or Liloan: either works; there are departures until around 22:00.
- Take a bus to Ormoc: buses to this city depart from the port itself. The journey takes about 4–5 hours and the ticket is around 200 pesos, depending on the bus type. If none go to Ormoc, you can also take any to Sogod and then change to another to Ormoc.
At this point, it’s useful to know that from San Ricardo en route to Ormoc you’ll pass through Pintuyan. If you want to swim with the whale shark in the Philippines in a responsible way and you’re passing through here between November and April, don’t hesitate to stop. Afterwards you can continue your route from Siargao to Malapascua.
- Take a van or a bus from Ormoc to Palompon: note that the van is much better, as it’s much faster. It costs 150 pesos and takes 90 minutes.
- Join a boat from Palompon to Kalanggaman: there isn’t a regular “line” service linking Leyte with Kalanggaman. A boat for up to 15 people from Palompon round‑trip costs 3,000 pesos, so the price varies according to the number of passengers. You can use this as a reference to negotiate, since you’ll only use the one‑way leg. The trip takes about 45 minutes.
Bear in mind that these excursions usually leave early in the morning, so you may need to spend the night in Palompon or in Ormoc. Another alternative is to pay for the whole boat.
- Negotiate the transfer from Kalanggaman to Malapascua: you’ll need to join one of the excursions that go from Malapascua to Kalanggaman. These return around 14:30 and the round‑trip boat costs 1,300 pesos (including lunch), so a good price is 500 pesos per person. On arrival at Kalanggaman you must pay an environmental fee of 1,000 pesos per person. The crossing takes a couple of hours.
As we mentioned above, you have the possibility of spending the night on Kalanggaman. To do so, there are tents for rent and very basic huts (300/1,000 pesos). Keep in mind that in this case you’ll have to wait for the excursion boats to return, so you’ll spend much of the day. In addition, you’ll have to pay 1,500 pesos in fees instead of 1,000.
If you don’t want to go via Kalanggaman or it seems too much hassle, but you do want to go to Pintuyan, you can also go from Pintuyan to Sogod by bus and from there to Bato or Hilongos, from where ferries depart daily to Cebu. Once there, you’ll have to go to the North Bus Terminal and take a bus or van and then a boat to Malapascua.
How to get from Malapascua to Siargao
For those who want to do the journey the other way around, that is, go from Malapascua to Siargao, you just have to follow the previous steps in reverse. That is:
a) How to get from Malapascua to Siargao by plane
Step by step:
- Take the bangka from Malapascua to Maya: you can do this from Logon pier. Note that they start operating around 6:30. The ticket is 200 pesos and the trip takes 30–45 minutes.
- Take the bus or a van to Cebu: if you want to go by bus, you only need to walk a few minutes to reach the bus station. It will take between 4 and 6 hours, depending on what you choose (the bus is slower). The bus costs about 250 pesos and vans charge 350 pesos per passenger.
- Take a taxi or bus to the airport: don’t allow less than 45 minutes because traffic can be heavy at times. A taxi usually costs under 200 pesos.
- Take a flight from Cebu to Siargao: Cebu Pacific Air and Philippine Airlines have several frequencies a day. The flight lasts about 1 hour. If you buy it well in advance, it can cost less than €30.
Depending on the flight schedules, you may or may not need to spend the night in Cebu. If you don’t plan to visit the city, you can stay near the station or the airport. You’ll find tips in Where to stay in Cebu.
If you want to reach Cebu from Maya faster, it’s best to hire the services of a trusted car with driver. Leave us a comment and we’ll share our contact.
b) How to get from Malapascua to Siargao by boat
If flights are very expensive or you want to save some money, you can also choose to go from Malapascua to Siargao by combining several transport options. In detail:
- Take the bangka from Malapascua to Maya as detailed above.
- Take a bus or van to Cebu.
- Take a taxi or bus to pier 3 of the port (better a taxi if you don’t want to take forever): the ride will take about 10 minutes depending on traffic. It’s rare for it to cost you more than 100 pesos.
- Take one of the ferries from Cebu to Surigao: there are 2 companies covering the route. Cockalion Shipping departs every day except Saturdays at 19:00. Starlite Ferries operates every day except Saturdays at 21:00. Tickets cost around 1,200 pesos for a bed. You can book Starlite’s here. The trip takes about 10 hours.
- Take a boat from Surigao to Siargao: there are boats from 4:00 to 15:30. Almost all take a little over 3.5 hours, except Evaristo and Sons’ fastcfraft, which will drop you in Dapa in 90 minutes. These can be booked here, where you can also see schedules.
As you can see, the boats from Cebu to Siargao depart in the late afternoon/evening, so we recommend leaving Malapascua around 10:00 (at the latest) to reach the port comfortably.
c) How to get from Malapascua to Siargao via Kalanggaman and Leyte
If you want to kill two birds with one stone, this is another alternative to go from Malapascua to Siargao. To do so:
- Negotiate the price of the excursion from Malapascua to Kalanggaman: these depart around 9:00 and charge between 2,300 and 2,500 pesos for the full excursion (1,300–1,500 pesos for the boat and lunch and 1,000 pesos for Kalanggaman’s fees). A reasonable price for lunch+boat would be 600 pesos.
As in the reverse direction, here you also have the option to spend the night on Kalanggaman. Keep in mind that if you do so, you won’t be able to head toward Leyte until around 15:00 the following day.
- Negotiate the leg from Kalanggaman to Palompon with a boat that has come for the day’s excursion: these charge 3,000 pesos round‑trip for 15 people; depending on how many travelers you are, you’ll pay more or less. Since it’s about 45 minutes to Palompon, they usually return to shore around 15:30–16:00.
⚠️ Bear in mind that the excursion to Kalanggaman from Palompon is very popular, but it isn’t necessarily daily. If you’re afraid of being “stranded” on Kalanggaman, try to time it for a weekend to have more options.
Given the time of day, it will be a bit difficult to reach Surigao the same day. Therefore, we recommend spending the night in Ormoc.
- Take a van to Ormoc: they take 90 minutes and charge about 150 pesos.
- Take a bus to Liloan, San Ricardo or Sogod: the journey takes about 4 hours. If you’re going to Sogod, you’ll then have to change to another transport toward San Ricardo or Liloan. It will cost around 200 pesos.
If you plan to try your luck with the whale shark, tell the driver you’re getting off at Pintuyan. One or two days later you can continue your route to get from Malapascua to Siargao.
- Take a ferry from Lioan or San Ricardo to Lipata: the crossing takes about an hour and costs between 140 and 210 pesos.
- Take a jeepney to Surigao.
- Take a boat from Surigao to Siargao: we recommend Evaristo and Sons, which take only 90 minutes and can be booked online.
We hope this has been helpful! Remember you have loads of information about both islands in our Malapascua Guide and our Siargao Guide.
If you have any questions about how to get from Siargao to Malapascua, we’ll be happy to answer them in the comments. Safe travels!
