Among three of the coves in San Antonio, Anawangin cove is more popular than Nagsasa and Talisayin. It is a crescent shaped cove with a pristine white sand beach. What makes the place unique is the unusual riddle of tall pine-like trees flourishing round its vicinity. In fact they are not pine trees; they are Agoho trees, a species endemic to the Philippines. That makes it look like baguio and boracay in one place! amazing huh?
There are no roads going to Anawangin. It is only accessible by a 30-45 minute boat ride from the shore of Pundaquit, San Antonio, or by a five to six-hour trek through the Pundaquit range. The cove’s relative isolation has kept it free from development. Take note that there are no resorts on this sparkling piece of natural beauty, the only way is to bring a tent. Just behind the beach is the pine forest and a marsh, where you can find natural springs feeding to the sea. The area is home to a number of fish and bird species. There are also bridges that connects the pine forest to the sandy beach area.
Wondering how to get to anawangin cove? here’s how:
- From the bus terminal behind Robinsons Starmills, ride a bus going to Iba or Sta. Cruz, Zambales, (163php) and get off at San Antonio Public Market. You may also travel by bus to Olongapo City, and then board another bus to San Antonio.
- Take a tricycle to Pundaquit (20php per person/ 60php if you’re travelling alone.)
- In Pundaquit, rent a boat to Anawangin. (dont worry, there are lots of boatmen offering boat rentals in pundaquit.)
boat rentals and tour rates:
- Anawangin Cove only: 1200php
- Anawangin Cove + Capones Island + Camara Island: 1500php
Note: A boat can ferry up to 4 persons. Those figures are per boat.So you’ll divide it on how many you are in a group.
The boatman also offers tent, stove, snorkel rentals.
- entrance fee: 50php
- overnight camping fee: 100php
You might wanna consider checking in at a resort in Pundaquit proper, if you’re not really into camping. There are resorts that offers cheap accommodations if you’re on a tight budget.
Here are some tips you might want to consider before camping in anawangin cove:
- tent-bring your own tent, or ask a friend who owns one. If you’re planning on renting one(which btw costs 400php), scrap it, just buy on a hardware store. you can find a tent that costs 700php (cheaper than you thought)
- water– water is precious and gold in an isolated area. In our case, we bought 1 container of water in our boatman (50php)
- food– again, everything in a secluded area is pricey. Bring easy to prepare food. Cupped noodles, canned goods, bread are best to bring.
- flashlight– want a simple life overnight? Bam! no electricty 🙂
- can opener and knife- how would you open those canned goods? try to open it with your teeth. lol kidding!
- sunblock– the only thing that protects your skin from the heat of sun.
- powerbanks– they also have a charging station in the island but it costs 50php per hour. Well?.. just bring you own.
- camerahhhh– capture every moment beybeh!
Total Damage per person:
If you’re planning an overnight trip at Anawangin Cove with your friends, here are some figures that you might want to take note of. These are not exact amounts.
- 163php – Bus fare to San Antonio, Zambales
- 200php – food share and other expenses (like water, ice, snorkel rental, etc.)
- 20php – tricycle fare
- 428php – boat rental ( we are 7 in our group so we divided our boat rental expense)
- 200php – stove rental (if you have a portable stove at home, just bring it instead of renting one)
Total: 1,011php
Other expenses you might consider:
- stove rental – 200php
- snorkel rental – 100php
- bonfire wood – 150 per bundle
- 1 container of water – 50php
- ice – 50php
Voila! That’s just it! Bring your own food/ buy from the Public Market in San Antonio to save money (had an experience in buying a piece of small egg in anawangin, it cost 10php that wouldve cost 5php in market. Haha!). And if you’re planning to rent a tent, ditch it. Just buy one or borrow from a friend.
Here is the number of mang Johnny the boatman, he is very nice and trusted. 🙂
09202224687
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