Quezon Adventure: Puting Buhangin in Pagbilao by Car

Before you even think of doing this…let me tell you now… I don’t recommend this route especially when you’re driving a sedan, unless you live in the outskirts of Pagbilao. But I do recommend going to Puting Buhangin by boat. It really is beautiful.

This is what we spent = We gassed up: P300, We had to pay entrance: P40, We took a boat from parking to Puting Buhangin: P250, We paid entrance to the beach itself: P100, We took a boat back to the Parking Lot: P250, We had to pay for parking: P100 = We spent about P1100 for this trip and it took us an hour to get to Puting Buhangin from Silangang Nayon…but if we took the boat for two, it would’ve costed only P850 and about 20 minutes to get to the island. Oh well, it was a good drive. I got to at least test some touring skills and avoiding ugly rocks on the road because I was driving a sedan (driving a 4×4 would be sheer fun!).

I just think we left our hotel too late for this day trip. Going to the Team Energy Powerplant entails you to drive way past the Pagbilao town proper and go all around the mountains until you get to the waterway that separates Pagbilao from the Pagbilao Grande Island. There is a very long drive of winding roads…sometimes uninhabited…and you can just hope that the powerplant is already around the corner. All we had was the idea that we needed to go straight. GPS and cells do not work in this area, so if you are wanting to brave and drive this long road, you’re car better be in tip-top shape!

The only thing that cut our day short was Mig’s sea urchin mishap (yes, you have to wear slippers or aqua socks while swimming because there are a LOT of sea urchins in the water, as well as other unsuspecting wildlife) and the fear that the roads on the way out to the highway would be pitch black. Despite all the things we endured on the way, Puting Buhangin was truly paradise.

Coarse white sand, light green and very clear water and a really nice cave on the side. The mangroves and powerplant are an amazing site as well. The waters were aquamarine and the rocks made me think of the movie, “The Beach”