The Manjuyod Sand Bar is one of the best place to go in Negros Oriental, the sand bar sprouts when the tide is low, covering a 7 km of white sand beaches and is sorrounded by pristine blue green waters, truly an oasis in the middle of the sea.
To get to Bais City from Dumaguete, ask the tricyle driver to take you to the North bound bus terminal in Dumaguete although you can try the Ceres Bus terminal near the public market.
Most buses at the North Terminal are non-airconditioned. Right now, roads towards the north are under contruction and delays are inevitable and it is expected to be completed in 2-3 months.
Bais City is a small-sized city in Negros Oriental and a 2 hours away from Dumaguete. The city is famous for their dolphin watching. If you wanna go whale watching, you have to contact first the tourism office for the organized tour. The tour costs P3000 for 10 people and since I travel alone, I could not pay for that amount so what I had in mind was to visit the Sand Bar instead. The dolphin tour also includes the visit to the Sand Bar after.
Gladly I was able to ask the tricycle driver if where I can hire a boat going to Sand Bar alone. He brought me to this fishing village in Bais. I rented the whole boat for P500 and it was very worth it. I love the Sand Bar, its a must see destination.
The small boat doesn’t have amenities like life vest and a shade so I prayed that nothing will happen since I don’t know how to swim. It is also being used to go fishing in the open sea.
The Sand Bar was just an amazing place, I was totally impressed. From afar, there’s are cottages that one can rent but it can only be used if you book on a resort in Manjuyod.
For about 30 minutes, I was the only 1 in the oasis until a boat full of Japanese tourists came and a bunch of locals from the nearby town celebrating a birthday. They were very friendly, they invited me to join their feasts.
To escape the heat of the sun, you can always go under the cottages.
Next time in Bais, I wanna go Dolphin watching although I have already seen dolphin in Australia. Its better to see them in the wild displaying their natural behavior. Other must see things in Bais are the mangroves and the Bahia Hotel where one can have a view of the whole Bais Bay.