What to do in Siargao for non-surfers?
Siargao is the capital of surfing in Philippines. But what to do in Siargao for non-surfers? There are many things to do in and around the island!
Swim in the Magpupungko pool
Magpupungko pool during low tide.
I know, it is hard to pronounce this kind of name, but the place is cool. Your best option to reach it is by renting a motorbike in General Luna (where most tourists are staying) and drive with it in the direction of Pilar. Magpupungko pool is located couple of kilometers outside city of Pilar. What is so special about this pool? I can guarantee that you probably haven’t seen anything like this somewhere else – it is something like natural infinity pool surrounded by strange rock formations. Best time to go to Magpupungko pool is when it is low tide!
💲Entrance fee for Magpupungko pool: 50 pesos + 20 pesos for the parking of motorbike
📍Location of the pool: 9.875742, 126.119882
Climb the abandoned lighthouse in Siargao island
Siargao abandoned place – Lighthouse.
One of the non-touristic locations – abandoned lighthouse, which perfectly is used as a watchtower. Most of the time there are no people on the tower and around so it is a perfect place for a date in Siargao! Climb is easy and there are not too many stairs! If you are a fan of abandoned places make sure to include it in your roadtrip around the island!
💲Entrance fee: free
📍Location of the lighthouse: 9.95465 126.09806
Explore Siargao with a scooter
Siargao is great place to drive around with a scooter. Scooter rental in Siargao costs around 250-400 pesos a day, depends for how long you want to rent it. It is easy to find Honda XRM semi-automatic bikes and fully automatic scooters in most of the places.
Roads in Siargao are not busy and it is easy to drive scooter there. Make sure to have your driving license with you. If you want to rent a scooter in Siargao your best option is General Luna. There are many motorbike shops which provide rental service. Tip: try to leave money deposit instead of passport when you will rent a motorbike.
Have a swim in fresh water of Taktak falls
Waterfall in Siargao island – Taktak falls.
Taktak falls is a cool tourist attraction, it is probably the least impressive waterfall I saw in Philippines, but as it is the only waterfall in Siargao it has to be seen. It is located not far away from Santa Monica city and there is a small fee of 25 pesos to enter the falls. Depends on the time you visit them but there are high chances that you will be alone in the area!
💲Entrance fee: 25 pesos
📍Location of the pool: 10.034768, 126.042165
Siargao Wake Park
This is a new venue in Siargao, General Luna. Surfers paradise now has a place for wakeboarding. Prices start as low as 500 pesos for 90 minutes session if you are the first customer of the day. Normally it is 1000 pesos for 1 hour 30 minutes session.
Visit Tayangban Cave Pool
Tayangban Cave Pool in Siargao.
For me this place was probably the most interesting natural tourist attraction on the island. You will have to pay the entrance and guide fee of 70 pesos at the entrance and then a young guide will lead you to the entrance of the cave, after 10~ minutes of walking and swimming underground you will find yourself in a beautiful fresh water pool surrounded by small picnic areas. It is possible to jump from the cliffs into the water!
📍Location of the pool: 9.876567, 126.096766
Go to Beach or Jungle party around General Luna
Siargao is surfers paradise. And what surfers do after surfing? They party! That’s right, there are parties in Siargao almost everyday. Locations and venues are not fixed, you need to ask taxi drivers or fellow backpackers. Usually they start around 9-10PM and some of them last until the morning!
Parties in Siargao usually are free of charge, but you need to buy drinks there. Jungle disco, Rumbar, Pagoda, Viento del Mar, Harana are the places you need to look for.
Rough siargao party schedule:
- Monday: RumBar with live music and then DJs until morning.
- Tuesday: Art night at Viento del Mar, after that – Junge Disco.
- Wednesday: Sunset session at Bravo, then Reggae Party at Rum Bar.
- Thursday: Acoustic nights at Kitya’s place and Buddha’s Surf resort. You need to check which thursdays they are happening.
- Friday: Viento Friday party which happens from 7PM to 9PM. After that everyone is going to Jungle party at Tattoo.
- Saturday: Harana resort helds martini parties from 4PM. After that everyone goes to Rum Bar where DJs play music from 10PM until the morning.
- Sunday: Most of the people go to Bravo, they have After Surf Sunday party. Hotspot is the place where everyone goes to party until morning.
Let us know if you know any parties in Siargao which have fixed weekday!
Eat cheap seafood in General Luna boulevard
Siargao island best place to eat.
📍Location of the boulevard: 9.781671, 126.157756
Meet new friends and have fun with them!
Siargao is a good place to meet new friends and spend time with them. Most of the hostels organise bike trips to North part of Siargao or island hopping tours. Usually people from hostels go to parties together.
Go island hopping around Siargao
Siargao island hopping.
The Magpupungko Pool looks amazing! Island hopping sounds pretty good too! I would love to be able to travel through the Philippines, the whole country looks like something right out of a fairytale!
Irina, you are definitely right! Philippines is amazing country and there are so much things to do. Every island is different. Siargao is mainly for surfing, but there are a lot of things to do for non-surfers also in this island.
Magpupungko pool looks beautiful! But a little crowded. Do you know if there are any times to go there when there is less people? And if the cave pool is also quite popular? Great article, thanks for the ideas!
Hi Zenja, I am sure that the Magpupungko pool is less crowded early in the morning. As most of the people coming to Siargao island are party people they sleep for quite a while. That might be your chance! The cave pool is not popular when I was there. We were maybe 5-6 people in the whole cave pool. So I would say it was not crowded at all.
As a non surfer, this is a super helpful post. The lighthouse looks so cool!
Yes, the lighthouse was quite unexpected. It was quite hard to find the right road leading to this Siargao lighthouse. The views from the top are wonderful and worth the effort for sure!
This was so nicely written. Most of the time we know about a place through the typical itinerary. When someone who is not interested in that activity wants to visit, they often get lost. This post will help many.
Thanks Anshul. Have you been in Siargao island yourself?
Beautiful pics and a helpful write-up for people like me who don’t surf but love to travel!
Thanks Smita, I also hope that non-surfers in Siargao will find this post useful.
This is a super helpful post. Very nice information shared
Thank you, Rahat. I will try to update this post later as more and more things to do pop-up in Siargao.
That low tide pool looks like where I would be hanging out all day. Would never have thought to add this place to my list of places to visit. You have definitely given me something to think about.
Just be careful, because when the tide is high then this pool in Siargao gets dangerous! Island of Siargao is definitely a nice place to visit for both – surfers and non-surfers.
Having this stunning waterfall to yourself for as little as 25 pesos sounds great to me! I love how clear the water is at Magpupungko pool too. Thanks for sharing!
Jaz
Jaz, actually there are much more beautiful waterfalls in Philippines. But this one is the most popular in Siargao.
This looks so amazing! That first swimming spot is so blue and beautiful! I can’t wait to make it to the Philippines!
Yup, Magpupungko pool is great spot to hang out and meet fellow travellers. Enjoy your time in the country!
Anything to do there for Couchsurfers? 🙂 Heh. I think any beach has something to do besides surfing. Swimming and relaxing is something I like doing after a challenging trip.
Actually, haven’t checked if there are any couchsurfing hosts in Siargao, but I believe there should be someone! Also, couchsurfing hangouts should work well as there are many fellow travellers.
I am not a surfer, so I really appreciate these ideas of how to have a good time at a surfers’ mecca. I so see myself taking a dip into the Magpupungko pool !
I am also non-surfer so thought there might be other people like I am. That’s why I wrote this mini guide for others.
It’s great to know that Siargao has so many things to do for non-surfers like me. Island hopping is one of my favorite things to do. Magpupungko pool looks cool 🙂
Actually there are not so much things to do, but it’s getting better and better with various ventures opening. There are also parties almost everyday in different bars.
I do love to surf so think I would spend most of my time doing that! But I do love the Taktak waterfalls 😀
Sometimes you need to have a rest, Emilio! Injuries might occur :))
Siargao seems really incredible! It has so many unique places. The Magpupungko pool looks like to be one of it’s kind and such a cool place to chill. Also the Taktak falls and Tayangban Cave Pool are very interesting. Thanks for introducing me to this wonderful place.
I am glad that you enjoyed reading the article, Anjali. Cave pool in Siargao is a cool place to spend couple of hours. Magpupungko pool was probably my favorite attraction on the island as a non-surfer.
Very nice bucket list for those like myself who don’t surf. Taktak falls looks gorgeous. I’d really like to explore this area!
The falls are not the most impressive ones in Philippines. But once you are in Siargao they are worth to check.