Southern Cebu has quickly become a major adventure and tourist destination, thanks to its beautiful river systems and majestic waterfalls along that serve as a stage to myriad of daring activities such as waterfall chasing, river trekking and canyoneering. Experience all these in Kanlaob River, South Cebu’s ultimate adventure destination.
The four-kilometer downstream canyoneering course in Kanlaob River starts in Barangay Compostela in the town of Alegria and ends in Kawasan Falls of Barangay Matutinao in the town of Badian. The journey involves trekking, waterfall sliding, cliff jumping, crawling, swimming and floating along the scenic stretch of the river.
The adventure starts with a jump off an 18 feet cascade and ends with 45 feet jump off the second level of Kawasan Falls. Wait! What? Forty-five feet jump? Don’t worry, it is optional. 🙂
The entire journey takes around 3 to 4 hours to complete and at the end of course, you may enjoy the cold water of the beautiful Kawasan Falls.
So how much does canyoneering in Kanlaob River costs? The standard rate for canyoneering is P2,100 per person inclusive of guide fee, all entrance and registration fees, motorbike transport, meals, and use of lifevest, helmet and shoes. I recommend my guide, Jun-jun Luardo (ContactNo: +639358595257). He is very professional yet funny, kind and a very good photographer. 😀
If you do not have a waterproof camera, there are GoPro rental on site for P500, bring your own memory card.
How to Get to Canyoneering Site
Your guide may meet you at road leading to Kawasan Falls in Barangay Matutinao of Badian or at the road leading to Kanlaob River in Barangay Madridejos of Alegria. To get there:
From Cebu City
From the capital of the province, catch a Librando and Ceres buses going to Bato (Santander) via Barili in South Cebu Bus Terminal. Fare starts at P110 for non-aircon bus, P130 for aircon. Get off at Kawasan Falls in Matutinao or in Kanlaob River in Barangay Madridejos. From there, you will have to hire a habal-habal or a single motorcycle to take you to Barangay Compostela, the starting point of the canyoneering adventure.
You can book your bus ticket from Cebu City to Bato (Santander) below.
BOOK YOUR BUS FROM CEBU TO BATO (SANTANDER)
From Oslob
From Oslob, catch a trike or multicab to Bato and transfer to a bus to Cebu via Barili. Get off at Kawasan Falls in Matutinao or in Kanlaob River in Barangay Madridejos. From there, you will have to hire a habal-habal or a single motorcycle to take you to Barangay Compostela, the starting point of the canyoneering adventure.
From Dumaguete
Coming from Dumaguete City, Kawasan Falls can be reach within three hours. From downtown Dumaguete, catch a minibus or multicab to Sibulan Port for a minimum fare of P8. From Sibulan Port, take a pumpboat to Bato (Santander) for P50, terminal fee included. Upon reaching the Port of Bato, transfer to a bus to Cebu via Barili and get off at Kawasan Falls in Matutinao or in Kanlaob River in Barangay Madridejos. From there, you will have to hire a habal-habal or a single motorcycle to take you to Barangay Compostela, the starting point of the canyoneering adventure.
*Originally Published: 02-Aug-2015 | Updates: 14-Sep-2017; 29-Apr-2020; 01-Nov-2023
Does Canyoneering requires you to know how to swim?
Not really. You’ll be wearing lifevest on the entire course. 🙂
Fantastic! I for one is really interested in heart pumping activities like this. But my problem is that I want to know when is the best time to go to cebu? Like when the air fare is low and sort?