Summer is near! And summer brings to mind beaches, white sand and calm waves perfect for swimming!
Few hours ago, Cebu Travel Bloggers and road trippers Doi (The Travelling Feet), Titus (Field Trip Boy) and Penfires 🙂 finally started on our plan of visiting Mactan beach resorts so we can put up blog posts with information on affordable white sand beach options here in Mactan Island. Mactan beaches are the nearest ones to Cebu City!
This is by no means a complete guide yet as I plan on having informational blogs for cheap, mid-range and high end Cebu beach resorts so those who are looking for resorts to stay and visit will have more options to choose from.
I am not connected with any of the resorts we have visited. We went there like regular visitors inquiring for cottage rates, room capacity, island hopping boat rental fees, entrance fees per person, group rate discounts, etc and luckily we were also able to take some photos of the beaches and the resort area so you can hopefully imagine what these cheap beach resorts in Mactan with white sands (some do not have) looks like. Where you will want to stay is up to you 🙂
Shoreline of a cheap beach resort in Mactan Island 🙂
There will be no Penfires recommendations yet but probably you’ll read some insights here and there, but official recommendation probably not, until I’ve visited samples of not expensive Mactan beaches as well as those with average price ranges and those considered as first class resorts so I can compare on access, rates, beach activities, facilities etc hehehe. Maybe suggestions for best beach resort per category would be better 
We saw tourists parasailing on the waters of Mactan during our resort hop =)
Please click below for the details and some photos on the following beach resorts you can find along the area of Marigondon in Mactan Island, Cebu (in the order of our resort hopping ). Some of them offer diving tutorials and packages to guests too. Hopefully you can pick one for your next summer getaway and vacation! 😛
By the way, these beach establishments are relatively close to each other and in case you don’t feel what you see when you arrive, you can always take a short walk to check out the next one. I’ll be writing the posts whenever I have free time, so please bear with me if there are some delays. Please click on the resort name to get to the post with pics and details of the resort.
Budget Resorts in Mactan
Then we went back on the road and drove 1 kilometer or so to get to the second set below, area is still Marigondon in Mactan Island but on a slightly different side than the first set of resorts above:
Mactan Blue Reef Island Resort and Hotel
Tonggo Beach Resort
Ocean Pearl Beach Resort
Affordable Beach resorts on the Maribago and Punta Engano side ( have not visited recently yet):
Hadsan Beach Resort
Karancho Beach Resort
Separate beach resort on Sta Rosa Island, across Mactan Island ( I went there mid last year) :
Sta Rosa Shalala Beach in Olango
How to go to these Mactan beach resorts in Marigondon?
Unfortunately these beach resorts in Marigondon are far from the main road, and to go there you can hire a taxi or the cheapest way would be to ‘pakyaw’ or ‘arkila’ a tricycle. Pakyaw means you will rent the whole tricycle even if you are solo or with some friends, you will be charge for a single trip not per head. Tricycles can accommodate up to 5 persons, sometimes 6 pax.
You can have the tricycle drop you off in your chosen Mactan resort and then have the same one pick you up at an agreed time.
For one way trip from Lapu – Lapu Mercado or Opon Market, average pakyaw charge is P80 to P100 per trip. If you ask the tricycle driver to fetch you after say 5 hours or at 6pm or at a contracted time, a premium will be charged average around P200 to P230. Now, if you contract the driver for this set-up, you usually will pay after he comes back and fetch you as insurance that he will come back and fetch you. Though I would appeal to also please honor your agreement with the driver and not leave the resort on your own.
Direction Tip:
If you do not know how to go to Opon Mercado, you can always just go to Tamiya terminal. If you are coming from the Mactan airport and wants to commute, take the yellow multicab and get off in Marina Mall. And then in Marina Mall take another multicab bound to Tamiya. And in Tamiya terminal you find a tricycle and negotiate with the driver.
Local kids enjoying the sand and sun in a beach resort in Mactan
Cebu White Sand Beaches outside of Mactan: North and South
The cheapest beach resorts with long stretch of real fine white sand in Cebu can usually be found on North Cebu or South Cebu. This is a bit far from Cebu City but the trip will be worth it. You can easily go these outskirts Cebu resorts via buses or private vehicle. Below are sample of these resorts and places, which are often times less crowded than the selections in Mactan:
Malapascua Island
Town of Moalboal
Town of Dalaguete – Public Beach
Mid Level to High-End Resort
The following Cebu beaches are very popular especially among foreign tourists, and you can read lots of online reviews about these Mactan resorts. Hopefully, I’ll be able to include a review of these world-class resorts in Mactan, Cebu. These are a bit pricier and the average Cebuanos can’t afford them.
Shangri-la Mactan Resort and Spa
Moven Pick Resort and Spa
JPark Island Resort and Waterpark
Maribago Bluewaters Beach Resort
Cebu Beach Club
Crimson Beach Resort and Spa Mactan
Cebu Tambuli Beach Club
You can start searching for hotels in Mactan, Lapu Lapu City, use this search box:
When are you coming to Cebu?
wow! 😀
Perfect of a summer get away.