My trip to Davao in 2009 with a group of friends was probably the most “sulit” trip I have ever done in 3 years of traveling. We were able to see and do lots of things with a meager budget (around Php5000) for 4days and 3 nights’ jaunt in the largest city in the Philippines. It would have not been possible without the help of Rhoha, a local of Davao whom Mayo met on a mountaineering forum while researching our trip. She graciously helped us in plotting our itinerary and guiding us around during our jam-packed adventure in Davao.
“What do you want to see and do in Davao?” was her first and only question before she came up with an epic itinerary that created endearing memories of Davao in each of us. We all agreed we wanted to see everything there is to see from parks, to museums, to temples, as well as do as many adventures we could within the budget and time we have for this trip.
And that was exactly what we ended up doing. (Here is my best one day itinerary so far that happened on our first day in Davao.)
DAY 1
6:00am – Arrive at Davao International Airport.
We were welcomed by Rhoha at the airport and were picked up by the jeepney that we rented for 3 days. Picture-taking started with the gigantic durian and more…
7:00am to 9:30am – Check-in at Ponce Suites
Ponce Suites is a “must visit” place in Davao even if you are staying in another hotel. It has an overwhelming collection of paintings, sculptures and various art installations. We had late breakfast here and a bit of rest before we set off for our first destination.
9:45 am to 10:15am – Visit Davao Museum
The Davao Museum features handicrafts, instruments and information about the way of life of various tribes like the Mandaya, B’laan, Tiboli, Manobo, Mansaka and Baghobo. It also showcases a collection of artifacts from various historical periods and artworks like ceramics, sculptures and wood carving. (Lanang)
10:30am to 11:00pm – Visit T’boli and Weaving Center
We visited the showroom of T’boli Weaving Center where we bought some souvenirs. They sell tribal jewelry, fashion accessories and bags, belts and clothing decorated with beads and embroidery. Then we visited the handicraft shop/factory where local weavers make their products.
11:15am to 11:45am – Visit the the Lon Wa Buddhist Temple
We were greeted by a huge statue of a smiling Buddha at the entrance of the Lon Wa Buddhist Temple and the smell of incense from inside. It was the first Buddhist Temple I have visited in the Philippines and it’s FREE. (Cabaguio)
11:45am to 12:00pm – Pass by Magsaysay Park Fruit Stands and Davao China Town
It was our first day in Davao so we decided to defer buying “pasalubong” from the market until our last day. We instead spent a bit of time in China Town walking on foot before moving to our next destination. (Roxas Boulevard and Ponciano Street)
12:00am to 12:30pm – Visit San Pedro Cathedral Church and Davao City Hall
San Pedro Cathedral is the oldest church in Davao built in 1847 during the arrival of Spanish Conquistadores. Just a stone throw away is the City Hall. There are few historic sculptures around the area. (San Pedro Street)
12:30pm to 1:30 – Lunch
2:00pm to 2:45 – Visit Philippine Eagle Center
The Philippine Eagle Center was one of the highlights of our visit. We paid 5 pesos to enter the park and another 50 pesos to enter the Eagle Center. There were souvenir shops, a yellow python for photo opportunities, monkeys and several Philippine Raptors. (Calinan)
3:00pm to 3:30pm – Visit Malagos Garden Resort and Orchid Farm
There was an entrance fee of Php100 for the resort so we decided to just check out the Malagos Garden Resort shop and the Orchid Farm in front of it. (Calinan)
3:45 to 4:30 – Visit Holy Infant Jesus Shrine
One of the popular tourist spots in Davao. It has two open-air chapels, the statue of Our Lady of Fatima and the Crucified Christ aside from the Shrine of the Infant Jesus. It is situated on a serene surroundings at Matina Hills.
4:45 to 5:30 – Visit Jack’s Ridge
Located 30 minutes from the town proper, Jack’s Ridge offers a great view of the city, a few restaurants and bars including the famous Karlos’ Cafe which offers durian coffee and the place where it stands used to be the headquarters of the Japanese during WWII. (Matina Shrine Hills)
5:45 – 6:30 – Visit Seawall Times Beach
Located along Times Beach, the Seawall is a beautiful park with a refreshing view of the sea, an imposing naked statue of David and a handful of animals like Ostrich near the mini-park.
6:45pm to 7:30 – Dinner at Gaisano Mall
We had dinner at Gaisano Food Court which offers several choices of cuisine including Persian, Greek, local dishes and the usual fast food chains. We then shopped for some cheap plastic shoes for our river tubing the next day.
8:00pm – Back to Ponce Suites
Day 1 Expenses
Breakfast: 100
Davao Museum: 100
Lunch: 100
Philippine Eagle Center: Php55
Jack’s Ridge: Php10
Dinner: Php150
Transportation: Php250 each
Guide Pot Luck: Php150 each
This is my entry to the Pinoy Travel Bloggers’ Blog Carnival with the theme “Best One Day Itineraries” which is currently hosted by Karlo de Leon of The 4AM Chronicles. Scroll down to check out the rest of our itinerary during our 3 full-day stint in davao.
DAY 2
6:00am – Breakfast at Jollibee near Ponce Suites
We walked to the nearest Jollibee outlet from our hotel for our breakfast. It has free wi-fi and free newspaper.
7:00am – Proceed to Layak Outdoor Shop
We waited at the shop for sometime while they were setting up the things we would need for River Tubing. The shop sells mountaineering gear and handcrafted accessories as souvenirs.
8:00am to 11:00pm – Malagos and Apiik River Tubing
From Layak Outdoor shop,we had a 20-30 minute jeepney ride to Malagos and then a 10-minute walk to the river. We had a 3-hour thrilling adventure with the rapids at Talomo River.
11:30pm - Back to Layak Outdoors Shop and Washing up
12:00pm to 1:00pm – Lunch at FattMatt’s Inihaw
On the way too our next destination we stopped at FattMatt’s Restaurant and gorged on a whole lot of grilled seafood.
2:15pm to 3:00pm – Gap Farm & Resort
Strange yet charming, Gap Farm is a verdant and serene park that features statues of animals, Philippine heroes,busts of past presidents, and the amusing Philippine mystic spirits known as “Conferencia ng mga Multo”
3:30pm to 4:30pm – Zipcity (zipline)
Zip lining at Zip City was the second highlight of this day next to river tubing. It was my first zip lining experience, which made it even more memorable.
4:30pm to 5:30pm – Crocodile Park
Davao Crocodile Park doesn’t only house well-cared crocs but it also features snakes, orangutan, small crocs, and trained birds that are available for photo opportunities during the animal encounter. Colorful birds are found around the park as well as the endangered cassowary and many other animals.
5:30 – Tribu Tribal Village
We were just on time for the ethnic show at Tribu Tribal Village. They showcase various tribal dances and customs beautiful performance. The highlight of the night was the well-executed fire dance.
7:00 – Dinner
We had dinner at Toryanos, one of the famous restaurants in the city, I love their native chicken inasal and the barbecue and the unlimited rice 
8:30 – People’s Park MTS
Day 2 Expenses
Breakfast – P100
River Tubing- P150
Lunch—> P150
Gap Farm (entrance) – P25
Crocodile Park(entrance) – P100
Tribu(entrance) – P25
Dinner—> P150
Transportation – P250
Guide Pot Luck – P150
Day 3
6:00am – Breakfast
7:00am – Davao Scuba Dive Office, Sta Ana Wharf
8:00am to 4:30pm – Intro Scuba Diving Session
While others were having their intro dive, the rest of us snorkeled at the Coral Garden. We had our lunch at Babu Santa Beach and we continued the intro dive after.
5:00 – Back to davao scuba dive office
5:30 – Buying of Pasalubong at Magsaysay Fruit Stand
7:30 – Dinner and last night in Davao
-—-> More Pasalubong/Souvenirs
—–> Malling
—–> MTS Grounds
—–> Rizal Streets
—–>People’s Park
—–> Roxas Boulevard
—–> See davao at night…
Day 3 Expenses
Breakfast – P100
Fare to sta. ana wharf(jeep) – P7
Scuba Diving Fee – P750
Fare back to hotel (jeep) – P7
Lunch/Snack – P250
Dinner – P150
**************************************************************************************************************
Day 4
4:am – breakfast
4:30am – 5:00am airport
6:40am – Flight back to Manila
Day 4 Expenses
breakfast – P100
taxi to airport – P50
General Info
Number of people – 8
Round Trip Airfare – P1700 (Cebu Pacific promo)
Accommodation – P400 per night x 3 (P1200)
Food, Transportation and Entrance/Guide Fee – P3600
Total Expenses: Excluding Airfare P4800
Note: Expenses spent on souvenirs and pasalubong aren’t included
Shout out to Rhoha for plotting this epic itinerary and for being an accommodating and fantastic guide, to Mayo for organizing this trip and for booking our tickets and to the rest of the gang for making this possible.
If you need help in making your itinerary or a guide to show you around, you may contact Rhoha at 0917-6062859. For those with extra budget you may include white-water rafting and other destinations that we were’t able to visit like the Japanese Tunnel, Eden Park, Xcelerator Zipline, etc. Most airlines regularly offer discounted airfares so finding cheap tickets to Philippines and cheap domestic flights has never been easier.
Very informative itinerary…may river tubing pala ren, I only tried the river rafting at Davao river…:)
I’m planning on going back to Davao soon, and yes about Ponce Suites, too bad it was fully booked when we went there
Masaya yung white-water rafting sa Davao, I tried it on my second visit last year, meron din pala sila, akala ko CDO lang.
ayos!!!kompleto. pero parang amazing race.packed ang iti at physically demanding. di pwede sa mga senior citizens to like me. bwahaha
Tamaa!! Kailangan naka-energy drink ka kung ganito and itinerary pero saka na ang pahinga, 3 days lang naman to after nun puro na naman pahinga at trabaho kaya lubus-lubusin mo na
grabe ka claire! andaming nyong nagawa! i bow down to this Itinerary!
Bow din ako sa gumawa ng itinerary na to, thank you Rhoha
Palagi ako sa Davao, pero karamihan ng nasa itinerary mo hindi ko pa napupuntahan LOL! At least now may idea na ako to explore on other places. Galing!
Thanks Mica, one day babalikan ko uli ang Davao for Mt. Apo
This sounds exciting! Amazing Race in Davao, eh?
Hi Jaja, yan nga tawag namin sa trip na to, sa jeep lang kami nagpapahinga in between destinations
uy nice. tagal ko na rin gustong pumunta ng davao. maybe this year. ok pala sa croc park. gano kahaba yung zipline sa zipcity? ba’t hindi xcelerator yung ni-try niyo? why didn’t you spend a day or two sa samal? yun kasi yung plan namin eh pero wala kaming makitang murang accommodation sa samal.
Yep maganda sa Crocodile Park, actually if you’re going to do white water rafting, kasama na sa package nila ang zip city, crocodile park, Tribu Village at butterfly farm. We didn’t go to Samal anymore coz we’re on tight budget, dapat around 5000 pesos lang so we made sure to do as much as we can within that budget. I tried xcelelator na rin on my second visit last year. Merong promo that time so unlimited ride kami
Hi Claire,
ask ko lang po maganda po ba sa crocodelie farm?
Two Thumbs up ako sa gumawa ng itinerary nyo.
Astig!
Thanks
Hi Joel, maganda puntahan yun lalo na kung kasama mo mga kids mo.
YEAH! finally!!! May mapupuntahan na ako sa Davao! Thanks for this!
Zip Lining and River Tubing pati na rin snorkeling will be mine this July! Weeeeeeeeee!
Nice, mura lang ang river tubing at mas masaya pag marami kayo
nice post! very informative
Thank you Tina
nice post! love the itinerary
Thank you adventurous feet
grabe! ang dami nyong nagawa ah… ang galing ng IT nyo… =D
yeah, it’s one of my most memorable trips
thanks claire for reminding me of the carnival
will look back to this post for my august davao trip.
no worries, parang Amazing Race din kasi yung post mo
i agree with Ed. Bow! Ang galing ng itinerary – simple, clean and covers everything!!! As usual, i am a fan of your trips. Very detailed and the itinerary is packed. I will make use of this when i travel to Davao! I am impressed!
Thanks Jerik, Ikaw din kaya I enjoy reading about your solo escapades
Salamat dito Claire! Will be saving this for a future trip to Davao!
Dagdagan mo na rin ng white water rafting pag napadpad ka dun para todo na talaga
whoah! ang dame nga! thanks for another helpful article Claire. will check this out kapag natuloy na tlaga ako sa Davao. hehe
Ako din, i’ll check out your Ilocos Norte itinerary in the future, very detailed and informative too
Wow, what a busy time. You really packed a lot into 3 days (airport day doesn’t count). So much to do, so many wonderful places. You probably had to go home to relax and recover. Great article.
Yeah, that’s what we thought as well, recovery and rest could wait when we’re back home and for the mean time we might as well do as much as we could while in Davao
OMG – is that you holding that humongous snake??? Good thing you have the balls to do that! I don’t. Haha!
hahaha, nope that’s not me
I did it once in Saigon and I think that was enough.
Wow! Another comprehensive itinerary! I really salute you for this Claire! And what great fun you had had… Davao is definitely a good place in Mindanao to explore… I’m dying to try their durian one day when I visit there…:) Thanks for sharing…xo
Thanks Jorie, I can’t wait to see you eat Durian
Very, very informative Claire! Thank you for sharing! It looks like you had so much fun!!!
Yeah one of the best trips I ever had with friends
ang daya mo claire… di ka nagpakita sa akin…. tsk tsk tsk… pero ang galing ng itinerary mo ha. as in! galing!
Hindi pa yata tayo magkakilala nung first visit ko sa Davao tapos busy ka yata nung second pero marami pang next time ika nga
Nice. This post is very informative.
Hi Claire!
You are the best. I really admire your travel infos and pics as well, keep up the good work.
Thank you Tony, I appreciate it
magdagdag kapa ng maraming destination. god bless………..
Madami lang po akong backlogs, I have been to other places but I haven’t blogged them yet.
hi claire! nice IT! do u have a contact number for the jeepney you rented and how much? thanks! also, what type of transpo would be cheaper and easy? 2 lang kasi kame for the trip going to davao. baka mapamahal if we rent.
Sorry Mariz, I don’t have the contact number of the jeepney owner. You may contact Rhoha though and perhaps she can help you plan an itinerary for two.
Riz! Haha! Natawa ko, ikaw ‘to!
hi po.. ms claire.. may alam k p po kng san pwd mgstay sa davao,,,, like ponce suites?? tnx….
Try Sampaguita Inn for cheap rooms or Ponce Suites.
thanx po
Hi Claire!
Salamat dito! Haha! Ang hirap magdecide kung ano ang mga dapat puntahan sa Davao sa maikling panahon! Haha! ;
hi, ask ko lang kung san kayo kumuha ng contact sa transpo? kung 6 kayo bale 2K lang per day ang tour ninyo. thanks.
It was arranged by our friend Rhoha. She had helped us in plotting our itinerary as well. Her number is listed at the bottom.
package ba yung kinuha nyo? ano kasama sa package? thanks
Nope, hindi po sya package. Nagpatulong lang kami sa friend namin gumawa ng itinerary given our budget and the time that we have.
Napakaganda namang Itinerary ito…
Salamay Ms.Claire…
Sorry po… Salamat po iyon Ms.Claire… Ngayon ku lang napansin…
wow…ang saya nman….
a must-place-to-visit talaga ang davao..hehehe
We had our davao vacation just recently and we have contacted Sitti Maryam Rhoha Sangkula as our tour guide. We’ve managed to contact and choose her thru this. At first, she led us to believe that we are in good hands for choosing her. But it turned out other way around. She over charged us with our tours, specifically the Samal Island Tour. Compared to other offers from other tourist guides, she charged P1000 pesos higher for this tour. We were supposedly to choose a cheaper tour offered in the budget hotel that we have stayed in, but she led us believe that the reason why the other tour was cheaper is because it only includes drop off to places included in the itinerary and there are other hidden charges on it, as compared to her tour which are all inclusive on the package except for the lunch. Thinking that she may be right, we chose her over the other. She accompanied us up to the pearl farm marina wharf as we had our pearl farm overnight stay arranged by her which have cost us P5000, compared to the P4200 published rate (which is ok with us as we know the difference would be her income for arranging the tour) prior to the samal inland tour. And so the next day, we were picked up by a “mini cab” (small L300-like van converted into a jeepney rampantly used in davao as their public transportation) from the pearl farm back door and started the tour (inclusions: hagimit falls, white house, bat cave). The mode of transportation to be used in the tour was supposedly a car, or other vehicle that will make us feel comfortable during the ride ( note that we have asked this prior to going to davao for convenience during the trip) but we just rode a “mini-cab” the entire trip. Imagine how uncomfortable it is during the trip, with the rocky road almost all through out (3 hours ride). But we just let it go thinking that it may be a good adventure and the “manong” who accompanied us during the trip was so courteous and kind, that he made us feel somehow comfortable during the trip, inspite the fact that the travel is long over an undeveloped road. After the trip he accompanied us to the port where we will board a “roro” ferry back to davao city. He said that Roha is supposed to be on the other side to meet us. But we told him that Roha has just texted that she will not be able to meet us as she is with her other client for other tour and it will be out of the way is she will come to pick us up back to our hotel. So Roha informed us that when we get across the sea (from Samal to Davao) we just take a public jeepney back to our hotel! Talk about how rude that can be as the package tour is supposed to be complete! But all she said was, “Wala namang pinag-usapan na ganon…” “Di kasama un transportation going to and from marina wharf or from the port back to hotel..” “un ibang tour 2 lang pupuntahan na place as compared sa kanya na 3 places..” Inihatid na nga daw kami sa marina wharf tru her rented mini-cab dahil nagkataon na mayron siyang nakuha na mini-cab at hindi daw un kasama sa pacakge. Worst is, she told us “hindi ko naman kayo pinilit na kuhanin un tour ko…” So how was that?! How much does it cost to take us to and from the hotel for that trip using the “mini-cab”? To our estimate, if you hire a mini-cab, a 13 passenger capacity would cost P200 to P300, or a hired taxi can take you there for around P200 one way. After the very tiring trip, we were left alone with her just giving as an SMS guide to ride a jeepney back to the hotel. (We took a taxi instead as we were really tired and we have our luggages with us). Isn’t it that the reason why we travelers choose to avail packages is to free us from the burden of having to think about on how to get here and there and back to the hotel and planning the itinerary? We avail tour packages putting our convenience and safety a priority. But what we had experienced was really disappointing. If we had chose the other package (with SAME itinerary as what Roha has offered , and a Mitsubishi Adventure transporting us during the Samal inland tour and then safely picking and/or dropping us back to the hotel, with just additional P540 for the cost of transporting the SUV from davao city to samal visavis, and P40/pax for the entrance fees (hagimit falls and batcave) which will sum up roughly to P4000, how good can that be as compared to Roha’s package tour, right? To think “mini-cab” used for the inland tour is already stationed/owned by a local in Samal, so the cost of transporting the “mini cab” would be forgone, lesser cost for Roha! Lesser cost for her for renting a “mini cab” than an airconditioned car/Suv/4X4. Lesser cost for there was no tour guide to accompany us in addition to the driver. Lesser cost for not picking us up from the davao port back to the hotel. But her charge for the tour is P1000 higher (P4000 compared to P3000 offered by other tour/travel agency). So if you don’t want to compromise your convenience during the tour, don’t avail her overcharged package. Lesson learned.
Hi! would you know if there is any other way to contact Layak Outdoor Shop? I’ve emailed them and texted three different mobile numbers but still got no reply. I wonder if they’re still operating.
I’m not sure about that now. The only contact numbers I have are the ones posted on my site.
wow, exactly what I needed! kumpleto =)
very informative thank you so much for giving an idea where to go when you’re in davao coz we already have a ticket for davao this february 2012 and we are all first timers in davao…. just want to know if the river tubing safe for kids around 13years old …. very fat pa naman yong anak ko he might have a hard time balancing…. Two thumbs up for your blog!
The river is not that deep and life vest is provided so it’s somewhat safe but just like any other adventurous activities, there’s possibility of some danger.