My Bojo River experience was truly memorable. The hospitality of the Aloguinsan residents was the warmest I've ever encountered. It was also my first journey alongside fellow members of the Cebu Blogging Community, making everything remarkably special.
The Bojo River
The Bojo River is located two kilometers from the town center of Aloguinsan – a municipality located in the southwestern part of Cebu island. The river measures about 1.4 kilometers from the station. The river's depth near the station is only 3 meters and about 8 meters deep near the mouth of the river (towards the Tañon Strait) on high tide.
Arrival
We arrived at the area around 11 AM which was pretty early since our tour was supposed to start at 12 noon. We were welcomed by the locals with a popular Visayan song called ‘Rosas Pandan’. They also made each of us a lei made of wild fruits.
They gave us this cool and delicious buko juice as our welcome drink. Don’t you think it’s awesome?
We decided to eat lunch first since our tour package included a lunch buffet. It wasn’t that much but it was damn so delicious. We had the traditional sinugbang isda, tinolang manok, humba, bananas, ampalaya with carrots salad, and kamote juice. God, the kamote juice was so delicious…
After we’d had our fill, our local guide, Jumaila, gave us a brief history of how the Bojo River Cruise came to be. We learned that the locals of Aloguinsan and the members of BAETAS or Bojo Aloguinsan Eco-Tourism Association, and the whole community to be exact, are the ones maintaining the river. They used to be farmers and fishermen but were trained later on by the local government to preserve the Bojo River and help them find another source of income. With that being said, all the tourists who go there not only get to experience the river cruise but also help the community.
The River Cruise
There were four of us in the small banca boat including our local guide. If you go there as a big group, they also have bigger boats that can accommodate 6-8 people.
The place is so quiet and serene. The cruise was so tranquil that I actually imagined myself in an Asian soap opera. I was seated in the front so they didn’t notice me having my moments. Hah!
The experience was quite similar to my island hopping experience in El Nido, Palawan.
You will find lots of vegetation along the river but mostly, mangroves. 22 kinds of mangroves can be seen during the cruise.
We stopped at the mouth of the river because clearly, we weren’t brave enough to meet the blue sea. We went back to the spot where the water was very clear so we could swim ( more like sitting in the water and pretending to swim).
Boardwalk
There is also a 400-meter-long boardwalk if you opt to go on a trek along the river. The bamboo boardwalk connects to a trail carved on a hillside that leads to a gazebo overlooking the river. Unfortunately, half of the boardwalk was under construction when we went there. I hope the construction is done when I go back soon.
Our tour ended with the locals singing to us a thank-you song in Bisaya.
If you want to experience river cruising at Bojo River, I would highly recommend Sir Elroy’s package with WithLocals. Click here to view the rate and inclusions of the tour package.
Otherwise, if you prefer to do a DIY trip, here are the current rates and contact number of our tour coordinator and the Tourism Office.
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