Anini-y Church

San Juan Nepomuceno at Anini-y was built by Augustinians in the 1840s of white coral stone quarried nearby, a compact church with a squat bell tower standing close to the shore at the southern tip of Antique, where the province meets Iloilo and the Panay coast turns. The stone has weathered pale and rough, and the building is plainer than Miagao an hour away, which is part of its appeal - it is a working parish church in a small town rather than a monument, and it is declared a National Cultural Treasure. Anini-y has two other things: the Sira-an hot spring on the shore just outside town, a sulphurous pool built up as a small public bath with the sea beside it, and boats out to Nogas Island, a small coral island with a lighthouse and a marine sanctuary where turtles nest.

What you actually see

• The white coral stone - weathered pale walls and tower.
• The shoreline position - the church close above the sea.
• The Sira-an spring - the sulphur pool outside town.
• Nogas Island - the sanctuary island offshore.

When to go

November to May for dry roads and calm crossings to Nogas. Weekday mornings for a quiet church.

Honest expectations

Anini-y is far from everything - an hour from San Jose de Buenavista, longer from Iloilo. Facilities are minimal. Boats to Nogas depend on sea conditions and are hired per vessel.

Nearby

Miagao Church is about an hour east; San Jose de Buenavista and the Antique coast run north.