Manjuyod Sandbar

The Manjuyod sandbar is a long bank of white sand lying in the Tañon Strait off the coast of Negros Oriental, exposed at low tide as a bright strip in open water with nothing else around it, and submerged as the tide comes in until only the row of stilt cottages built above it remains. That transformation is the attraction - people come at low water to walk the bar, and those who stay overnight in the cottages wake surrounded by sea where the sand had been. It is usually combined with the dolphin-watching cruise out of Bais, since the boats leave from the same place and the strait is where the pods are. There is no shade, no shop and no fresh water on the bar; cottages have to be booked in advance and provisions brought out. Everything depends on tide timing, and trips are planned around the tables rather than the clock.

Highlights

• The exposed bar - white sand in the middle of open sea.
• The stilt cottages - huts standing above the water line.
• The tide change - the sand disappearing beneath the sea.
• The strait - Tañon's water on all sides.

When to go

March to May for the calmest water. The visit must be planned around low tide - at high water the sandbar is simply not there.

Things to know

There is no shade, no shop and no fresh water; bring everything. Cottages must be booked ahead and are basic. Trips are cancelled in rough weather, and the sun is severe.

Nearby

The Bais dolphin cruises leave from the same port; Dumaguete and the Twin Lakes are an hour south.