Cebu & Cebu City

Cebu is famous for the beauty of its nature and its enterprising people. It's a paradise for the beach lover, the diver and the outdoor adventurer.

Many people ask what makes Cebu so attractive. For one it's the people: even before the Spaniards arrived, Cebu, located in the center of the Philippines and having a deep-sea harbor, has always been a trading place.

Until now Cebu 's people are especially friendly and open minded towards foreigners and visitors. The early exposure to foreign cultures lead naturally to a mixture of blood, making its people particularly handsome and beautiful. Cebu City is the center of business and nightlife. You find accommodations from basic to luxurious, complete sports facilities, cuisines from native to exotic and a vibrant nightlife. Giant shopping malls and traditional Asian markets offer everything you want to buy. The island is blessed with year-round pleasant, tropical weather. Pristine beaches, some just a 20-minute drive away from the metropolis, are part of Cebu 's appeal. Hop in an aircon car and within a couple of hours you reach fantastic dive spots, belonging to the best the Philippines have to offer. Also Golfers and Adventure Sport enthusiasts find everything they are longing for: lush fairways or jungle-covered canyons in the mountains. It's the combination of city life and untouched nature, of friendly people and successful commerce what makes Cebu the most popular tourist and business destination in the Philippines .

Cebu 's Night Life

You can scuba dive all day long and than spend the evening in exotic restaurants, lively pubs and discos, laid-back sport bars or exciting night clubs. This is one of the biggest advantages of spending your holidays in Mactan and Cebu City . From Chinese to Japanese and Mexican fare to Italian and international menus, Cebu offers the biggest variety of restaurants imaginable. Big shopping malls like SM City and Ayala with theaters, specialty shops, food outlets, recreational areas and many other centers caters to most, if not all, consumer needs. Here are some addresses: The Village in Lahug, Cebu is a collection of bars, restaurant und clubs. The Discos Jukebox, H2O, Fuel und Below Zero provide party all night long. The Ayala Shopping Mall is home of Ayala Entertainment Center , with plenty of Bars und Pubs like Mi Vida, Ratsky and Brix. Billiard fans will be happy at Rica's Sport Cafe or The Cue. Nightclubs like Lone Star, Silver Dollar, Firehouse, St. Moritz Bar or Papillion provide entertainment for the (male) lonely heart.

Mactan Island

If you want to stay for any reasons in or close to Cebu City , Mactan is the place where you want to go. The east side of Mactan Island has a steep coral reef and home of many dive spots. The countless dive centers and beach resorts can be reached within 15 minutes from the airport or within 30 minutes from the heart of Cebu City . Even though the big cities are very close, Mactan offers some real good diving. Coral coverage is good; though one of the best dive spots for advanced divers is Marigondon Cave , a giant cave 30 meters deep.

Moalboal

Moalboal is foremost known as a place of great diving. The sleepy town lies on the west coast of Cebu, about 92 km south of Cebu City . You can cover the distance in about 2 1/2 with a car or bus. Panagsama Beach is the place you want to go, and it's about 4 km from the town center. Here in Panagsama, the mixture of expatriates and visiting divers from all over the world living together with the friendly and unspoiled Filipino residents of Moalboal create quite a unique community. Next to fantastic dive spots Moalboal is the center for serious action adventure sports. We can provide you with accommodation in several beach resorts, ranging from 10$ - 100$ a night. Diving services are provided by Savedra, a PADI 5 Star Dive Center. Exciting adventure trips in the jungle-covered mountains near Moalboal cost you around 50$. Exciting dive safaris start and end in Moalboal, Click hcre and here for more info on dive safaris.

Malapascua Island

Remote and unspoiled beaches combined with great diving made this island one of the hottest destinations over the last couple of years. Malapascua is not easy to reach, you have to travel about 4 hours with bus or taxi to the town of Maya , and then cross over to the island, which takes about 30-45 minutes, depending on the boat and the weather conditions. Malapascua is unspoiled; there are no cars or tricycles, just a couple of beach resorts, restaurants and dive shops.

More background information on Cebu
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.

Cebu is one of the provinces of the Philippines. It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the west of Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol province. It is flanked on both sides by the straits of Bohol (between Cebu and Bohol) and Tañon (between Cebu and Negros). Cebu is located between 9°25'N and 11°15'N latitude and between 123°13'E and 124°5'E longitude in the center of the archipelago.

Cebu Island is a long narrow island stretching 225 km (140 mi) from north to south, surrounded by 167 neighboring smaller islands, that includes Mactan Island, Bantayan, Malapascua, Olango and the Camotes Islands. Of the hundreds of small islands some are uninhabited which make them the targets of adventure-seeking tourists.

Cebu is known for its narrow coastlines, limestone plateaus, and coastal plains, all characteristics of a typical tropical island. Cebu also has predominant rolling hills and rugged mountain ranges traversing the northern and southern lengths of the island. Cebu's steep mountains reach over 1,000 meters. Flat tracts of land can be found in the city of Bogo and in the towns ofSan Remigio, Medellin, and Daanbantayan at the northern tip of the province.

Its capital is Cebu City, the oldest city in the country, which forms part of the Cebu Metropolitan Area together with 6 neighboring cities Carcar City, Danao City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Naga City, Bogo, and Talisay City and 6 other municipalities. Cebu is served by Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Mactan Island, thirty minutes drive from downtown Cebu City.

Map of Cebu

View Larger Map of Cebu, Philippines

Cebu is one of the most developed provinces in the country and the main center of commerce, trade, education and industry in the central and southern parts of the archipelago. It has five-star hotels, casinos, white sand beaches, world-class golf courses, convention centers, and shopping malls.

The UK-based Condenast Travellers Magazine named Cebu the 7th best island destination in the Indian Ocean-Asia region in 2007[1], 8th best Asian-Pacific island destination in 2005, and 7th in 2004.