Potchie's Bucket: A Travel Diary

It was my husband's birthday and he wanted some quiet and relaxing beach get away for a change. My Talipanan Beach in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro has been on my bucket list since 2011, so, I immediately created the itinerary for this trip.

Every time Puerto Galera is mentioned, people have 2 things in mind - all-day beach bumming at the White beach followed by all-night partying. I have been here several times and experienced both. For a change, a quiet and relaxing time with my boys sound exciting.

How to get to Talipanan Beach, Puerto Galera:

Ride an air-conditioned bus going to Batangas port. You can find it on Buendia, Cubao and Kamuning. Travel duration is less than 2 hours without traffic.
In Batangas port, go to Terminal 3 and find the ticket booth of the boat of your choice. There are 3 boats going to Puerto Galera:

Galerian Shipping Lines. They have a direct stopover to Talipanan Beach but they first drop passengers in White Beach, followed by Tamaraw beach, and its last stop is the Talipanan Beach. Travel duration is 1.5 - 2 hours since it is not a straight trip.

Minolo Shipping Lines. Ride the boat bound to Muelle. From there, they provide their passengers free shuttle ride going to Talipanan Beach. Travel duration is 45-60 minutes by boat and 20 minutes by van.

Father & Son Shipping Line. They are bound to White Beach. From there, ride a tricycle going to Talipanan Beach. Sometimes, the boat passes through Sabang first. Travel duration is 1.5 - 2 hours by boat and 45 - 60 minutes by tricycle.

Tip: It is cheaper to buy round trip tickets but make sure to confirm your trip back to Batangas one day before leaving.

Once you get your boat tickets, pay the Terminal Fee of P30/pax and Environmental Fee of P50/pax.

Wait for the boat in the terminal and exit on the gate specified by the boat crew.

Sometimes, the boat will not leave if not yet full, so, the scheduled departure is not followed. The first trip of Galerian Shipping Lines that time was 7 AM but left at 7:40 AM. It first disembark on White Beach, followed by Tamaraw Beach, then in Talipanan Beach.

Talipanan Beach, Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro

First glimpse of Talipanan Beach

I booked 2 nights at Mountain Beach Resort. It is on the left most side of Talipanan beach. My first options were Luca Cusina Italiana & Lodge and Bamboo Beach House, both located at the right most side of Talipanan and both were fully booked then. Mountain Beach Resort room rate during peak season is P2,500. I haggled it to as low as P2,000 to no avail. They just gave us free breakfast for 2 days. Not bad :).

Tip: Luca and Mira Lodge has the widest beach front amongst all the resorts in Talipanan and they serve the best pizza and pasta!

Where to stay in Talipanan Beach - Luca Cucina Italiana and Lodge

View from Luca Cusina Italiana

I don't have any shots to share on what our room looked like, but it basically gives you the spacious bed, aircon, tv and own toilet and bath. Plus, the attentive and helpful staff and the welcoming owner. They have swing for kids too. So no regret at all.

Mountain Beach Resort, Talipanan

Our first family selfie on the beach

What we did in Talipanan Beach:

Fly a kite. I do not know why hubby brought the kite. Anyways, they enjoyed some time with it.

Things to do in Talipanan Beach - fly a kite

Chase the sunset at Aninuan Beach. Facing the Mountain Beach Resort, Aninuan is on the left. Owned by the Zobel, there is no resort here, just lush of coconut trees, finer and whiter sand.

Things to do in Talipanan Beach - Aninuan Beach, Puerto Galera

Boulders separating Talipanan and Aninuan Beach

Local kiddos enjoying the beach

Aninuan Beach, Puerto Galera

My boys looking for a good spot to play

Sunset at Aninuan Beach

Visit the Talipanan Falls. On a regular pacing, the trek to Talipanan Falls will just take you 20-30 minutes. Since we're travelling with a 5-year-old who is too lazy to walk and always complaining that he's tired, we arrived at the falls after an hour. We didn’t hire a guide since according to the owner of Mountain Beach Resort, there is already a trail that we can follow going to the falls. It was not easy. We have to ask the locals every now and then on the right path or on the tourists that we encountered who were on their way back to the resort. It was neither fascinating nor impressive, but enough to say that the long hour of trek was all worth it once you dip in its cool and refreshing water.

Things to do in Talipanan Beach - Talipanan Falls

Stop-over at Mangyan Village. You’ll pass the Mangyan Village on your way to Talipanan Falls. Here, you can buy souvenirs and other woven products.

Things to do in Talipanan Beach - Mangyan Village

Food trip. I love the pancit canton in Mountain Beach Resort, the savory Squid a la Julia in Bamboo Beach House, while the seafoods pizza and pasta arrabiata in Luca Cucina Italiana were superb!!!

What to eat in Talipanan Beach, Puerto Galera

Squid a la Julia of Bamboo Beach House

Spicy Arrabiata of Luca Cucina Italiana (Good for 2)

Seafoods Pizza of Luca Cusina Italiana (Good for 4)

Climb the boulders near Luca Cusina Italiana. Wanna see how beautiful Talipanan from a top view? Then you may want to climb those boulders near Luca.