How do I get to Lakawon Island from Bacolod?
Short answer
Lakawon sits about 4 to 5 km off Cadiz City on the north coast of Negros Occidental. Getting there is two legs: roughly 50 to 60 km of road north from Bacolod to the mainland ticketing office at Cadiz Viejo, about an hour to an hour and a half by private car, then the resort boat across, about 15 to 20 minutes.
The road is the easy half. What actually decides whether the day works is that the island runs on a schedule you do not set: day-tour boats are published at 7:00, 9:00 and 11:00 AM from Cadiz, the regular boat needs a minimum number of passengers per direction, and online day-trip bookings have to be made at least a day in advance. Turning up at midday hoping for a boat is how people end up looking at the island from the mainland.
By public transport this is a northbound Ceres bus from the Bacolod north terminal, a drop-off on the highway near the Cadiz Viejo access road, and then a tricycle to the port. It works and it is cheap, but each of those three legs has its own wait, and the boat will not hold for you.
What we arrange is the road half with a waiting driver: pickup timed to the departure you want, straight to the ticketing office, and the same car waiting for your return boat. Entrance, terminal fee and the crossing itself are paid to the resort at the mainland office, so those are theirs to quote, not ours.
Step by step: Bacolod to Lakawon Island
- 1Pick your boat first
Decide which of the published 7:00, 9:00 or 11:00 AM departures you want and book your day tour with the resort at least a day ahead. Everything else on this page is timed off that number.
- 2Leave Bacolod early
For the 7:00 boat that means leaving the city around 5:30 to 6:30 in the morning; for the 9:00 boat, somewhere around 7:30. Your driver picks you up at your hotel and heads north.
- 3Drive north to Cadiz Viejo
Roughly 50 to 60 km up the coastal highway past Silay and Victorias to the Lakawon mainland ticketing office at Cadiz Viejo, about an hour to an hour and a half depending on traffic.
- 4Register and pay at the mainland office
All day-tour payments are made at the Cadiz Viejo office before boarding. Ask which departure you have been assigned and which return boats are running before you get on the water.
- 5Cross to the island
The boat takes about 15 to 20 minutes. TawHai floating bar access is currently advertised as free for guests, weather permitting, with a three-hour cap on each visit.
- 6Return with your driver
Come back on a confirmed return boat rather than the last one you can find, and your driver is waiting at the port for the run back to Bacolod.
Ways to travel, compared
- Private transfer with waiting driver (what we arrange)~1-1.5 hrs each way
A private car or van from your Bacolod hotel to the Cadiz Viejo ticketing office, timed to the boat you have booked, with the driver waiting through the day and taking you back. Fixed price, request a quote. The island package and the crossing are paid to the resort.
- Ceres bus plus tricycle (public)~1.25-2 hrs, plus waits
Northbound buses from the Bacolod north terminal serve Cadiz; tell the conductor you are going to Lakawon so you are dropped at the right access road, then hire a tricycle to the port. Cheapest, and three separate waits stacked in front of a boat that leaves on time.
- Resort boat, Cadiz Viejo to Lakawon~15-20 min
Booked and paid at the mainland ticketing office as part of the day-tour package, not something we sell. Published day-tour departures are 7:00, 9:00 and 11:00 AM, subject to a passenger minimum and to the weather.
Bacolod to Lakawon Island: FAQs
How far is Lakawon Island from Bacolod?
About 50 to 60 km by road from Bacolod to the mainland ticketing office at Cadiz Viejo, roughly an hour to an hour and a half by private car, then a 15 to 20 minute boat crossing to the island, which lies about 4 to 5 km offshore.
What time should I leave Bacolod for Lakawon?
Around 5:30 to 6:30 in the morning if you want the 7:00 boat, and around 7:30 for the 9:00 one. The resort publishes day-tour departures at 7:00, 9:00 and 11:00 AM from Cadiz, so the drive has to fit in front of a fixed time rather than the other way round.
Can I visit Lakawon without booking ahead?
The resort states that same-day online bookings are not permitted and asks for day-trip bookings at least one day in advance. Walk-in arrangements exist at the mainland office but depend on capacity, the weather and the boat passenger minimum, which is a lot to gamble on after an hour of driving.
Can we go to Lakawon straight from Bacolod-Silay Airport?
Yes, and it is shorter than going via the city: the airport is north of Bacolod, roughly 35 to 45 km from Cadiz Viejo, about 45 minutes to an hour by private car. The catch is the timetable rather than the road, since the day-tour boats all leave in the morning, so an afternoon flight usually means a night in Bacolod or Silay first.
What happens if the boat is cancelled?
Crossings and the floating bar are suspended in bad weather, and the resort asks visitors to confirm the island is open before travelling. Tell your driver as early as you can and we will turn the day into something else on the same road - Silay heritage houses, The Ruins in Talisay, or Mambukal - rather than deliver you to a closed port.
Can you take us back to Bacolod the same evening?
Yes, that is the normal shape of the trip: your driver waits and runs you back after your return boat. What we would not recommend is putting a flight, an Iloilo ferry or a long southbound drive on the end of the same day, because the return boat is the one part of it nobody on our side controls.
Can you do the return trip, Lakawon Island back to Bacolod?
Yes. Your boat brings you back to the mainland jump-off, where your driver picks you up for the road leg to Bacolod over the same ~50-60 km. The boat is arranged and paid there, as on the way out. Ask for both road legs in one quote request and we price them together.
Lakawon Island → Bacolod
Your boat brings you back to the mainland jump-off, where your driver picks you up for the road leg to Bacolod, with the banca arranged and paid there as on the way out. Ask for both road legs in one request and we'll price them together.
We'll pre-fill Lakawon Island → Bacolod on the form. Just add your dates and details.