How do I get to Apo Island from Dumaguete airport?
Short answer
Apo Island is reached from Dumaguete-Sibulan airport (DGT) in two parts: a road leg south to Malatapay beach in Zamboanguita, then a banca boat across to the island. Sibulan sits about 7 km north of Dumaguete and Malatapay is roughly 25 km south of the city, so it is around 32 km end to end, usually 1 to 1.25 hours by private car. From Malatapay the outrigger crossing takes about 30 to 45 minutes depending on the sea.
The smoothest way straight off a flight is a private car that meets you at arrivals and drives you south in time for a morning boat, with the driver waiting through your snorkel or dive. The boat hire, the day fee and the marine-sanctuary charge are arranged and paid at Malatapay, outside the car quote.
Step by step: Sibulan Airport (DGT) to Apo Island
- 1Meet your driver at arrivals
A private transfer meets you with a name board at Sibulan (Dumaguete) airport, so there is no queueing or negotiating after your flight.
- 2Drive south to Malatapay
It is roughly 32 km down the coast to Malatapay beach in Zamboanguita, usually 1 to 1.25 hours, timed to your boat.
- 3Arrange your boat at Malatapay
Bancas cross from the beach; boat hire and the marine-sanctuary fee are arranged and paid on site, outside our quote.
- 4Cross to Apo Island and back
The crossing is about 30 to 45 minutes and mornings bring the calmest water. Coming back, the last boats off Apo leave between about 2 and 3 in the afternoon, and 4pm is the latest the coast guard allows. Your driver waits at Malatapay and takes you on once you have returned from the island.
Ways to travel, compared
- Airport transfer to Malatapay (what we arrange)~1-1.25 hr
Meet-and-greet at arrivals, then straight south to Malatapay in a private air-conditioned car, timed to your boat with a waiting driver. Fixed, all-in price for the car, request a quote.
- Malatapay → Apo Island banca~30-45 min
Outrigger boats cross from Malatapay beach; boat hire and sanctuary fees are paid at the port, outside our quote.
- Ceres bus + tricycle (public)~1.5 hrs+ to Malatapay
From the city you can pick up a southbound Ceres bus to the Malatapay junction, then a short tricycle to the beach. Cheapest, but slower with luggage and an early start.
Sibulan Airport (DGT) to Apo Island: FAQs
How long does it take to get to Apo Island from Dumaguete airport?
About 1 to 1.25 hours by road from Sibulan (DGT) airport to Malatapay, then a 30 to 45 minute boat, so roughly 1.5 to 2 hours from arrivals to the beach including arranging the boat. Going early gives the calmest crossing.
Can you go straight from the airport to Apo Island the same day?
Yes, if your flight lands early enough. Work it from the boat rather than the drive: it is 1 to 1.25 hours from arrivals to Malatapay, the first crossings go from about 7am, and the last boats off Apo leave between about 2 and 3 in the afternoon with 4pm the coast guard limit. A flight in by mid-morning gives you a proper day on the island; one landing after about midday leaves an hour or two in the water and is usually better spent on a Dauin stop with Apo the next morning. Send your flight details with your quote request and we will say plainly which of the two it is.
Do I pay for the boat separately?
Yes. Our quote covers the private car and driver from the airport. The boat hire and the marine-sanctuary fee are arranged and paid at Malatapay, and they vary with boat size and group.
Can you do the return trip, Apo Island back to Sibulan Airport (DGT)?
Yes. Your boat brings you back to Malatapay, where your driver is waiting to run you on to Sibulan Airport (DGT) over the same ~32 km. The banca is arranged and paid at Malatapay, the same as on the way out; send us your flight time with the quote request and we work the pickup back from it so the two connect with room to spare. If the way back ends somewhere other than where you started, say where in the Anything else? box on the quote form and we quote that leg instead of the reverse of this one.
How much notice do you need - can I still book this for tomorrow?
Usually yes. There is no minimum notice on this route and no cut-off hour, so a request for tomorrow, or for later today, is worth sending rather than writing off. What settles it is whether a vetted driver is free for the time you need, and you will have the answer and the price by email the same day, usually within a few hours. An early start is routine here rather than a complication. The part that gets harder with less notice is choice - holding a particular vehicle size or an exact pickup hour - not whether the journey can happen, so send the date and, if the timing is tight, the hour you need to be moving.
Do I pay anything up front, and when do I pay the rest?
Nothing to ask for a quote. Once you are happy with the price it is two steps, not a choice between two: a booking fee paid online (card, bank transfer or GCash) confirms the trip and is what gets you your written confirmation, then the balance goes directly to your driver at the end of the journey. The fee is part of the all-in figure you agreed rather than an extra on top of it, and your quote states it before you pay. Free cancellation more than 72 hours before pickup refunds the fee in full.
Do you book the boat, or do I?
Neither of us books it ahead, and that is the useful part: nothing has to be reserved before you travel for Apo Island. The boat hire and the marine-sanctuary fee are arranged and paid at Malatapay on the day, so what you need from us is the drive there timed to the morning sea conditions and a driver who waits. We quote the private road leg each side; the boat and the fee are not in our figure and we do not mark them up. Tell us roughly when you want to be on the water in the "Ferry or boat" box and we will set the pickup.
Apo Island → Sibulan Airport (DGT)
Your boat brings you back to Malatapay, where your driver is waiting to run you on to Sibulan Airport (DGT), the road leg in reverse, with the banca arranged and paid there as on the way out. Tell us your flight time and we work the pickup back from it, so the two connect with room to spare.
We'll pre-fill Malatapay (from Apo Island) → Sibulan Airport (DGT) on the form. Just add your dates and details.
Coming back to somewhere else - a different town, the airport, a pier for an onward boat? Say where in the Anything else? box on the form and we price the return to that instead of back to the start.
Starting somewhere else?
We also run to Apo Island from these starting points. Each page has its own timing and a quote form already filled in for that pickup.