If you are planning to chase waterfalls, then this is definitely a waterfalls worth the chase. Located in Oslob, Cebu, this waterfalls is a few minutes by habal-habal or motorcycle from the whale watching area or from Oslob town proper. This is a recommended stop-over when you are in Oslob.
For more information about traveling to Oslob, please check out our travel guide here: Oslob Travel Guide.
Get to the falls on a habal-habal
The best way to explore Oslob is on a habal-habal. Ours cost P500 to bring us up to the entry point of Tumalog Falls and includes a trip to Oslob town proper. The cost was split into two since I was traveling with a friend. From the whale watching area or BCD's place, where our tour guide Kuya Jeff picked us up, the entry to Tumalog Falls was only about 10-15 minutes.
Expenses:
You'll have to pay P20 entrance fee.
The habal-habal that you used coming from other parts of Oslob is not allowed to go down to the falls. There will be another set of habal-habal drivers waiting at the entry point. You can opt to avail of their service to bring you all the way down to the falls. That's P50 each per person, back and forth. Or you can walk.
We opted to walk because one, it was quite expensive and two, I can imagine how scary it can be riding a motorcycle on a very steep slope. I'd rather walk! The walk down the falls will take you about 15-20 minutes. You're going downhill anyway so it won't be tiring but you'll have keep your balance as it is really steep.
Going back up is another story. It was quite tiring since we are now going uphill. But despite the tiring climb, I still wouldn't think of riding a motorbike. Really up to you! :)
The water from the falls is light bluish green in color. We've noticed that it is the same color coming out from the faucet in our resort. Kuya Jeff said the water supply of the entire Oslob comes from these springs and hence they have the same color. Water supply in this municipality/town is very abundant. We have actually seen some man-made tanks along the way overflowing with light blue-green water.
I wasn't expecting that Tumalog falls would be this majestic. It was very difficult to get a photo of it from top to bottom because of its size and if you go far back, there will lots of trees blocking the view. So you really have to come nearer and try your best to take a decent photo.
Your cameras will get wet especially if it's windy and the water from the falls will start drizzling on you. Better if you have an underwater or waterproof camera.
If you opt to swim, make sure to be in your swimming attire before you head for the falls as there is no place for you to change clothes. As an option, there is an area behind a rock where you can change clothes.
It can get get chilly so bring in some towels or extra clothes which you can change into when you're done swimming.
First you need to get to Oslob. From Cebu City, you can ride the buses going to Liloan/Santander and ask the driver/conductor to drop you off at Oslob. You can opt to be dropped off at the town proper or at Tan-awan whale watching area.
If you are coming from Dumaguete, you can take the pumpboat going to Liloan, Santander from the Sibulan seaport. From the seaport, there are several tricycles that would take you to the highway of Liloan for P10 per pax. From the highway, ride the bus going to Cebu City. Ask the conductor to drop you off Oslob. The fare is P30 per person. For more information about the Dumaguete-Oslob route, check my entry here: How to Go to Oslob from Dumaguete
From the town proper or from Tan-awan, there would be several tour guides in habal-habal who can get you around town. For ease of getting around, I would suggest that you hire a habal-habal. This can only accommodate up to 2 persons. If you are more than 3-4 people from your group, you can opt to hire a tricycle instead.
From the entrance point of Tumalog Falls, your habal-habal driver will no longer be able to drive you down the falls. You can choose to walk or hire another habal for P50 per head.
Damage/Expenses*
All-in-all, we spent P540 for the trip which we split into two so that's P270 each. Here's the breakdown:
Entrance fee: P20 per head
Habal-habal to Tumalog Falls: P500 for the entire trip
Optional: Habal-habal down to the falls: P50 per head
* As of February 2015 -- prices may change without prior notice
Key Contact
If you would like to book your tour guide and habal-habal ride ahead of time, you can contact Kuya Jeff at 0923-530-6331 or 0998-559-7198. He is a tour guide in Oslob who can take you around Oslob and Samboan areas. He was the one who took us to Tumalog Falls, Oslob town proper and Aguinid Falls. He was also the one who arranged our whale watching and Sumilon Island tours.
