Samar Island
Samar is the third largest island in the Philippines, after Mindanao and Luzon islands. It is located next to Leyte Island and the two are joined by a bridge.
Provinces
Cities and municipalities
Eastern Samar
Northern Samar
Western Samar (Samar)
Other destinations
- Homonhon Island, Guiuan, Eastern Samar.
Understand
Talk
Waray is the dominant language spoken in Samar Island.
Get in
By plane
PAL Express flies to and from Calbayog (CYP IATA) and Catarman (CRM IATA), Northern Samar to Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila or Clark International Airport in Pampanga.
Cebgo has flights to Calbayog from their Cebu hub.
Air Juan has flights to Catbalogan (no IATA) from Cebu.
By bus
Major bus companies in Manila plying the Luzon-Visayas-Mindanao route pass through the province since Maharlika Highway runs through the island. Travellers to the province of Samar may ride from Metro Manila at the terminal in Cubao and from the various terminals in Pasay that sprout along EDSA.
Once the bus has reached the southern tip of Luzon island, you will take a 30-minute ferryboat to the northern end of Samar, after which you can continue your bus trip, or transfer to a myriad of jeepneys, smaller buses, and tricycles to take you to anywhere in Samar.
Bus companies
- Silver Star.. This operator headquartered in San Pedro operates the bulk of point-to-point routes to destinations in Samar from Luzon. They have daily trips from their Cubao, Buendia, or San Pedro terminals and head to destinations in Samar.
Get around
Local mini buses ply from Catbalogan City to Tacloban City in Leyte and vice-versa and from Catbalogan to Calbayog and Catarman, Northern Samar and vice-versa. The schedule of inter-provincial run of local mini buses is irregular since it is dependent on the volume passengers and the pace of passengers loading into the buses.
On top of these buses, there are a number of passenger vans that ply Catbalogan and Calbayog route almost every half an hour. The vans also run the Catbalogan-Tacloban route almost every quarter of an hour and Calbayog-Allen-Catarman route almost every hour.
The last schedule of run of both inter-provincial mini buses and vans is up to late in the afternoon due to distance. There are few vans that ply in the evening. However, buses from Manila or Mindanao pass through the Maharlika Highway on a 24-hour basis. However, stops are only made either in Catbalogan City or Calbayog City.
From the two urban centers of Catbalogan City and Calbayog City, there are jeepneys that ply from the two localities going to the various towns of Samar.
The van from Catarman to Calbayog takes 2 hours and costs ₱100. The one from Catarman to Tacloban costs ₱350 and takes up to 6 hours.
See
- San Juanico Bridge, between Tacloban, Leyte and Sta. Rita, Samar. One of the longest bridges in the Philippines.
- Samar Island Nature Park, Paranas.
Do
The region is the caving capital of the Philippines, being home to many cave systems. Interspersed with this cave systems are waterfalls, rivers and underground rivers inside caves. Hence, the region is a destination for extreme mountaineering adventures such as spelunking and trekking.
On the Pacific coast of Eastern Samar, the island of Calicoan is home to an international surfing circuit held every year.
Eat
Drink
Stay safe
Typhoons are a constant danger in Samar, and travellers must check for weather advisories before travelling. Typhoon Haiyan heavily paralyzed the island, and it took over a year to rehabilitate damaged areas in the island. Expect lack of services when the area is heavily struck.