Off to a Secret Beach in Siaton for a Spontaneous Weekend Trip

Have you heard about this secret beach in Siaton, Negros Oriental? Let’s find out how my family ended up spending the weekend in this little slice of paradise.

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The Initial Plan 

I was about to hop in the car and hurry up to catch my 5:30 PM class one usual Friday when it was announced that our law professor couldn’t make it to class. And luckily, classes were also canceled the next day, and Mac’s gig was also called off so we practically had a vacant weekend–which is a rarity for us these days. Aaaand in a spur of the moment, Mac told Little Z we’re going on a beach trip! I just had to say “Hurray!” even if I wasn’t informed beforehand. I had to pretend we had pre-planned this even if the thought of going to a secret beach in Siaton didn’t come to mind yet.

So early the next day, we grabbed our all-nighter and packed our swimwear PLUS sunscreen, and left in our pickup truck. We had one destination in mind–La Limar in La Libertad, Negros Oriental, which was around an hour and a half away from Canlaon City.

Although La Limar is a government-owned facility, it is better than most of the privately-run resorts in the First District of Negros Oriental. I love that it is not suffocating, with the rooms and cottages nicely laid out on one side, all enjoying the shade of mature acacia trees and with a full view of the Tañon Strait. The beds are soft but not as plush as hotels in the higher tier offer.

I also love that there is an infinity swimming pool, which is divided into the kiddie and adult areas. The design and shape weren’t tacky, it’s perfect for moments of solitude, looking through the azure horizon while thinking about life’s complexity and whatnot. Cue “I was afraid this time would come…” 😀

La Limar is also quite decent in terms of food. Their pasta dishes are not limited to the sweet Pinoy spaghetti adorned with hotdog slices.  They serve aglio olio, arabiatta, alfredo—you know, the grown-up pasta options. Pizza lovers will adore what La Limar offers–I heard they’re baked in a brick oven so that’s a huge plus for something like me who believes she was a refined Italian woman in her previous life. Hahaha. Oooh, one last thing—I am impressed that they invested in a professional coffee machine so don’t miss out on a cup of your daily brew here.

Oh no, not again!

After more than an hour of cruising through provincial roads and enjoying the tune of Bonnie Bailey’s Ever After and other early 2000s hit songs, we finally arrived in La Limar. It was still 8 in the morning yet the resort was packed. Uhm, they were fully booked again because of a wedding happening that day. We also attempted to check in to La Lalimar in March only to be rejected again because of a wedding.

Because of that, we just decided to let Little A swim at the pool until she was tired and then head home to Canlaon. My little girl found a friend who she shared the kiddie pool with so she had undisputedly a great time. Mac and I ordered some coffee, just chilled around, and checked their pavilion to get some wedding styling inspiration that we can apply for our future events (which I will share in another post).

But by lunchtime, Little A was done. She wanted to go home already but I felt like our relaxation time was too premature, we needed to find another beach where we could slow down and just stare at the nothingness. And so, amid the intermittent data connection in the resort, I searched online and booked the next destination right away.

The trip to the secret beach in Siaton begins

After having a quick lunch in La Limar, we jumped into the pickup truck again and headed further down the Southern side of Negros Oriental, bypassing Dumaguete City via the Sibulan-Dumaguete Circumferential road which brought us to the Bacong Highway in no time.

From there, it took us more than 30 minutes to get to Antulang near the famous Tambobo Bay dotted with yachts, catamarans, and other sailboats docked by the wealthy.

While it’s NOT our first time in the area—Mac and I visited Antulang Beach Resort back in 2019 when I was 8 months pregnant with Zuri—I already had my eyes set on Koo Koo’s Nest even back then, which would take you to the right side of Antulang, near the luxurious side of the barangay, with some yachts peeking through.

Anyway, enough talk! At 3PM, we were already in Koo Koo’s Nest! No one prepared me for the next thing that would happen. Upon reaching the parking space, a couple of guys advised us to go down the steep terrain and check in the reception area cum restaurant which hut is assigned to us. The other party that came after us already knew which cottage they were assigned to so they didn’t have to go down the shore to ask.

The thing was: I booked via Agoda and the confirmation didn’t say the exact hut we should be billeted in. Once I reached their small counter after a knee-shaking descent by the cliff, I immediately showed my confirmed booking, and lo and behold, we were ushered to the room which was 10 steps away from the restaurant. To those who happen to read this: refuse the Frangipani room and avoid it at all costs. You won’t have a direct view of the beach and your privacy will be compromised as people pass through the steps near this room.

Despite the confusion, I was relieved we were finally settled on a quiet beach, away from the hustle and bustle we deal with every day and far from the magnitude of people who frequent famous resorts.

“We’re on a secret beach!”

This is what Little A said when we decided to chill on the shore, while her daddy stayed back to recover from all the driving exhaustion.

Z spent the entire afternoon playing in the sand, talking about random stuff, and just simply enjoying the peace that the ocean brought, until it was already sundown.

The sunset was beautiful on that day; Mac, Z, and I spent that time in silence, just admiring the golden skies and then how the night enveloped the oranges until they faded.

It was a relaxing trip but I wished the food was better. I loved the beach, its remote location, the healthy ecosystem but I wished the service was better. Food was not stellar; serving time was quite long (although they really said this); and the room pricing was overall disappointing. They treated my 4-year-old child as an extra person so they charged us for her, even though in typical accommodation situations, she would have been able to stay for free especially that she shared the bed with her parents.

Will I come back to the secret beach in Siaton? 

I am not sure. I won’t deny that I loved how secluded it was and how inaccessible it seems, thus maintaining the peace and quiet. I am just not sure about coming back because of the food or the room price point. I felt like they could do better in these areas. Nevertheless, Mac and I were grateful we got a mini holiday and enjoyed a short work-free time amid our super hectic schedule.

I still look forward to days like these–when our spontaneity comes to play and brings us to new places to explore.