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Mactan Island Cebu
Philippines |
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Your
Destination Travel Guide to Mactan Island Cebu Philippine |
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Lapu-Lapu Monument Mactan Shrine |
Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary |
Marcelo B. Fernan Bridge |
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Mactan
Island lies a few kilometers southeast of the Cebu
mainland and is divided into Lapu-Lapu City and the
Municipality of Cordova. Mactan Island is connected to
Cebu Island by two bridges, the Mandaue-Mactan Bridge
and the Marcelo B. Fernan Bridge. Lapu-Lapu City, one of
the chartered cities in Cebu Province, is located on the
western coast of Mactan Island and lies about 5
kilometers across Cebu Harbor. The city, which was
formerly called Opon, was named after the famous Chief
of Lapu-Lapu, who killed Portuguese navigator Ferdinand
Magellan in he Battle of Mactan in 1521. |
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Mactan Island White Sand Beach |
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The Municipality of Cordova, meanwhile is located in
the southern part of Mactan Island. Its boundaries
are Lapu-Lapu City in the north, northeast and
northwest side, Camotes Sea in the far east, Bohol
Strait in the south, Cebu City in the west, and the
Hilutungan Channel in the southeast.
Mactan Island is one of the favorite tourist
destinations in the country not only because it is
accessible through the Mactan-Cebu International
Airport, the second busiest airport in the country,
but also for its beautiful beaches and dive sites.
Dubbed as the "Diving Mecca of the South," Mactan
Island has more than a dozen beach resorts with
complete diving facilities. The dive sites in the
island are ideal for beginners, as well as advanced
divers. First class hotels and resorts such as the
Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort & Spa and the
Waterfront Mactan Airport Hotel and Casino also
offers local and foreign tourists world class
services. |
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Lapu-Lapu
Monument - Mactan Shrine Barangay Mactan
Dedicated to Lapu-Lapu, the first Filipino Hero which
stands inside the Mactan Shrine facing Magellan Bay.
Lapu-Lapu is considered one of the greatest figures in
Philippine history because he was among those who
rejected foreign power. Lapu-Lapu, who was the chieftain
of the area, defeated Ferdinand Magellan, the leader of
the Spanish fleet, in the famous Battle of Mactan.
Magellan's
Marker - Mactan Shrine Barangay Mactan
Erected in 1866, the marker marks the spot where
Ferdinand Magellan died. Before he reached the shores of
Mactan, he was killed by the chieftain of the island,
Lapu-Lapu and his men during the battle for the
supremacy and freedom on April 27, 1521. |
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Local Fresh
Seafood Restaurants - Mactan Shrine Vicinity
Barangay Mactan
These restaurants are located in the vicinity across
the monument of Lapu-Lapu and the Magellan Shrine
which offer fresh prawns, crabs, squids cooked the
way you want them and cooked right before your eyes.
A must is the experience of sutukil - a term derived
from three Cebuano words: Sugba, Tuwa, Kilaw - which
are ways to prepare food, particularly seafood.
Sugba menas to broil such as broiling fish over hot
charcoal; tuwa means boiling fish in water mixed
with spices and seasonings; and kilaw is mixing raw
fish with vinegar, onions, garlic and pepper.
Olango
Island Wildlife Sanctuary
Located in Barangay San Vicente in the Southernmost
part of Olango Island in Lapu-Lapu City, this
920-hectare sanctuary is home to the largest
concentration of migratory birds found so far in the
country. These winged creatures travel between
summer breeding grounds in Siberia, China and Japan
and warmer climates of Australia and New Zealand,
making a stop at Olango Island to refuel between
long flights. |
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Shangri-La Mactan Island Hotel
Resort and SPA |
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Maribago Guitar
Factories - Barangay Maribago District
Mactan is also known for world-class acoustic guitars,
bandurrias (Filipino mandolins), banjos and ukeleles.
Barangay Maribago in Lapu-Lapu City is considered as the
center of the guitar-making industry. The guitar makers
here put so much effort into a single guitar that they
are considered to be among the world's finest craftsmen.
Only one craftsman is responsible for the entire
production of a single guitar. This way the quality of
the guitar is guaranteed.
Getting There in
Mactan Island Cebu Philippines
Mactan Island is accessible through direct flights to
the Mactan-Cebu International Airport from the cities in
the Philippines such as Manila, Iloilo, Bacolod, Davao,
Zamboanga, and Tagbilaran. There are also direct flights
to the island from Hongkong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur,
Doha in Qatar, Narita, Japan and Incheon, Korea.
Tourists can go around the island by jeepney or taxi,
multicabs or tricycles. Most of the hotels and resorts
in the island also provide shuttle buses for their
guests. |
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Click
here for the
Historical Background of Cebu
Philippines |
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See also the
Flight Schedules of
Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines
from Cebu to Manila, Bacolod, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro,
Kalibo, General Santos, Puerto Princesa, Zamboanga and
Davao and vice versa. |
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Philippine
Tourist Destination |
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