Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
Panay

AKLAN [Bakhawan Eco-Park]

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Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
To make the most out of your trip to this eco-park in Kalibo, make sure to explore it by sunset. Boy was it so surreal. And sort of creepy of course, once it gets dark while walking through the towering mangroves.

🇵🇭BAKHAWAN ECO-PARK ADVENTURE PRIMER🇵🇭

✈️🛳🚌 How to get to Bakhawan Eco-Park, Aklan:
⏺ Take a plane from Metro Manila to Kalibo or Caticlan (e.g. Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and AirAsia).
⏺ From Kalibo town proper, hire a tricycle that will take you to the eco-park.
⏺ If you’re coming from Caticlan, ride a van to reach Kalibo (travel time: approximately 1.5 hours) then charter a tricycle to reach the eco-park.
 
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
It was already past 1:00 in the afternoon when my friend and I arrived in Kalibo from Pandan Hills in Batan. After eating lunch, we stopped by our lodge so I could get my tripod for our long exposure shots in Bakhawan. We then hailed a tricycle from Poblacion that would take us to the eco-park.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
Visiting Bakhawan Eco-Park was originally not part of our plan but because our itinerary was altered upon reaching the island of Panay, we got no choice but to research for other spots to visit since we got free time that afternoon.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
The place was quiet when we arrived at the entrance gate. There were no other people by the registration area. We paid the entrance fee before we were allowed to proceed.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
I was surprised to see how big this mangrove forest is. I mean, I’ve seen mangrove forests in other parts of the country but boy is this huge. After all, its land area is 220 hectares.

⏰⏳ SAMPLE ITINERARY (Aklan):

 
DAY 1
7:00 AM ETA Caticlan Airport
7:30 AM ETD for Boracay
8:00 AM ETA Boracay
8:30 AM Early check-in
9:00 AM Beach hopping
12:00 PM Lunch
4:00 PM Free time / swimming
7:00 PM Dinner
 
DAY 2
11:00 AM Check-out
12:00 PM ETD for Caticlan Jetty Port
1:00 PM ETD for Unidos
2:00 PM Nabas Wind Farm and Pawa Hills
5:00 PM ETD for Kalibo
6:00 PM ETA Kalibo / check-in
 
DAY 3
6:00 AM Wake-up call / breakfast
7:00 AM ETD for Barangay Bay-ang, Batan
8:00 AM ETD for Pandan Hills
9:00 AM Pandan Hills
12:00 PM ETD for Kalibo
2:00 PM ETA Kalibo / lunch
3:00 PM ETD for Bakhawan Eco-Park
6:00 PM Head back to accommodation
 
DAY 4
6:00 AM Wake-up call
7:00 AM ETD for Kalibo Airport
9:00 AM ETD for Manila
 
💰💶 ESTIMATED BUDGET (for a solo traveler exploring the province of Aklan): Php 8,000 – Php 10,000 (exclusive of airfare)
***Expenses may vary depending on the type of accommodation you will avail and personal consumption of food and other necessities. If traveling alone, you will solely shoulder the tricycle/motorcycle transfer rates.
 
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We continued walking the bamboo trail and feasted our eyes on the tall mangroves.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We took tons of photos as we strolled through this pathway which is more than a kilometer long.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We would come across some people as we walked, locals probably, but luckily, the eco-park was not crowded.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
The eco-park is actually a great spot to unwind. There are portions with benches which serve as rest stops where you can relax.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We almost reached the end of the mangrove walkway but unfortunately, we were not able to see the beach as the path leading to the shore was under renovation during our visit.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
Based on the pictures I’ve seen online, there isn’t much to see at the beach anyway, so we just compensated our frustration by taking lots of photos here.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
By the time the rays were directional as the sun was about to touch the horizon, we began to hear the never-ending singing of cicadas.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We waited until the sunrays were already behind the mangrove trees for our long exposure shots. It felt like we were in a sunset scene of an anime show.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
The aura that afternoon felt so surreal. We stayed inside the park until dusk before going back to the town proper. We were just right in time for dinner.

📜✏️ Tips/Reminders:

📌Caticlan will serve as your jump-off point for Boracay Island and Nabas Wind Farm while Kalibo, which is an hour and a half away from Caticlan, will be your jump-off point for Bakhawan Eco-Park and Pandan Hills. You may plot Caticlan as your entry airport while Kalibo as your exit airport.
📌Expect rain during monsoon season (June-February).
📌Always observe the LNT principles.
 
☎️ Contact:
📌Tricycle Driver in Kalibo: Kuya Rex (09388216786)
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
After almost a year, I went back to Bakhawan Eco-Park with two of my closest blockmates from the university. One of them hailed from Kalibo and is now practicing his profession in his hometown. We had a quick side trip to Boracay in the morning before going to Bakhawan.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
The portion of the bamboo trail leading to the shore was now already open so we chilled for a while by the beach.
Bakhawan Eco-Park, Kalibo, Aklan, Philippines
We were not able to wait for sunset though as we hurriedly made our way to the terminal of vans en route to Roxas City where we were supposed to spend the night. It was going to be an exciting itinerary at the Seafood Capital of the Philippines the next day.

***For other destinations in Aklan and Panay, you may visit this link.

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