THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO SIARGAO ISLAND

There were times you could hardly take anything home from the island – except your memories and the sand in your shoes. We loved those years! But a new wave of Siargao-made fashion, accessories and cosmetics is yet impressive.

Siargao Island is populated by board sports enthusiasts. And where boards pile up, free-minded ideas pile up as well: Kudo Surf, Gwapitos and Rockpool are the first surfwear labels invented on the island. Stop by Greenhouse, our favorite store by far, to shop named brands and such fabulous imports as Pleasant or Seea. Another address: Felice. The pretty little boutique (located halfway between Cloud 9 and G.L.) does not only sell shorts and shirts, but bags, scarves and other neat little things as well.

“Here’s my advice: Yes, eat that. No, do not text that boy back. Coconut oil.” Whoever thinks up such spells is right: coconut oil is always a good idea! Why Not Coconut is the brainchild of some islanders who bottle 100% natural, cold-pressed oil into fancy bottles and donate part of their proceeds to the Siargao Environmental Awareness Movement, a project that is important to us too. S.E.A. Movement fights for a functioning waste disposal and clean beaches on Siargao. So be smart and pack a bottle!

 You’re asking yourself if we’ve never heard of messengers? Sure we have, but Siargao makes you wanna send handwritten love declarations instead of palm tree emojis! For years there was nothing better to get than a handful of faded postals. Our despair about it took on such proportions, that we thought about an own postcard production. Until someone else did: the French photographer and filmmaker Camille Robiou du Pont, like many other artists, got stranded on Siargao. She photographs analogously and creates sensitive, almost melancholic images of the island, each of which we’d frame and hang on our walls. After all, she sells her photos in mini sizes, namely as postcards (available in Greenhouse Shop) and provided some of them for this guide. Merci Camille!

We know that the much shared call “leave nothing but your footprints” is difficult to match. Who’s a tourist, creates dirt and strains nature. Waste, noise and traffic accidents are – as on all Southeast Asian islands – a growing problem. Still, there are ways to travel this place as gently as you can: take the bicycle for short distances, drive slowly (and always sober), use reusable instead of disposable bottles, avoid plastic bags and sachets (the typical Asian mini-packages), support cafés and restaurants using bamboo instead of plastic straws and – most importantly – treat the locals with due respect. Siargao Island belongs to those who were born and raised there. We’ve only borrowed their paradise.