Cagayan De Oro - From the Airport to Casa Crystalla Hotel and St. Nicholas Inn

I just came back from a one week trip to Cagayan De Oro and Camiguin. It has not only been fun but a wonderful experience. One that humbles you and makes you appreciate friends, family, new experiences, the Philippine urban life and God's creations more and more.

Let me recount my CDO experience first before I tell you more about Camiguin.

First of all, I'm so grateful to Cebu Pacific for allowing Filipinos to see the abundant beauty of our country. With the tagline "Its time everyone flies", we got the chance to take the P10 plane fare to Cagayan De Oro. I was impressed with the new and clean aircraft of Cebu Pacific. It smelled new and clean. It's so worth it with the P10 fare! That's where the whole adventure began.

While we were planning the trip, I was having second thoughts about going. Budget wise, I was still saving up for my annual out of the country trip and my close friends backed out at the last minute. Call me crazy, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise because I got the chance to be with 3 wonderful women (Eng, Krissy (the fearless leader) and Mia (my kikay and gimmick partner). This trip gave me the chance to get to know them better. Travelling with someone is the best way to get to know the person better. I'm so happy I have three new girl friends with whom I shared this adventure with.

The first day started on a Saturday early morning. We landed in CDO at 6 am. Tips for those who are taking a cab to their hotels, the cab drivers there don't use their meters from the airport. They would charge you from P100 to P200 from the airport to your destination. Their reason, they've been waiting there for passengers since 2 am. I got really turned off by this behaviour.

As we went out of the airport, we asked a DOT representative on which cab to take. He pointed us to the official line of cabs and told us to make sure that we take a metered taxi. However, when we were looking for a cab, one of the taxi drivers offered us P100 and no meter. Since the DOT representative said not to take a cab without meter, we said no. One driver was rammbling saying... '"Tignan nyo kung may makita kayong naka metro dyan. Di na kayo naawa. Kanina pa silang alas dos nakapila dyan." (Good luck finding a cab with a meter. Don't you feel sorry for these drivers? They've been in line since 2 am!) I was pissed! Its their job to get passengers so waiting in line since 2 am should not be a reason to take advantage of tourists. Don't jip people who just arrived and have no idea what to expect in that city. I hope that the CDO local government fixes this because it really gives a bad impression about the city. The first experience out of the airport leaves a lasting impression on your visitors.

Anyhow, we arrived at our hotel Casa Cyrstalla after around 15 - 20 minutes of travel time. The hotel is right in the middle of the city. Location wise, it's great! You are near the Divisoria and public transport is available all around the area. However, with the price of P400 a night, I don't recommend this hotel. You can get a hotel within the city at the same price but with much better service. The mattress has mites and the blanket is grayish brown. YIKES! The rooms are decent but the bathroom is not so clean. The towels that they provide are very thin and with gray brown color. DON'T USE IT ON YOUR FACE! Use facial tissues!

If you want a nice hotel at almost the same price, check out St. Nicholas Traveller's Inn. They have a great staff, nice bunk beds, good aircon, clean bathrooms and nice towels. All for P300-P400 a night. They also server meals at P80 per meal. That includes one meat dish, one vegetable dish and rice. This place is great for budget travellers who still wants a comfortable bed at night. The rooms are small but comfortable. There's one room for4 people at P1200/ night. This is good enough for those who are not maarte and just needs a place to sleep and wash up comfortably. This is where we stayed on our last night in CDO before our flight to Manila. Oh, look for Tata while you're there. She's super helpful with everything that you would need.

If you are planning a trip to CDO, read the other blogs. It might help you out in your planning. If you have questions, you can also email me at lyshiel@yahoo.com.