Getting to Sugba Lagoon, Del Carmen
A green lagoon on the island barangay of Caub in Del Carmen, reached only by boat through the mangroves — and shut by ordinance every year from 10 January to 10 February.
Where it is
Sugba Lagoon is on Caub, an island barangay of the municipality of Del Carmen on the west side of Siargao — the same municipality as Sayak Airport, and on the opposite coast from General Luna, where most visitors stay. No road goes to it. You drive to Del Carmen port, then take a boat out through the mangrove channels to a lagoon tucked in among forested limestone hills. Del Carmen’s municipal environment officer has put the lagoon itself at an estimated 87 hectares. If you are addressing anything, Del Carmen’s postal code is 8418.
It is shut every year from 10 January to 10 February
This is the fact that catches people out. A Del Carmen municipal ordinance declares a 32-day “annual tourist holiday” for the lagoon, barring entry and leisure activities at Sugba every year from 10 January to 10 February, so that facilities can be repaired and the site can recover. The closure has run since 2016 and has been reported on those same dates year after year. Only Sugba closes: the municipality has said that its other sites, including the mangrove forest itself and the islands of Kawhagan and Pamomoan, stay open. If your dates fall in that window, tell us — a mangrove day out of the same port is still possible, and it is better to know before you plan the day around the lagoon. The dates come from the ordinance, but the local government sets them, so it is worth a check nearer the time.
How far it actually is
On the OpenStreetMap nodes our routes map is drawn from, the Sugba landing sits about 8.5 km from Del Carmen town proper in a straight line, about 13.5 km from Sayak Airport, and about 31 km from General Luna. Those are map separations, not road or boat distances, and we publish no journey time for either leg. What they show is scale: from a General Luna base this is a cross-island drive to the far coast followed by a boat, which is why it is quoted as a full day trip rather than a short transfer.
The boats are a community programme
The mangrove tours that carry visitors to Sugba grew out of Siargao It Up!, a Del Carmen programme launched in 2013 to turn mangrove cutters into fisherfolk and illegal fishers into boat guides. By the account of the Galing Pook Foundation, which gave it a national award for local governance in 2018, it created an alternative livelihood for 248 people, and local eco-guides were trained in 2016 towards Department of Tourism certification. Booking the boat through the proper channel at the port is part of how that works.
Where the name comes from
“Sugba” is the Visayan word for grilling over a fire. Del Carmen’s environment officer has told the local story behind the name: when fog lies over the lagoon, it looks as though smoke is rising off the water. Take that as folklore rather than history — it is how the name is explained locally.
What a trip involves, and what the quote covers
A Sugba day has two legs — the road transfer from wherever you are staying to Del Carmen port, and the boat. We can quote both together so you have one price and one point of contact, rather than arranging the drive and then negotiating a boat when you arrive. Local entrance and environmental fees are collected on site and set by the municipality, so we do not print an amount; ask us and we will say in writing whether a quote includes them.
What to send us
Your date — and if it is anywhere near January, say so — where you are staying by name, your group size, and anything that changes the vehicle, such as bags, boards or a child seat. Say whether you want the road transfer to the port only, or the whole day with the boat. Everything comes back as one fixed, all-in price by email, with no obligation to book.
No published price — and that is deliberate
A fair price depends on your date, your group, your bags and how long we wait. So we quote per trip instead of publishing a number we would have to hedge. Fill in the form below and we will send a fixed, all-in price by email.
Related route guides
If this place is one stop in a wider Siargao trip, these route guides explain the road or road-and-boat legs visitors most often need to sort around it.
General Luna → Sugba Lagoon
A joined-up road-and-boat trip from General Luna to Del Carmen port and onward through the mangroves to the lagoon.
Read moreSayak Airport → Del Carmen
The arrival where you have already landed in the municipality you are heading for — and still need a transfer, because the airport is not the town and Del Carmen is the biggest municipality on the island.
Read moreDapa Port → Del Carmen
The ferry arrival for the mangrove side of the island — and the one transfer on Siargao where saying “the port” can mean either end of the journey.
Read moreTell us your trip. Get a fixed price.
It takes under a minute. No account, no payment now, no obligation — just a clear, all-in quote from someone who actually drives these roads.
- Free & no-obligation — quote first, decide later
- Reply by email from a real person on the island
- Fixed, all-in pricing for the right-sized vehicle
- Your details are used only to prepare your quote