
Dapa Port to Pilar
The ferry arrival for Siargao’s east coast — from the municipality Pilar used to be part of, to the one it became in 1953.
Pilar was part of Dapa until 1953
Pilar was a barrio of Dapa until it was created as a separate municipality on 31 October 1953 by Executive Order No. 638, issued by President Elpidio Quirino. The two are still neighbours: checked against the 2023 PSGC boundary file our island map is drawn from, Dapa shares a land boundary with Pilar as well as with General Luna and Del Carmen. That is the practical difference between this arrival and the airport one — the ferry puts you in the municipality next door, while Sayak Airport starts you on the opposite, western side of the island. It does not make the drive short, and we do not publish a time for it.
The road runs inland, not along the coast
The corridor drawn on our routes map is traced from real OpenStreetMap highway geometry rather than sketched between two dots, and it does not hug the shoreline. It leaves Dapa heading north through the interior of the island, climbs past the latitude of Pilar town, and only then turns east to reach the coast. That is worth knowing if you have been picturing a coastal run, and it is another reason we quote the journey rather than promise a duration: the day’s road conditions and the barangay you are going to change it more than the map does.
You cannot sail into Pilar itself
Pilar has a natural harbour through a small inlet called Port Pilar, and arriving by sea makes that look like the obvious way in. It is not. Siargao’s passenger sea gateway is Dapa Port, which carries the ferry link to Surigao City; Port Pilar is a harbour, not a terminal. Whichever ferry you take, the last stretch to Pilar is a road transfer, so plan the journey around a Dapa arrival and let the transfer cover the rest.
Name the barangay — at both ends
Pilar has 11,135 people across 15 barangays at the 2024 census, four of which make up the poblacion (Asinan, Centro, Pilaring and Punta), so “Pilar” on its own does not fix a drop-off. The same is true of the pickup: Dapa is 29 barangays and the port is not the town centre, so tell us you are being met off the ferry rather than collected in Dapa. If Magpupungko is the reason you are heading east, say so — the rock pools sit north-east of the town proper, they are a separate stop from a Pilar address, and they only appear once the tide has receded, so the sensible pickup is timed to the tide rather than to a convenient hour. The Magpupungko route guide explains how that timing shapes the pickup.
Read the route guide: General Luna → Magpupungko →The sailing home is the leg with the deadline, and it can be cancelled
You have just made the crossing, so the return sailing is the one part of your trip you already know something about — and it is worth settling now rather than on your last morning. Leaving by sea carries a risk the road does not: the Philippine Coast Guard can suspend crossings outright at a few hours’ notice, scoped by vessel tonnage, which is why the small fast craft is the first thing to stop while a larger ferry may still sail. That is also why we publish no sailing times, no crossing durations and no operator timetable anywhere on this site. Tick “I also need the return trip” on the form below, tell us the sailing you intend to catch, and we will build in the margin the port queue needs and quote both road legs together. If the sea closes on your morning, tell us — moving a transfer you already hold is far easier than finding a vehicle on the day everyone else is trying to leave too.
What to include in your request
Send the ferry operator, departure point, sailing date and scheduled arrival, then the accommodation name and barangay in Pilar. Add your group size, bags, any surfboards and any child-seat need. If Magpupungko or another stop belongs to the same journey, list it, and if you want the return sailing covered too, add that as well — we will price the whole plan as one fixed, all-in quote by email rather than the headline leg.
Why there is no price or journey time here
We would rather publish nothing than publish a number we cannot stand behind. Roads, weather and group size all move the answer. Send the trip and we will send a fixed, all-in price for your date.
Places tied to this route
These destination pages cover the arrival point, departure area or boat-connection stop behind this route, so you can understand the bigger trip before asking for a quote.
Worth reading before you book this leg
The questions this journey tends to raise on either side of the drive itself - what you are allowed to bring and how to declare it, and what the end you are heading for actually asks of you. Answered in full, so your request arrives with the details we would otherwise have to write back for.
The same journey, the other way round
Most requests that reach us cover one leg. The opposite leg is a different page with its own deadlines and its own preset form - and asking for both in one message is the easiest way to get them quoted together, with no obligation attached to either.
Why travellers ask us
Siargao runs on tides, small roads and word of mouth. We quote by hand because that is the only honest way to price a trip on an island like this.
Booked in English, in advance
Arrange everything by email before you fly, from anywhere in the world.
Local drivers, local knowledge
Vetted local drivers who know the island roads, the tides and how long things really take.
Built around your flight
Pickups timed to your actual arrival at Sayak, not a guess — send us the flight number.
More on how we work — fixed all-in pricing, and what the quote covers before you commit.
What happens to your request
- 1
Tell us your trip
Pickup, where you are headed, the date and how many of you. Add your flight number, your resort or any stops — whatever helps us get it right.
- 2
Get a fixed quote
We reply by email with a clear, all-in price for the right vehicle or boat. No account, no deposit to ask.
- 3
Confirm & go
Happy with the price? Confirm and we lock in your driver. You travel on a fixed price with a trip-day contact you can reach.
Tell us your trip. Get a fixed price.
Tell us your plans. We will email you a fixed, all-in quote.
Free to ask. No payment now, no obligation.
Before you send it
How much does a transfer or island trip cost?
It depends on the route, the vehicle or boat, how many of you are travelling, waiting time and any extra stops. That is exactly why we quote per trip rather than publishing a price list — tell us the details and we will send a fixed, all-in price.
What should I put as the pickup and drop-off — is the town name enough?
Send the property name if you have one — your hotel, hostel, villa or homestay — rather than the town on its own. This is the detail that most often makes a quote need revising later, and it is the easiest one to get right. Siargao’s municipalities are large rural areas rather than neighbourhoods: Del Carmen covers roughly 148 square kilometres and Dapa about 84, against General Luna’s 47, so “we are staying in Del Carmen” can describe two places a long drive apart, and it holds the airport, the town proper and the port all under one name. “Pilar” can likewise mean the town or the Magpupungko area some way from it, and they are different drop-offs. A map pin or the barangay is just as good, and a landmark works when a property has no obvious address. If you are being collected at Sayak Airport or Dapa Port, naming the gateway is enough on that side — it is the other end we need pinned down. Our route pages prefill the town to save you typing; replacing it with where you are actually staying takes ten seconds and is the difference between a price that holds and one that has to be sorted out at the roadside. Where to stay in Siargao — and what to send us
How and when do I pay?
There is no payment to request a quote and no obligation to book. Once you are happy with the price we will confirm the payment options with you before you travel.
Is the all-in price really everything — is there anything left to pay on the day?
For the transfer itself, yes: the price we agree in writing is the price for the journey, and there is nothing further to settle with the driver at the end of it. What that price cannot include is money that is not ours to take. Several of the places people visit here charge their own entrance or environmental fee, collected on the spot by the barangay or the municipality — the gate at the Magpupungko rock pools, the sites on an island-hopping day, the lagoon and cove trips — and those are theirs, not ours. We do not collect them, we take no cut of them, and we will not fold them into our figure and present it as a package, because that would make a transfer quote look like a tour price. We also do not print the amounts: they are set locally, the reported figures differ between years and sources, and a number we do not control is not one we will publish. Two practical things follow. Bring some cash for the day, because these are cash desks rather than card terminals. And tell us the stops you have in mind when you request a quote, so the reply can say plainly which legs, which waiting time and which arrangements it covers — then the only thing left on the day is a gate fee you already knew about. The Siargao land tour — what we quote, and what is collected on the day
How far ahead should I book — and is it too late if I am already on the island?
Sooner gives us more room, but do ask late: plenty of the trips we arrange are booked a day or two before travel, and some by people who are already here. The dates with the least slack are the ones when everyone wants a vehicle at once — the wet months, and the run of days around the Philippines Pro at Cloud 9, which is on from 31 October to 10 November 2026 — and so are early-morning departures and late-night arrivals, because those are the hours when Siargao has the least to fall back on: no Grab, no Uber, no metered taxi network, no scheduled bus, and the tricycles and habal-habal thin out late and in heavy rain. What we will not do is publish a cut-off, because whether a trip can be covered depends on the day, the vehicle it needs and where on the island it starts. So send the request with your date and time even if it is tomorrow, and we will tell you straight away whether we can cover it rather than leave you guessing. Getting around Siargao — what runs, what does not, and when
I do not have my dates fixed yet — should I wait until I do before asking?
Ask now with your best guess. The form needs a date in the box because almost everything about a trip is worked out from it, but it is not a commitment and it does not have to be your final answer — write the day you think is likeliest, then say in “Anything else we should know?” what is still moving: the flight you have not booked, the ferry you are waiting on, a week you know only roughly, or a departure hour that could still shift. We will quote what you do know. It is the same with a time you are unsure of: the pickup-time box says to leave it blank if you are not sure, and a return date you have not fixed yet is not a problem either. There is a real reason to ask early rather than wait. Movable dates are worth something here — the Magpupungko pools are only worth visiting around low water and the window drifts later each day, the boat days are weather-gated, and if you tell us which of your days can slide we will tell you which ones give the better window before you commit to one. We would also rather hear from you early and adjust than meet you for the first time on the week you travel: plans change, and telling us as early as you can is what makes them easy to work with. Asking costs nothing and commits you to nothing — it is a request, not a booking, and nothing is reserved until we confirm it in writing. The one thing to know is that a quote is built on the details you gave us, so if the date or the shape of the trip genuinely changes, the price can change with it, and we will say so before anything is confirmed. We publish no cut-off: send what you have, and we will tell you straight away what we can do with it. Siargao itineraries — which days are worth keeping movable
Can I ask for the return trip at the same time, or do I have to book it separately?
Ask for both at once — it is one request, not two bookings. On an airport or point-to-point transfer the form has a box marked “I also need the return trip”: tick it and you can give the return date and pickup time in the same message. A day trip asks instead for a “Back by” time, and a multi-day itinerary for a “Return / end date” and a return pickup time, so on those two the second leg is already part of what the form collects rather than a separate box to find. If the journey you want back does not fit any of those — a different route home, an extra stop, a move between towns part-way through — write it into “Anything else we should know?” and it will be quoted with the rest. It is worth doing now rather than later. Almost every request that reaches us is an arrival, and the trip home is the one journey with a deadline you do not set: a departure is timed backwards from a check-in counter that closes whether you are standing at it or not, and the load going home is often not the load that arrived — a board bought here, a box, a bag that no longer closes. Both are easier to settle while you are still planning than on your last morning. And asking commits you to nothing: there is no obligation attached to a quote, and a return date you have not fixed yet is not a problem — say so, and we will quote what you do know. General Luna to Sayak Airport — planning the way out
All the questions we get asked — including bags, boards and pets, night pickups, delayed flights and child seats.





