Short answer
Moalboal to New Maya port is the long west-coast run up the length of Cebu: roughly 210 km and about 6-7 hours by private car, north through Barili country onto the coastal highway through Toledo, Balamban, Tuburan and Tabuelan, then across the top through Bogo and Daanbantayan to the port.
It is the direct move for divers finishing at the sardine run and heading for the thresher sharks, and the whole point of doing it privately is that it does not backtrack. There is no service along the coast, so the practical public route goes down into Cebu City, across the city between two bus terminals, and back up again.
The page covers the road leg, ending at the pier gate. The onward outrigger to Malapascua is about 30-40 minutes, runs through the day and stops at 5:00 PM - which on a six-hour drive means an early start, so tell us the boat you want and we set the pickup from it.
Step by step: Moalboal to Maya Port (Daanbantayan)
- 1Early pickup at your Moalboal hotel
A six-to-seven-hour drive has to finish before the last boat, so this one starts early. Door-to-door from Panagsama, White Beach or wherever you are staying.
- 2North up the west coast
Out through Barili, then the coastal highway through Toledo, Balamban, Tuburan and Tabuelan - the same road the Hagnaya traffic uses, run in the other direction.
- 3Across the top of the island
Through Bogo and Medellin into Daanbantayan at Cebu’s northern tip.
- 4Arrive at New Maya port
Dropped at the port gate with your gear, in time for a daytime crossing if you are going on to Malapascua.
Ways to travel, compared
- Private transfer to Maya Port (what we arrange)~6-7 hrs
One continuous drive up the west coast with no city backtrack, door-to-gate, with dive gear handled and the timing built around your boat. Fixed, all-in price - request a quote.
- Public transport, backtracking via Cebu City~9+ hrs
No direct service along the coast. The practical route is a bus from Moalboal to the Cebu South Bus Terminal, across the city to the North Bus Terminal, then a Ceres bus up to Maya. Long, with transfers and waits, and very awkward with dive gear.
- Maya to Malapascua outrigger~30-40 min
The crossing at the end, if the island is your destination. Runs through the day and stops in the late afternoon - the reason this drive starts early. Paid at the port, separate from our quote.
When New Maya port is open, and what to expect at the gate
- Last boat to the island
- 5:00 PM from New Maya port. The operator side states it as a hard rule that covers chartered boats as well as the public outriggers, so it is not a queue you can talk your way into at 5:30
- First boat
- 5:00 AM, with a published board of about 22 crossings through the day. The crossing itself is 30-40 minutes
- What the board actually means
- These are public outriggers and they leave when they fill - about 10 passengers is the minimum reported. Times on the board are the shape of the day, not departures you can hold someone to
- Why 5:00 PM is the wrong target
- The last trip is the one most likely to have nobody else on it. Current guides warn that if the boat does not fill you are asked to pay for the whole thing, so aiming for the cut-off can turn a P200 seat into a charter
- When you have to be moving
- Counted back from 5:00 PM on our own drive times: clear arrivals at Mactan by about midday (4.5-5 hours, ~145 km), or leave Cebu City by about 1:00 PM (4-4.5 hours, ~133 km). Island resorts quote 1:00 PM off a flight, but on a 3-4 hour estimate for the road - midday is the number our own figures support
- Coming back
- The published board off the island ends about 4:30 PM, half an hour earlier than the outbound one. We have only one source for that, so treat it as the board rather than a guarantee and cross in the morning if a flight depends on it
- Paid at the port, not by us
- A seat is reported at P200-240, with roughly P140 environmental and P5 terminal fees per person. A private charter is reported at about P3,000-5,000, or P4,000 for up to ten passengers. Cash, at the pier, and worth re-confirming on the day
- Settle the boat before the car leaves, because on this route the boat is the deadline and the drive is just what fits inside it. Tell us your flight number or your checkout time when you request the quote and we time the pickup backwards from a crossing with daylight to spare, not from the 5:00 PM cut-off.
- If you land after about 1:00 PM, the honest answer is that Malapascua is a next-morning trip. An overnight near the airport or up in Daanbantayan and an early run north is a better night than a 5:00 PM sprint that ends at a closed pier with your bags on the pavement - and we would rather quote you the two-part version than the one that fails.
- Weather sits on top of all of this. These are small open boats and they are the first thing the coastguard stops in a heavy swell; a suspended crossing has no later alternative the same day. It is the reason the margin matters more here than the timetable does.
Add stops on the way to Maya Port (Daanbantayan)
It is a ~210 km drive, and you do not have to do it in one go. The car is yours for the journey and the driver waits wherever you stop, so a waterfall, an old church or a long lunch can sit in the middle of the run rather than costing you a separate day. List the stops you want in the quote request and we price the day, not the hop.
- The car waits wherever you stop
- Luggage stays in the vehicle
- Fuel, tolls and parking included
- Entrance fees paid locally, as you go
We'll pre-fill Moalboal → Maya Port (Daanbantayan). Add each one to the "Stops along the way" field on the form - it takes them in order - and we come back with one all-in price.
What the quote covers
- A private air-conditioned car or van with an English-speaking local driver for the whole journey
- Door-to-door pickup and drop-off at the exact addresses you give us, not a meeting point
- Fuel, tolls and parking
- Waiting time and any extra stops you tell us about up front, priced into the quote rather than added afterwards
- One fixed all-in price for the trip, agreed in writing before you travel
- Entrance, activity, guide and boat fees at places you choose to stop (paid locally)
- Meals and personal spending
- Accommodation, including a driver overnight on a multi-day trip unless we have set it out in the quote
- Inter-island ferry and boat crossings, unless we have set them out in the quote
We never invent activity or entrance prices - you pay those directly on the ground.
Moalboal to Maya Port (Daanbantayan): FAQs
How long does it take to get from Moalboal to Maya Port?
About 6-7 hours by private car for the roughly 210 km up the west coast, depending on traffic through the towns along the way. There is no shortcut across the island’s interior on this stretch.
Can I go from Moalboal to Malapascua without going through Cebu City?
Yes. This route runs straight up the west coast to New Maya port, and the outrigger crosses from there. Public transport has to backtrack through the city and swap bus terminals; a private car does not.
What time do we need to leave Moalboal?
Early. The last boat from Maya leaves at 5:00 PM and the drive is 6-7 hours, so a morning start is what keeps a same-day crossing comfortable. Tell us the boat you are aiming for and we work the pickup back from it.
Is this the same route in reverse coming back?
Yes - the same corridor, and we run it in both directions. If you are coming off the Malapascua boat and heading south to the sardine run, the Maya Port to Moalboal page sets out that direction.
Can you do the return trip, Maya Port (Daanbantayan) back to Moalboal?
Yes - the same private car and driver, Maya Port (Daanbantayan) back to Moalboal over the same ~210 km. Ask for both legs in one quote request and we price the round trip together. If the way back ends somewhere other than where you started, say where in the Anything else? box on the quote form and we quote that leg instead of the reverse of this one.
What does the price for Moalboal to Maya Port (Daanbantayan) include?
The quote is one fixed all-in price for the trip, agreed in writing before you travel, and fuel, tolls and parking are inside it - along with any waiting time or extra stops you tell us about when you ask. What stays separate is what you would choose anyway: entrance, activity and boat fees at the places you stop, your meals, and your accommodation. We do not invent activity prices, so those you pay directly on the ground.
Can I compare options, or have the price split out?
One fixed all-in price for the journey, agreed in writing before you travel, with fuel, tolls, parking and waiting time already inside it. If it would help you decide, ask and we will also quote the alternatives next to it - a larger vehicle against two smaller ones for a group that is on the edge of a van, or the road leg quoted on its own where part of your journey crosses water you are booking yourself. On a trip of several legs we will price them individually as well as together if you want to see where the cost sits. Entrance, activity and boat fees at the places you stop stay outside our figure and are paid locally, and we never mark them up. Say how you want it broken up in the box marked "Anything else?".
Do you book the whale sharks or the canyoneering for us, or do we buy those on the day?
The drive, the driver and the waiting time are ours and they are in the quote. Whatever is sold at the far end is bought there: whale-shark watching is registered in person at the Oslob desk and cannot be booked ahead by us or by anyone, canyoneering is booked on the day with the licensed Alegria operators, and falls entrances and the Moalboal environmental fee are paid at the gate. The exception is Sumilon, where the day-use pass must be reserved with the resort before you travel. So the thing worth getting right in the quote is the arrival time rather than a reservation, and that is the part we plan. Say which activity you are going for in the box marked "Anything else?" and the pickup is timed back from its window.
How much notice do you need - can I book this for tomorrow?
Usually yes. There is no minimum notice on this route and no cut-off hour, so a request for tomorrow, or for later today, is worth sending rather than writing off. What settles it is whether a vetted driver is free for the time you need, and you will have the answer and the price by email the same day, usually within a few hours. A very early start is routine here rather than a complication. The part that gets harder with less notice is choice - holding a particular vehicle size or an exact pickup hour - not whether the journey can happen, so send the date and, if the timing is tight, the hour you need to be moving.
Do I pay anything up front, and when do I pay the rest?
Nothing to ask for a quote. Once you are happy with the price it is two steps, not a choice between two: a booking fee paid online (card, bank transfer or GCash) confirms the trip and is what gets you your written confirmation, then the balance goes directly to your driver at the end of the journey. The fee is part of the all-in figure you agreed rather than an extra on top of it, and your quote states it before you pay. Free cancellation up to 72 hours before pickup refunds the fee in full.
Maya Port (Daanbantayan) to Moalboal
We run this route in both directions, with the same car and driver. Ask for both legs in one request and we'll price the round trip together.
We'll pre-fill Maya Port (Daanbantayan) → Moalboal on the form. Just add your dates and details.
Coming back to somewhere else - a different town, the airport, a pier for an onward boat? Say where in the Anything else? box on the form and we price the return to that instead of back to the start.
Related Cebu routes
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