Pundaquit Beach

Pundaquit is a small fishing village located in San Antonio, Zambales, about an hour or so away from Subic. The small town has garnered more buzz in the recent years as the jump off point to Anawangin Cove, the famous camping site.

We stayed overnight in Pundaquit at Canoe Beach Resort. The accommodations are modest. The rooms have the essentials and nothing more. There's a bed, towel, private bath and the room we got is air-conditioned. There's no television and no hot shower or toiletries in the bathroom. As for the cleanliness, much can be improved.

The resort has a small pool, cottages near the beach for rent, a function room and a restaurant. The food is not bad and not that expensive, but if you don't like waiting, better order ahead of time.

I've been to a beach in Zambales a couple of years ago, so I have some expectation of what it would look like. The beach area in Pundaquit didn't meet my expectations. To clarify, I wasn't expecting Boracay-like sand and crystal clear waters. It was okay that the sand is dark gray, at least it wasn't rocky. But the water did not look appealing to swim in, plus, strange-looking men walk along and are standing by near the resort. We found later that the water near the end of the stretch of beach is better and there were a few people taking a dip.

So that first day, we just rested, arranged for a boat and looked forward to next day's island hopping excursion to Anawangin Cove, Capones and Camara Islands.