Hinatuan's Sibadan Fish Cage

One of Hinatuan's best dining spots can be found right in the waters of Hinatuan Bay. Sibadan Fish Cage is a restaurant on stilts accessible only by boats and is best visited during the summer season where fish is abundant. Aside from offering freshly cooked seafoods, it also offers board and lodging at a reasonable price - 300 pesos for a single fan room.

The place is famous not only for their food but also for the fact that they allow visitors to swim inside the pens where different varieties of sea creatures thrive. They raise lobsters, sting rays, blue fins, angel fish, tuna, and even sharks in these cages! They harvest these in the morning and cook them depending on your preference. One favorite dish of mine is their version of fish tinola (in parts of Mindanao, tinola is a completely different dish compared to what we have in Luzon wherein the primary ingredient is chicken) and kinilaw.

Tinolang isda

Here are some photos I took:

The largest among the fish cages where tourists can take a dip

Tourists can have close encounters with the sea creatures

My first time to see a stingray firsthand!

Kilawin, our favorite choice

How to get there from Butuan

Sibadan Fish Cage can be found in Port Lamon, Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur. This restaurant is a few kilometers further Hinatuan Enchanted River so on your way, you will pass by the famous river. If you are planning to go to Sibadan first, you can contract a habal-habal in Bgy. Cambatong to take you back to the Enchanted River.

By commuting:

1. Ride a Bachelor Bus directly bound for Mangagoy at Butuan Integrated Bus Terminal and ask the conductor to drop you off at Hinatuan Terminal. This is roughly a 4 hour trip.
2. At the town of Hinatuan, hire a habal-habal. Usual rate is 100 pesos per person. The motorcycle can accommodate 3 persons so if you are alone, the total rate is 300 pesos.

If you are in groups, you can hire a multicab or van going there. For more information, contact the Hinatuan Tourism Office at 0919460-0855.

By private car:

1. Drive along Maharlika Highway until you reach Hinatuan. You will pass by the city of Bayugan and the towns of Sibagat, Prosperidad, Patin-ay, San Francisco, Barobo and Tagbina in the province of Agusan del Sur. Travel time is approximately 3 hours.