DIY Travel Guide to Five Fingers and Laki Beach Tour in Mariveles, Bataan

Looking for beautiful white sand beaches near Manila? You may check this travel guide to Five Fingers in Mariveles, Bataan. A beach getaway  that is comparable to Palawan and Batanes, Five Fingers is slowly capturing the hearts of Manilenos who don't have enough time to fly to farther destinations in the country. It is a Philippine destination that is surprisingly unspoiled from mass tourism. It's undoubtedly a perfect place where you can relax and find yourself.  There are no wifi signals, no electricity and data connections are unstable. Last but not the least, if you are one who is looking for the best cliff diving spots in the Philippines, Five Fingers is the answer!  

I Just recently discovered a viral post of Michelle Mendoza on Facebook about her DIY trip there while I was looking for Five Fingers Bataan tour package and Five Fingers Bataan itinerary overnight. I quickly sent her message to ask permission so I can spread the wordabout her trip to Five Fingers that share tips and travel guides. She is so nice to say yes, that's why here I am doing the favor. 

Introduction to Five Fingers in Bataan
The name Five Fingers refer to the five coves in Mariveles namely Apatot Cove, Talaga Beach, Tinanlakan Cove, Nagbintana Arch and Pulong Kawayan Arch.   If you're game to stay overnight in a remote beach in the Philippines while you watch billions of stars above, this is the place to be. You can have a bonfire, cook barbecues and of course drink beer away from the hustle and bustle of the city life in Manila! 

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Looking for a tour package for Five Fingers and Laki Beach Tour in Bataan? We have a partner accredited travel agency that offers a very affordable rate for you. Send me a message via mariaronab@gmail.com for more details.
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Where to stay in Five Fingers - Laki Beach Resort

Looks like the best place to have an overnight stay (depends on how many nights you want) is in Five Fingers is at Laki Beach. This island is not fully developed so don't expect for a first - class comfort room or potable water everywhere you go. Laki Beach is the most ideal place to pitch your tent however it is the most famous of all the coves, so on weekends expect a thick crowd. 

If you are looking for other places to stay in Five Fingers, check Talain Cove - no toilet, no electricity & no private shower areas. Another one is Hawla Beach (Claubel Resort) with aircon and fan rooms. You can pitch your tent but you have to rent one cottage. 

Suggested Itinerary for Day Tour to Five Fingers with sidetrip to Sisiman beach
For further reading please check this link: DIY ITINERARY GUIDE TO SISIMAN BAY: PEBBLE BEACH, LIGHTHOUSE, SUMMIT AND GROTTO IN MARIVELES, BATAAN

2:30 am - ETD Cubao
5:30 am - ETA Brgy. Sisiman for side trip
7:00 am - Breakfast at Pupung
8:30 am -  Arrive  at  Porto Barton
9:00 am - ETD port
9:20 am - ETA 20-ft Cliff diving 
10:30am - ETA Apatot Beach
11:15am - ETA Tinanlakan Cliff diving spot (40ft)
12noon -  ETA Nagbintana Arc
1:30pm - ETA Laki Beach
5:30pm - ETD Laki Beach
6:10pm - ETA port, sunset
8:00 pm- Dinner
10:30 pm - ETA Cubao, end of trip

Another worthy sidetrip for Five Fingers is the Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bagac of the same province. However, I strongly suggest to give one whole day and if possible one night as well because this the Philippines' most beautiful heritage town. The place is Instagrammable I tell you, I don't think  you'll spend a few hours here only.     

Please check below a few blog posts I made for Las Casas:
13 HERITAGE HOUSES YOU SHOULD VISIT IN LAS CASAS FILIPINAS DE ACUZAR IN BAGAC, BATAAN
THE CASA ARRASTIA HOUSE IN LAS CASAS FILIPINAS DE ACUZAR
THE CASA BINONDO IN LAS CASAS FILIPINAS DE ACUZAR, BAGAC BATAAN - BLOG REVIEW

As per Michelle,

"We stayed overnight sa Laki Beach - we’re so lucky na 2 groups lang kami. Literally 8 lang kami sa isla. Eto yung pinaka magandang island for me. Dito kami nagstay for overnight. So make sure to bring your own tent kasi konti lang yung cottages dun which is for free naman. Pero overnight stay there Php350 per head, day tour stay Php100.  

Five Fingers is a white sand beach so near in Manila. Would you  ! What I love about this place eh hindi talaga crowded, mahihirapan talaga kayong magtagu-taguan dito. Feeling ko I was in Siargao sa sobrang crystal clear ng water and sobrang pino ng sand.

Nagclose ang Laki Beach to public last 2nd week of April 2017 lang kasi hindi pala alam ng owner na nag ooperate yung care taker doon. But was finally open to public lastweek of May 2017. So better to contact first any local there kung open siya before planning to go."

Michelle keeps on reminding us that always make sure to contact first any local there to check the weather. They seriously don't let anyone to go there when the weather is not fine like the waves are stronger than usual even if you came spent days of commuting, they value your safety. 

She recalls her personal experience about this when she and her travel buddies went to this certain town in Mariveles (near Mental Hospital). One boatman suggested to just do a Camaya Coast day tour instead because the waves are really turbulent that time.Good thing she previously checked  Five Fingers blog reviews and found two local contacts whom they called to confirm if they can go to the island or not. They said, the weather conditions differ from each town of Bataan. That town (they forgot the name) was the only one experiencing heavy rain so they just went to another town and from there, they proceeded to Five Fingers.

I read other blogs that say Laki Beach is closed for good so please make sure to contact the management or the local tourism office of Mariveles, Bulacan.  


More options: Top tourist spots in Marives Bataan (please click the links below)

Camaya Coast Day Tour Blog Review
CORREGIDOR DAY TOUR ITINERARY GUIDE WITH SUN CRUISES
THE MOUNT SAMAT NATIONAL SHRINE

Contact numbers for Five Fingers Tour

Kuya Bonnie and Ate Bheng ‭mobile number: 09092279356‬ 

How to go to Five Fingers, Mariveles in Bataan

• From Manila, you can ride Bataan Transit or Genesis bus bound to Mariveles from bus terminals of Cubao, Avenida and Pasay. Fare is from Php 280 - Php 290.  Drop-off point is at Mariveles Town Proper.  You can choose the last bus stop  in the bus terminal or in Jollibee.
• From Mariveles to Porto Baton, there are two options to get there: ride a jeepney bound to Brgy. Balon (Php 8.00) or ride a tricycle (Php 75.00 - Php100) good for 4 pax. Just tell the driver to drop you off in Porto Baton.  
•  The best landmark to Five Fingers is the basketball court.  It's just a few minutes of walking to reach the beach. There are ready-to-rent boats in case you did not booked in advance. Sari-sari stores are also available there should you need to buy things for your cooking needs. .

Boat rental rates and tour packages for Five Fingers: 

Day tour: Php 2,000 - Php 2,500  

Overnight: Php 2,500 - 3,500 (Capacity: 5-10pax) it depends where do you want to stay  overnight. In our case, we were able to haggle well - we saved  Php 3, 000. Thanks to Kuya Bonnie and Ate Bheng.  This amount also includes discounted rates for Five Finger's  Island Hopping and Cove-to-Cove Adventure as well.. 

Her parting words: "CLEAN AS YOU GO. Na paulit ulit kong binabanggit sa travels ko. Panatilihin sana natin na malinis at maayos ang ating Mahal na Kalikasan para sa ekonomiya." 

You can follow Michelle on Instagram at @mitchmendoza_. All photos and tips are credited to her. We also welcome more tips for Five Fingers tour guide 

Did you just came back from a backpacking trip or memorable travel with lots of good-looking photos? It should have a COMPLETE information about itinerary, expenses, descriptions and lists of the places you visited like this one from Michelle. Do you want it shared to others so that you can help more people plan their trips as well?Please send me a message via mariaronab@gmail.com so we can have it posted here :) 

Note: This is a crowdsourced DIY Philippine travel guide. Please make your own judgement and we encourage to do your research because some information like the rates may not be up to date so that your trip's outcome is exactly you want it to be.