Chillax and Let’s Party in Gumasa Beach!

Classes have ended and the long hot summer days are here in the Philippines. While a lot has been thinking of Boracay, we have 7,107 islands to explore…most of the beaches are relatively unknown to mainstream tourists. Recently however, Gumasa Beach in Sarangani Province has been making head waves being the venue of Mindanao’s largest beach party. Yet despite it being the center of this fiesta, during ordinary days (or even weekdays), Gumasa is one laidback paradise in this side of the country.

Gumasa Beach is located a few kilometers south of the town proper of Glan in Sarangani Province. Virtually unknown for most of the tourists, Gumasa was Sarangani’s hidden cream-white powdery sand beach that stretches for several kilometers. Despite it being close to urban General Santos City (more or less 50 kilometers), the so-called “Boracay of South-Central Mindanao” is relatively virginal, even though there are few beach resorts that are located here.

While Tuka Beach on the other side of Sarangani may need some boat ride going to the hidden coves, Gumasa is only a habal-habal, jeep, or car away from the highway.

When we went to the beach a few months ago, it was a Sunday and an off-peak season (despite Sarangani having more sunny days during the “habagat season.”). I was surprised that despite being the center of the annual largest beach party in this side of the country, Gumasa still retains that laidback charm that I guess most beach combers and sun-worshipers have been looking for.

We saw several foreigners who were having a “chillax” mode under the trees, reading books, while some were swimming, others sun bathing.

I was expecting a crowded beach with lots of people flocking that Sunday, but I was wrong. According to locals, it has been like than during regular weekends…unlike those what you see in Boracay, Batangas, Mactan, or Guimaras’ Alubihod. It is only once a year when people celebrate summer with SarBay Fest that the beach gets jam-packed.

Sarangani Bay Festival, on the other hand, happens every summer in Gumasa Beach. Dubbed as the largest beach party in Mindanao, it has made the beach and the town of Glan famous, and again, has been bleeping in the radar of mainstream tourists during the Philippines’ summer season.

Too bad, I will be missing another SarBay. But for a guy who likes to chill besides the pristine shores, I guess I’ll give it another time.

With Gumasa getting more attention as time goes by, I just hope that both the local government and the sun bathers would do their share in preserving its ecological beauty and practice “responsible tourism.” Development and fun should always coincide with being responsible and making things sustainable, so that the our children and future generations would remember Gumasa Beach as that laidback pearl in the far southern end of the Philippines.

How to Get to Gumasa:

• Take a shuttle van in General Santos City bound for Glan (there are available vans near KCC Mall). It costs more or less P80-P90 to Glan Poblacion (town proper). The trip would take you about an hour or so.
• Take habal-habal or public utility motorcycle from Glan Poblacion which would cost P30-P70, good for one or two passengers. You need to negotiate with the driver to lower the cost.

You may also call the Provincial Tourism Office of Sarangani at +63 (83) 508-5230 or follow them on Twitter: @SaranganiProv.

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