Chocolate hills -bohol

The first thought that may arise to your mind is “why on earth are these hills called Chocolate Hills?” and you would be totally right. No, there are not made out of chocolate (I removed the doubt here), it is because during dry season the hills turn in a chocolate type of color resembling giant chocolate mounds. Yep, that is all.

Now that this matter is clarified, let me tell what the chocolate hills are. They are a group of unusually shaped hills located on the island of Bohol, roughly in the middle. There are about 1268 hills spread over the towns of Valencia, Batuan, Carmen, Bilar, Sierra Bullones, and Sagbayan. You cannot climb them, but you get to see them from a viewpoint (see map below).

How to get to the chocolate hills:

Whether you come from Panglao or Bohol, there are several ways to get to the Chocolate Hills.

• Taking the scooter: is the more DIY way of doing it, which I largely recommend. You will have to park it in the parking lot and pay 100 PHP for a shuttle that will bring you to the view point. From Panglao it takes approx. 2 hours.

• Tours: If you are on the island only for a short period of time and prefer going with a tour, you will be able to find plenty of them and the tours usually include several stops to other well-known attractions .

• Local bus: There is also a local bus company called Fatima that does the trip, but I am not aware of the schedules.

Is it worth it? Even if you are used to beautiful 360 degree landscapes, I think that the Chocolate hills are worth it. I mean, how many times have you seen tit shapes hills as far as the eye can see?