Tabuelan Sea Transport: The Secondary Cebu–Bantayan Ferry and North-Cebu Links

Tabuelan Sea Transport is the secondary operator on the Cebu–Bantayan run — the alternative to Super Shuttle when its sailing times don’t fit, including a useful late-night departure the others don’t offer. It works from north Cebu ports and also links across to Palompon in Leyte. If your Bantayan plan hinges on an odd-hour crossing, this is the operator to check.

Cebu’s north-bound piers exist because Cebu City is the transport hub for the whole central Visayas — nearly every inter-island route in the region routes through or originates from a Cebu port, and Tabuelan’s slice of that network is the odd-hour capacity that keeps the Bantayan corridor moving when the bigger operator’s boats are full or between sailings. It’s a small piece of a much larger gateway-city system, but for the traveler standing at the terminal at midnight, it’s the piece that matters.

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What Tabuelan Sea Transport is, briefly

Tabuelan runs short inter-island crossings serving Bantayan Island and the northern Cebu–Leyte corner. Its Bantayan sailings use Hagnaya Port in San Remigio — the same mainland pier Super Shuttle works from — crossing to Santa Fe on the island. Its second link runs from further up the north Cebu coast, around Bogo and Medellin, across to Palompon on the Leyte side. It’s a functional local ferry — the value is filling schedule gaps on the Bantayan corridor rather than offering a premium experience.

San Remigio sits within Cebu’s northern mango belt, alongside neighboring Bogo, Medellin and Daanbantayan, so if you’re passing through the terminal area you’ll likely see dried mango sold at roadside stalls and small groceries — a reasonable pasalubong stop before boarding. The wider economic logic of an operator like this is straightforward: island communities and small traders need dependable off-peak capacity as much as tourists need convenient departure times, and a secondary operator running odd-hour and cargo-friendly sailings fills that gap where a single dominant carrier wouldn’t bother.

Cebu–Bantayan at a glance

Schedule valid as of 2026-06-23 — check 12Go for current sailings.

🚢 Check Tabuelan Sea Transport Cebu–Bantayan schedules on 12Go

The Palompon (Leyte) link is easy to overlook, but it’s genuinely useful if your route continues past Cebu into the Eastern Visayas — Palompon sits on Leyte’s western coast, and this crossing is one of the more direct sea links between the two islands without routing all the way around through a larger port city. Because there’s no published fare or fixed schedule beyond what’s shown above, treat the Palompon sailings as a lead to confirm on 12Go rather than a fixed commitment, especially if you’re building a multi-island itinerary around it.

When this route makes sense

Choose Tabuelan when Super Shuttle’s Bantayan times don’t suit — particularly if you need the late-night 23:00 crossing or the early pre-dawn return, which the more frequent operator may not match. As with all Bantayan ferries, the crossing starts from north Cebu, so plan the land leg from Cebu City first — the full trip is covered in how to get from cebu to bantayan. For the primary, most-frequent Bantayan service, see super shuttle ferry.

A late-night sailing also changes the calculus for onward travel: arriving at Santa Fe in the small hours means most guesthouses won’t have staff at reception, so confirm late check-in with your accommodation before you book the 23:00 departure rather than after you’re already on the water. The same logic runs the other way — the pre-dawn Bantayan-to-Cebu departure gets you into Hagnaya early enough to make a same-day onward bus or flight, which is the main reason a traveler would pick the less frequent operator over Super Shuttle’s daytime schedule.

Practical detail

Ports: Hagnaya Port in San Remigio to Santa Fe on Bantayan — the same mainland pier Super Shuttle uses. The operator’s wider station list also names Bogo and Medellin further up the coast; those belong to its Palompon (Leyte) link rather than the Bantayan run, so check which port your ticket actually names if you have booked both legs. One honest caveat — weather and frequency: a short but exposed crossing on fewer daily sailings than Super Shuttle, so monsoon-season cancellations bite harder here; keep a backup in mind. Vessels on routes like this are Philippine Coast Guard-inspected and MARINA-licensed, with life vests standard, but a lower-frequency operator has less slack to absorb a cancelled sailing — if Tabuelan’s boat is called back to port on a weather advisory, you may be waiting until the next scheduled departure rather than catching a same-day alternate run. Tickets: book ahead on 12Go and carry your confirmation; smaller operators on routes like this don’t always accept a phone screen in place of a printed or saved ticket.

Booking

12Go carries Tabuelan Sea Transport with live schedules. Book ahead for the late-night and pre-dawn sailings, and confirm the departure port.

🚢 Book your Tabuelan Sea Transport crossing on 12Go

Related on cebu.tips

• Cebu to Bantayan route
• Cebu to Leyte route
• Cebu to Anda route
• Cebu to Bacolod route

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Cebu’s city piers and terminal fees are administered by the Cebu Port Authority; confirm your pier and current port charges there.

Schedules reflect operator-published information via 12Go as of 2026-06-23 — check 12Go for current sailings. cebu.tips earns a commission on bookings made through 12Go partner links at no cost to you.