RODNEY AND ARLYN'S RETIREMENT
.jpg)
Bolusao Bridge
Bolusao, E. Samar
47H5+PP6 Lawaan, Eastern Samar
April 29, 2025
Purpose: Nanay's 70th Birthday
Departure Date: July 22nd, 2025 (Tuesday)
Departure Location: Mandani Bay Tower 1, Mandaue City, Cebu
Arrival Date: July 22rd, 2025 (Wednesday)
Arrival Location: Barangay Bolusao, Lawaan, E. Samar
Total Cost: ₱14,412.00
Click on image to enlarge.
Click on image to enlarge.
Click on image to enlarge.
Nanay's 70th birthday is on July 29th. We wanted to be there to throw a party.
We scheduled our departure date to be July 22nd, 2025.
To make the trip to Bolusao, we needed to book passage on a ferry for our car and our stuff. For this trip, we opted to try Lite Shipping. On July 16th, Wednesday, we drove to the Lite Shipping ticketing office to purchase our tickets.
Lite Shipping Ticketing. Click on image to enlarge.
We purchased the tickets needed for Arlyn and me to ferry from Cebu City to Ormoc City, Leyte. We selected a small 6-person group room as there were no private rooms available. The ship we booked passage on was the Lite Ferry 19 (IMO number 8773897).
| Date/Time | Event |
|---|---|
| July 22nd, 2025 11:00 AM | Depart Cebu Port Pier 4 |
| July 22nd, 2025 6:00 PM | Arrive at Ormoc City Pier |
When a purchase is made to ship a vehicle, it includes a ₱600.00 credit for the driver to stay in Economy class for the Cebu City to Ormoc City run. This credit was applied to Rodney's fare.
Terminal Fee Receipt. Click on image to enlarge.
Terminal Fee Receipt. Click on image to enlarge.
Wharfage Fee Receipt. Click on image to enlarge.
While we were at the Lite Shipping ticketing office, we learned that we would need to pay for a terminal fee and wharfage fee. We were instructed to visit the Cebu City Pier 3 Terminal Building located at the corner of Quezon Blvd and V. Sotto Street (Google Plus Code: 7WX6+255 Cebu City, Cebu). These fees can be paid for days before the actual departure date.
A port terminal fee is a charge paid by passengers for using port facilities. It is a fee for the passenger terminal.
A wharfage fee is a charge for using a port's wharf or dock to load or unload cargo from a vessel. This fee is levied by port authorities or terminal operators and is typically calculated based on the weight or volume of the cargo to cover the costs of maintaining and operating port infrastructure.
We drove to the pier on July 16th to purchase the terminal and wharfage fees.
Once we were done with the terminal fees, we returned back to our condo. Our plan required a one-night stay at Ormoc. So I booked a room at the Copenhagen Residence. This was a hotel we stayed at during our May 31 trip.
| Payee | Item | Cost | Form of Payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite Shipping Corporation | Freight cost for Fortuner | ₱6,320.00 | Cash |
| Lite Shipping Corporation | Arlyn's Ticket | ₱1,520.00 | Cash |
| Lite Shipping Corporation | Rodney's Ticket | ₱920.00 | Cash |
| Cebu Port Authority | Wharfage Fee | ₱168.00 | Cash |
| Cebu Port Authority | Terminal Fee | ₱25.00 | Cash |
| Cebu Port Authority | Terminal Fee | ₱25.00 | Cash |
| Cebu Port Authority | Parking Fee | ₱10.00 | Cash |
| Total | ₱8,988.00 | ||
We loaded our gear into the Fortuner at the Mandani Bay Condominiums at 9:00 AM. Once loaded, we drove to the Cebu City Pier 3 Terminal building, arriving at around 9:20 AM. At Pier 3, we were directed to drive to Pier 4 to acquire a stamp from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
.jpg)
Coast Guard stamp. Click on image to enlarge.
You need a stamp from the Coast Guard when using a roll-on/roll-off, or Ro-Ro, vessel in the Philippines to verify that your vehicle's documents (i.e., Original Receipt and Certificate of Registration) are legitimate and that the journey is safe. This stamp is part of the process to ensure compliance with maritime laws and to get clearance for boarding, as the Coast Guard has the authority to enforce laws on the water and inspect vessels for safety and legal requirements.
Coast Guard station near Pier 4. Click on image to enlarge.
The Coast Guard station building is located at 8W27+RHH Cebu City, Cebu, near the Pier 4 Cebu City Port Authority building. Upon arriving at the Coast Guard station, Arlyn visited with the Coast Guard to receive the required stamp on our ticket. There was no charge for this stamp.
Now that we had the Coast Guard stamp, we drove through the Pier 4 gate. We arrived to the loading staging area at around 9:40 AM.
The ship was docked a short distance from the gate. We were instructed by the ship's quartermaster to standby while the larger semi trucks were loaded. We waited in our car for about one hour. We were then given the all-clear to load the Fortuner onto the ferry.
We drove onto the ferry. Once on the ferry, there are attendants that assist the driver with locating a suitable parking place. Once we were parked, the attendants proceeded with choking the wheels. We grabbed our backpacks and exited the vehicle. We climbed some very narrow, steep stairs to the appropriate deck. The stewards escorted us to a group room.
Lite Ferry 19 Menu. Click on image to enlarge.
The group room had an air conditioner, six bunk beds and a small window. The room was not lockable so we had to make sure one person was in the room at all times. There were no other passengers in the group room. After settling in, I found the ship's cantina to get something to eat. The main kitchen was closed, but they had a limited supply of premade meals. Since we were a little early, we had a good selection. I purchased two meals and headed back to the room.
The ship left the dock promptly at 11:00 AM.
The ferry does not have Wi-Fi. For those with cell phones, it is possible to get a weak signal from a cell tower from a passing island, but the connection is weak and unreliable.
We docked at Ormoc at around 5:15 PM. Our car was ready to depart the ferry. We exited the dock area and headed to the Copenhagen Residence.
Copenhagen Residences. Click on image to enlarge.
We dumped our gear in the room and got back in the car. We had dinner at the mall in SM Center Ormoc. It was called Dimsum Break.
We needed to pick up groceries for Nanay's birthday party. So we went to the SM Hypermart at SM Center Ormoc and did some grocery shopping. After doing the shopping, headed back to the Copenhagen for the evening.
| Payee | Item | Cost | Form of Payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite Shipping Cantina | Dining | ₱260.00 | Cash |
| Dimsum Break | Dining | ₱536.00 | Cash |
| Total | ₱796.00 | ||
Arlyn and I headed down to the hotel's dining area. We were provided with menus to order from. The breakfasts were filling and satisfying. The wait staff were very professional and prompt. After breakfast, we returned to our room, packed our gear and checked out from the Copenhagen.
We drove from Ormoc to Tacloban in about 2 hours 10 minutes. We stopped at Jollibee at Alang Alang for lunch.
We drove from Tacloban to Bolusao, E. Samar in 1 hours 35 minutes. We arrived in Bolusao, E. Samar at 2:00 PM.
| Payee | Item | Cost | Form of Payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copenhagen | Lodging with Breakfast | ₱3,980.00 | Debit |
| Jollibee | Lunch | ₱648.00 | Cash |
| Total | ₱4,628.00 | ||