Whale sharks in Southern Leyte: Pintuyan and Sogod Bay

No, the whale sharks in Southern Leyte are not fed: they are wild, feeding, baiting and touching them is not allowed (Daily Tribune, 3 June 2026), and the official program runs from Pintuyan, with a season of October to May (SunStar, 13 June 2026), so a sighting is never guaranteed. If you want to see a whale shark in the Philippines without it being fed or handled, Southern Leyte is the place I can point to from my own footage. This is the clip I filmed in Sogod Bay:

Whale sharks in Sogod Bay, my Instagram reel

What I wrote with it:

“The whale sharks here are completely wild and not fed, which means every encounter is natural and happens on their terms. No guarantees, no performances… just pure luck and the ocean.”

The same clip is on Facebook and TikTok. Everything below that is not my own experience comes from sources I name, checked on 14 October 2026.

Where it happens

The official whale shark interaction program is run by the municipality of Pintuyan, on Panaon Island, at the Son-ok marine protected area in Barangay Son-ok II (SunStar, 13 June 2026). You register at the Pintuyan Municipal Hall, and the tourism office runs it rather than a commercial company (Daily Tribune, 3 June 2026, The Partying Traveler, March 2026).

Padre Burgos is the other base. Dive resorts there, including Sogod Bay Scuba Resort and Peter’s Dive Resort, sell whale shark trips with a boat ride of about 1.5 hours across the bay (Sogod Bay Scuba Resort). A 2023 blog says the tour fees from those trips go to Pintuyan’s municipal government.

How a trip works

• Snorkelling only. Scuba is not allowed. You are on the water for no more than about three hours.
• A small boat. A bangka with a guide, a captain and two spotters in canoes who look for the sharks.
• A briefing first. Keep to the distances your guide gives you in the briefing.
• Rules. No feeding, no baiting and no touching (Daily Tribune, 3 June 2026). Boats from the offender’s home port can be banned if someone breaks them, according to the 2026 report.

Pintuyan trips leave in the afternoon, about three hours, according to the 2026 report. A resort trip from Padre Burgos leaves around 8:30 and takes six to eight hours door to door.

What it costs

The Pintuyan totals are for the boat, so the price per person falls as you share: about ₱1,700 each for two and ₱1,233 each for three.

Season and chances

Pintuyan’s tourism officer says the 2026 season closed on 1 June and the sharks reopen to visitors in October, and that the best months are November to May, when plankton blooms (Daily Tribune, 3 June 2026). SunStar gives the season as October to May.

Call or message the Pintuyan tourism office before you travel to check that the 2026–27 season is open.

Nothing is guaranteed. A sighting is luck and the ocean, as I said in the clip.

Getting there

Southern Leyte is far from everything. These are the main routes.

• From Cebu. Gabisan Shipping Lines runs Cebu to Hilongos. The fast craft takes 3 hours 30 minutes (₱700 to 800), the standard ferry about 5 hours (₱480 to 660), with fares effective 1 July 2026 (Pamasahe).
• From Tacloban. Fly in, take a bus to Sogod (about 3 hours), then a bus toward San Ricardo and get off at Pintuyan.
• From Bohol. Ubay to Bato by ferry, about 2 hours, then buses to Pintuyan.
• From Surigao. A ferry to San Ricardo, which is about 15 minutes from Pintuyan.

Ask at the terminal in Hilongos for the bus times and fares to Maasin, Padre Burgos and Pintuyan.

How the route connects

1. 1Cebu
   Ferry · 3 hr 30 min fast craft, about 5 hr standard
2. 2Hilongos
3. 3Maasin
   Multicab or jeepney · about 30 min
4. 4Padre Burgosresort boat trips
   Boat · about 1.5 hr
5. 5PintuyanSon-ok marine protected area

Cebu to Hilongos and the Padre Burgos boat are from this page; Maasin to Padre Burgos is from the Limasawa guide.

Where to stay

In Pintuyan, a guesthouse called D&G Transient House cost ₱1,200 to 1,800 a night in March 2026, and a scooter rented for ₱500 a day. In Padre Burgos, Peter’s Dive Resort lists a dorm bed at ₱400 and a private room at ₱1,440 (2023). Both towns are small.

Map of places to stayFind a place to stay in PintuyanLive prices and availability for your dates.Show places to stay on the map(affiliate link)

Map of places to stayFind a place to stay in Padre BurgosLive prices and availability for your dates.Show places to stay on the map(affiliate link)

If you want more than a day trip

Sogod Bay is part of the small-group whale shark trip I am planning (day by day), with a crossing to Limasawa. The waitlist is free, and a session with me is the fastest way to ask me something this page does not answer.

Questions people ask

Where do you see whale sharks in Southern Leyte?

The official whale shark interaction program runs from Pintuyan, on Panaon Island, at the Son-ok marine protected area. Resorts in Padre Burgos, across the bay, run boat trips of about 1.5 hours to the same area.

Are the whale sharks in Southern Leyte fed?

No. The sharks are wild and not provisioned, and feeding, baiting and touching them is not allowed. That is why a sighting is never guaranteed.

How much does it cost?

The official fee is ₱300 per visitor. In Pintuyan, a trip with guide, spotters and boat cost ₱3,100 for one person, ₱3,400 for two and ₱3,700 for three in March 2026, as total prices for the boat. Resort packages from Padre Burgos are around ₱4,000 per person.

When is the season?

SunStar gives the season as October to May, and Pintuyan's tourism officer says the best sightings are from November to May. The 2026 season closed on 1 June and reopens in October, so confirm with the Pintuyan tourism office that it is open before you go.

Can I book a whale shark tour through this site?

No. This site takes no bookings for whale shark trips. I am planning a small-group trip to Southern Leyte, and the waitlist for that is free.