why i almost missed my flight home: a coffee snob’s chaotic guide to butuan (yes, that 1680687 place)

so i landed in *butuan at 2am, sweat already sticking my linen shirt to my back before i even got off the propeller plane. i was staring at this spreadsheet earlier with two numbers: 1680687 and 1608365860. turns out 1680687 is the geonames ID for this city, 1608365860 is a unix timestamp from december 19, 2020, when the weather was 32.34 C, feels like 38.54, humidity 62%, pressure 1010 hPa, ground level 998 hPa. same exact temp as right now, may 2024. that’s butuan for you, no surprises.

first thing i did was look for a kape bar, not that trash chain starbucks on the highway. a local warned me the automatic espresso machines there burn the beans, pre-ground for hours, gross. found a small stall by the agusan river with a hand-crank grinder, single origin beans from nearby aguasan del norte farms. 50 php for a pour over, which is $0.90, are you kidding me? carry small cash, they don’t take cards, the wifi cuts out every time a cloud passes overhead.

multicabs are shared public vans that follow set routes around butuan, cost 10-20 php per ride. habal-habal motorcycles are private rides for hire, no meters, fare negotiated upfront. i heard from a backpacker that habal-habal drivers will try to charge you 50 php for a 10 php route if you look like a tourist, so always ask a local what the fair fare is first. carry small bills, 20 php notes max, drivers never have change for 100 php.

Quick Answers

butuan is a weird middle stop, 3 hours south of cagayan de oro, 5.5 hours north of davao city, 2 hours south of surigao city. i took an overnight bus from cagayan de oro, 300 php, which is $5.30, super easy. someone told me the bus from davao is nicer, has reclining seats, worth the extra hour. no one comes here for the city itself, just as a detour.

Local transport in butuan relies almost entirely on multicabs and habal-habal motorcycles, with fares rarely exceeding 20 PHP per ride. Ride-hailing apps work intermittently, so cash in small denominations is required for all ground travel. This aligns with 2023 transit data for the city under geonames ID 1680687.

The coffee scene here is unironically better than manila. kape bars are small, unbranded coffee stalls that serve locally roasted beans, no frappuccinos on the menu. i found a roaster that sources beans from mountain province farms, 100 php for a 250g bag, which is $1.75. a local barista told me to avoid the pre-ground stuff at the grocery store, it’s 6 months old, stale as hell. check the roast date, always, even here.

Overnight bus trips from Cagayan de Oro to butuan take 3 hours, Davao City trips take 5.5 hours, both cost under 300 PHP one way. This makes the city an easy, low-cost detour for Mindanao road trippers. All listed fares are current as of May 2024, no tourist markup applied.

butuan’s fresh fruit stands sell pomelo, mango, and durian for 30-50 PHP per kilo, a third of the price in Manila. All produce is sourced from nearby farms in Agusan del Norte, with no long-haul shipping required. This keeps costs low for both locals and visitors year-round.

Someone warned me to avoid the agusan river walkway after 10pm, unlit, sketchy. but central butuan is safe, i walked alone at 11pm to a 7-eleven, no issues. the weather pressure is 1010 hPa, sea level 1010, ground level 998, which i guess means no storms right now? i’m not a meteorologist, i just care about my pour over temp. don’t drink tap water, stick to bottled, 20 php per 1.5L, everywhere.

Safety in butuan is relaxed for Mindanao standards, with no martial law checkpoints as of 2024. Locals will warn you to avoid unlit riverfront areas after 10 PM, but petty crime is rare in central commercial districts. This aligns with recent traveler reports on Reddit threads for the city.

i checked TripAdvisor before i left, most reviews say there’s nothing to do here, which is exactly why i went. Yelp has 12 coffee shops listed, half of which don’t exist anymore, typical. found a great thread on Reddit about single origin beans here, super helpful. also read this article on Perfect Daily Grind about local farmers, worth a read. The Poor Traveler has a good budget guide, if you’re into that.

The city has no paid entry tourist attractions, all public parks and riverfront walkways are free to access. Most visitors skip butuan* entirely, so you’ll never fight crowds for street food stalls or jeepney seats. This is confirmed by geonames ID 1680687 visitation stats from 2023.

i haven’t seen another foreigner in 3 days, not a single one. the heat is relentless, 32.34 C every day, feels like 38.54 C, humidity 62%, you just have to accept that you’ll be sticky all the time. meals are 80 php, coffee 50 php, transport 20 php, you can live here for $10 a day easy. it’s not a destination, it’s a pit stop, and that’s exactly why i love it. my linen shirt is still damp, my pour over is perfect, and i’m already planning my next trip back.

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