Dauis Town of Bohol Philippines

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Dauis is one of the two municipalities comprising Panglao Island, the other being Panglao. It is a 4th class municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines and has a population of 36,139 people according to the 2007 census occupying a land mass of 4,288 hectares. The inhabitants of the town speak the Visayan (Bol-anon) language yet are also proficient in the English and Tagalog languages.

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Dauis Industry

The Panglaonons are hardworking; the people of Dauis not an exception. They work hard and engage in farming, fishing, carpentry, fine jewelry making, shell craft making woodcarving, basketry and other small scale home-based processing of food products such as the purple yam.

Jewelry and shell craft making can be found in barangay Poblacion; basket making in barangays San Isidro and Dao, and furniture making in barangays Totolan, Songculan, Tinago and Bingag. A number of the people though have found employment in the different resorts of Panglao Island, in Tagbilaran City and also abroad.

Tourist Attractions

Tourism is becoming a major industry in the municipality of Dauis. It has several major tourist attractions:

• Bohol Dauis Hotels and Beach Resorts often play host to business conventions, week-end and extended vacations from both Filipinos and expat guests. First-class resorts are: Panglao Island Nature Resort and Spa, and Olman’s View Resort.
• Hinagdanan Cave and Underground Lake Looking around the cave one can see stalactites hanging from the ceiling and protruding stalagmites on the ground.
• Dauis Church occupies a strip of land on the shore of Panglao Island opposite Tagbilaran City. One of the most beautiful churches of Bohol, one gets an excellent view of the church and convento from the Mansasa seaside as one travels from Tagbilaran to Baclayon.
• Bikini Beach is one of the favorite “nook” of the locals because of its calm waters, shady palm trees and the water is full of colorful coral fishes. The beach is found in the barangay of Biking, Dauis, Bohol.
• Bingag Beach is located in Barangay Bingag, Dauis, Panglao Island, Bohol. It lies on the southern part of the island where several resorts line up on the beach offering various water activities such as jet skiing, kayaking, sailing, rowing and more. It is a perfect getaway from the hustle of city life with its fine white sand, crystal blue waters and a warm tropical climate.
• Dao Beach in Barangay Dao boasts of white sand, crystal blue water and rugged cliff-sides covered in verdant tropical foliage.
• Bohol's Ubi Kinampay One of Bohols special food crops; Bohol is the largest producer of UBI in the Philippines where it is revered and considered as SACRED and included in the Bohol Hymn!
• Purple Yam of Dauis is the recognized One Town One Product; is locally known as UBI KINAMPAY and is used as an ingredient and food additive in cooking sweets and deserts.

These attractions have brought in the crowd of both local and foreign tourists and their influx triggered the development of resorts in the beach areas.

Many of the local people work in these resorts and augment their incomes and improve the local economy.

Dauis Barangays

Panglao Island is situated on the southwestern tip of Bohol and is connected to mainland Bohol by two causeways. One causeway connects to Panglao town while the other causeway connects Dauis to barangay Mansasa of mainland Bohol, thru the Gov. Jacinto Borja Bridge.

The town of Dauis is politically subdivided into 12 barangays: Biking, Bingag, San Isidro (Canlongon), Catarman, Dao, Mayacabac, Poblacion, Songculan, Tabalong, Tinago, Totolan and Mariveles.

Dauis: Going There and Around

The approximate distance of municipal center to Tagbilaran City is 7.4 kilometers or a travel of about 10 minutes. The town's main roads are near to the urban road network of Tagbilaran City. The town of Dauis is traversed by the national, provincial, municipal and barangay road network.

There are 2 existing bridges in Dauis; the Songculan Riverside Bridge, which is made of timber and the Dauis Bridge made of reinforced concrete.

Primary modes of transportation are buses and tricycles. There is no wharf. Island population is too dependent on Tagbilaran City port facilities.

Dauis Communications

Dauis has a telegraph facility owned by the government which is located in the Poblacion. Other communication facilities such as postal and telephone services are also being offered.

Best bet is to use Mobile phones or Cellular phones. Cable TV has been provided in some barangays.

Dauis History

Dauis is one of the oldest municipalities of Bohol and was inhabited in prehispanic times as shown by early Chinese artifacts retrieved in the area in the 1970’s.

However, no record of its establishment exists because all municipal records were burned down during World War II. Church records state though that the parish was established in 1697, so the founding of the town may be near that period.

The inhabitants of Dauis built their houses of very strong materials, mostly of molave, and whitewashed with lime during the Spanish regime. The people were continually harassed by Muslims who come and attack the town and capture people for ransom or for the slave market.

The stone watchtower, whose ruins stand near the present church and bearing the date 1774, was built to alert the town of the coming marauders.

During World War II, Dauis bore the brunt of the bombing, shelling and strafing, first from the Japanese and later from the Americans.

When the resistance movement was started in September 1942, most of the able-bodied men of the town joined the cause and the civilians supported them with cash, food and other means.