This was my second overseas trip where I brought along a UAV to capture aerial photos and videos of various places. The experience in Cebu was, on the whole, very positive. With a few exceptions — see below — I was able to freely fly the DJI Mini 4 Pro and capture some great footage of the beautiful open landscapes and islands of Cebu.
Some discipline was required nonetheless. At every location, I first checked with our guide and/or resort staff to confirm whether it was acceptable for me to fly a small drone and capture videos for personal use. I also made sure to take off and land away from crowds whenever possible, and kept flight altitudes and ranges modest.
The two main exceptions were at Sumilon Island, where I had to pay 2500p to apply for and obtain a flying permit (summary: not worth it — the island itself is not particularly interesting), and at the viewing deck of the Chocolate Hills, where flying past 8AM is not permitted.
All told, I completed around 25 flights across 16 different locations and timings, and thankfully did not suffer any major flight mishaps. Whew!
More notes:
Of all the spots, the most memorable flights were at Osmeña Peak, the Cadapdapan Rice Terraces, and through the Bilar Man-Made Forest. The first two locations are relatively easy for drone flights as they offer clear line-of-sight, few obstructions, and stunning landscapes to capture. The Bilar Man-Made Forest, however, is trickier because you’re essentially flying through a tunnel of trees. If you’re an amateur like me, make sure you’re comfortable exercising fine control of your UAV, fly slowly or switch to Cinematic mode, and pay close attention to obstacle avoidance warnings if your drone supports them. The tall trees and winding path through the forest can also weaken RC signals. You definitely don’t want the drone to trigger an automatic Return-to-Home in such conditions, as it may immediately climb to the preset altitude and collide with the trees overhead. In short: exercise caution here.
Loboc River is another good location for aerial footage, but I would not recommend trying to launch during the river cruise itself — there simply isn’t enough time. Instead, ask your driver to look for other possible launch points along the river.
I generally kept flight durations to around 20 minutes each before bringing the UAV back down to swap batteries.
The sunrise and sunset flights in Malapascua and at Alona Beach were also enjoyable and relatively easy to execute.
I was also more careful about selecting the correct ND filter this time, drawing from my experience flying at Hang Mua during our Hanoi trip in June 2023. Even so, I still misjudged lighting conditions once on this trip — during our second visit to Loboc River on Day 08. Thankfully, the filter I mounted was an ND64 rather than something extreme like the ND1000 I mistakenly used at Hang Mua. As a result, the footage I captured over Loboc River was a little soft, but still usable.
BRDRC Mini 4 Pro ND Lens Filter Kit: contains ND8, ND16, ND32 and ND64 filters.
Taking off at Alona Beach in front of our resort for sunset photos.
Overall, I learned a lot more about flying UAVs on this trip, and I’m really glad that Cebu — and many areas within it — were tolerant and receptive of enthusiasts like myself flying drones to capture videos of the beautiful landscapes. Hopefully there will be more places in this region where I can do the same again, and soon!