Plantation Bay's location on Mactan Island is truly blessed, and there is probably no other resort area anywhere else in the world that is so well-insulated against assorted natural perils. Cebu is located in the heart of the Philippines, totally surrounded by much larger islands. This means that most typhoons never reach Cebu, and the rare storms that do are already much-weakened. The danger from
tsunamis is effectively zero; there is no known seismic fault in this area, and any long-range tsunami would be blocked by other islands. The Pacific monsoon drops most of its moisture on other islands prior to reaching Cebu. Thus, there is no pronounced rainy season and the weather here is clement year-round. Although it can rain at any time of year, most rains are brief and quickly followed by brilliant sunshine. (Before being tempted by the "low season" rates offered elsewhere, better ask why there's a low season. The entire island of Cebu is an ancient coral outcropping (not of volcanic origin like Hawaii, nor near a continental shelf like Bali or Phuket). There are no volcanoes, and the area does not experience any appreciable earthquake activity. Plantation Bay faces Hilutungan Channel, which is 300 meters deep and has a steady current. This not only makes the waters here exceptionally clean (and the scuba-diving awesome), but also free of dangerous sharks and barracuda, which like to scavenge in still, shallow waters. Mactan being a classic desert island, there are no swamps or wetlands here which could harbor crocodiles or venomous snakes. The island is virtually flat and not very large, so floods and mudslides are geologically improbable. Although Plantation Bay feels like a world of its own, it is after all only 30 minutes from a major metropolitan area. So, unlike most resorts in Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, India, and Sri Lanka, Cebu has no significant incidence of tropical diseases such as malaria or typhoid. For a personal medical emergency, there is a community hospital 10 minutes away from Plantation Bay, and several fully-equipped general hospitals 30 minutes away in Cebu City. In case of a burst appendix or abcessed tooth, you wouldn't have to wait for a helicopter airlift.
