Santa Fe, officially the Municipality of Santa Fe (; ), is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 34,471 people. Because the island's airport and principal ferry port are both located within the municipality, Santa Fe is considered the gateway to Bantayan and its islands.

Geography

The municipality's territory occupies the southeastern portion of

Bantayan Island Bantayan Island is an island located in the Visayan Sea, Philippines. It is situated to the west of the northern end of Cebu, across the Tañon Strait. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of . The island is administratively divi ...

(marching with the municipality of Bantayan), together with the islands of Guintacan (or Kinatarkan), Hilantagaan and Hilantagaan Diot (or Silion). Santa Fe is bordered to the north by the town of Bantayan, to the west also by Bantayan, to the east is the town of Medellin and to the south is the

Tañon Strait The Tañon Strait () is a body of water, separating the islands of Negros and Cebu in the Visayas, Philippines. The strait, which is about long, connects the Visayan Sea in the north to the Bohol Sea in the south. Its width varies from , with t ...

Barangays

Santa Fe is politically subdivided into 10 barangays. Each barangay consists of

purok A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...

s and some have

sitios A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...

Climate

Demographics

Church small Santa Fe at Bantayan in the Philippines

Religion

The two predominant religions in the municipality are the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and the ''Iglesia Filipina Independiente'' (Philippine Independent Church).

Economy

Although there is some small-scale industry, the municipality's principal source of income is fishing and agriculture, and from holidaymakers who come in large numbers, most notably during

Holy Week Holy Week () commemorates the seven days leading up to Easter. It begins with the commemoration of Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, marks the betrayal of Jesus on Spy Wednesday (Holy Wednes ...

, to enjoy the particularly fine white sand and uncrowded beaches.

Transport

Bantayan Airport, serving the whole Bantayan Island, is located in Santa Fe. Air Juan operates scheduled flights between

Mactan Airport Mactan is a densely populated island located a few kilometers (~1 mile) east of Cebu Island in the Philippines. The island is part of Cebu province and it is divided into the city of Lapu-Lapu and the municipality of Cordova. The island is s ...

three days a week. The town can also be reached by ferry from Hagnaya Wharf in

San Remigio, Cebu San Remigio, officially called the Municipality of San Remigio (; ), is a municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 65,744 people. San Remigio celebrates its annual fiesta on 15 and ...

. In August 2024, the

Port of Cebu Port of Cebu () is a seaport located in Cebu City, Philippines. It serves the Metro Cebu Area and is managed by the Cebu Port Authority. It is the largest domestic port in the Philippines, mostly serving routes in the Visayas and Mindanao. Lo ...

announced the construction of a PHP500 million Santa Fe Port, featuring a finger

wharf A wharf ( or wharfs), quay ( , also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (mo ...

, passenger terminal and

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...

for international

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

s. The four phases project also includes

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet T ...

's reinforced concrete deck, and

berthing A cabin or berthing is an enclosed space generally on a ship or an aircraft. A cabin which protrudes above the level of a ship's deck may be referred to as a deckhouse. Sailing ships In sailing ships, the officers and paying passengers wo ...

areas for

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

and

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, Trailer (vehicle), trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their ...

vessels.

Gallery

Boat beached in Santa Fe..JPG, Boat beached in Santa Fe Guintacan Island.jpg, Guintacan Island; the 3 barangays of Hagdan, Kinatarkan and Langub are located on this island. Ferry pier, Santa Fe.JPG, Ferry pier, Santa Fe Santa Fe Foundation Anniversary.png, Santa Fe Founding Anniversary

References

External links

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Philippine Standard Geographic Code The Philippine Standard Geographic Code (PSGC) is a systematic classification and coding for geographic areas in the Philippines. It classifies areas based on the country's four levels of administrative divisions: regions, provinces, municipalities ...

{{Authority control Municipalities of Cebu Beaches of the Philippines