Current meetings
AA Meetings in Dumaguete
This page lists the current meetings in Dumaguete City, Valencia, Dauin, and nearby parts of Negros Oriental. It includes meeting times, locations, and local details that may make a first visit easier.
If drinking is causing problems and you want help, you’re welcome to come to a meeting. You don’t have to contact anyone first, explain why you’re there, or know what to say. You can come in, sit down, and listen. Before you go, you may want to read New to Dumaguete AA Meetings?
Alcoholics Anonymous has no dues or fees for membership. Showing up is enough for a first meeting.
Looking for a meeting?
You only need to know where the next meeting is.
You don’t have to decide what comes after that. You don’t have to make a promise about the rest of your life.
Choose a meeting. Find the place. Sit down. Listen.
The current meetings listed here start at 10:00 AM. Schedules and locations can change, so check the meeting details and map before you go.
Open to newcomers
Valencia AA Meeting
Day: Monday and Wednesday
Time: 10:00 AM
Venue: Rhed Flower Restobar
Area: Luna Street, Valencia, Negros Oriental
Location: Ground floor of the grey building with large glass windows on Luna Street
First-time note: Valencia is uphill from Dumaguete. Give yourself travel time.
Open to newcomers
Balcony by the Sea AA Meeting
Day: Tuesday and Friday
Time: 10:00 AM
Venue: Bethel Guest House, 5th Floor
Area: Rizal Boulevard, Dumaguete City
Landmark: Cafe Filomena is on the ground floor
First-time note: Take the elevator to the 5th floor balcony meeting area.
Open to newcomers
Beach Sand AA Meeting
Day: Thursday
Time: 10:00 AM
Venue: Uzi Beach Resort
Area: Dauin, Negros Oriental
Landmark: Dauin public market and the big Dauin church
First-time note: Uzi’s is literally on the beach. Leave early and plan transport.
Open to newcomers
The Last Resort AA Meeting
Day: Saturday
Time: 10:00 AM
Venue: Across Sierra Resort
Area: Lipayo, Dauin, Negros Oriental
Landmark: Sierra Resort
First-time note: A fuller firsthand arrival note isn’t available yet.
Going for the first time
First Time at a Meeting in Dumaguete
A first meeting is usually less dramatic than people expect. The buildup in your mind is often harder than the meeting itself.
Choose one of the current meetings listed on this page. Arrive a few minutes early if you can, find a seat, and settle in. Most meetings follow a simple pattern. Someone may read a short opening. A topic or format is introduced. People share, and then the meeting closes.
You don’t have to speak at your first meeting. You don’t have to tell your story or explain your drinking history. You can simply listen. You may also want to read New to Dumaguete AA Meetings? and What Happens When You Walk Through the Door to Your First Dumaguete AA Meeting? before you go.
Valencia
Finding the Valencia Meeting at Rhed Flower
Rhed Flower Restobar, Valencia
The Valencia meeting is at Rhed Flower Restobar on Luna Street. It is on the ground floor of the grey building with large glass windows. Valencia is uphill from Dumaguete, so give yourself enough travel time.
Rhed Flower is a bright, casual restaurant and coffee spot. Inside, there is open restaurant-style seating, a counter area, framed artwork on the walls, and plenty of daylight. You can come in, look around, find a seat, and settle in before the meeting starts.
If you arrive early, you can sit down, have coffee, order breakfast, or wait quietly. Food is separate from the meeting, and you do not have to buy anything to attend. Until people begin gathering, it feels like any other coffee shop.
Venue: Rhed Flower Restobar
Location: Ground floor of the grey building with large glass windows on Luna Street
Area: Valencia, Negros Oriental
Meeting: Valencia AA Meeting
Meeting days: Monday and Wednesday
Meeting time: 10:00 AM
Coffee and food: Available. If you can, order coffee or something small. If you can’t, come anyway.
Rhed Flower is also a good place for coffee or breakfast. It serves western-style breakfast plates, Filipino meals, sandwiches, shakes, and simple drinks. The American breakfast is one of the better-value breakfasts around Dumaguete and Valencia. Menus and prices change, but these details may help you picture the place before you arrive.
You don’t have to explain why you’re there or know anyone. You can come in, sit down, and listen.
You do not have to buy food, explain why you are there, or know anyone. You can come in, sit down, and listen.
Rizal Boulevard
Finding the Bethel Guest House AA Meeting
Bethel Guest House and Cafe Filomena, Rizal Boulevard
The Balcony by the Sea AA Meeting is at Bethel Guest House on Rizal Boulevard in Dumaguete City, on the 5th floor. Bethel faces the Boulevard and the ocean.
Cafe Filomena is on the ground floor of Bethel Guest House. It is bright, friendly, and easy to find from the Boulevard side. Bethel is a long-time AA meeting venue in Dumaguete, and Cafe Filomena is the easiest place to arrive early, order coffee or breakfast, and settle yourself before going upstairs.
The cafe has a cafeteria-style counter with Filipino food, breakfast choices, sandwiches, pizza, halo-halo, coffee, and desserts. Prices are fair. Bethel is known for buko pie, and they will warm it for you if you ask. Pancakes and eggs are a simple, good-value breakfast before a morning meeting.
One useful local trick: if you order food downstairs before the meeting, tell the cashier you want to take it up to the 5th floor. They will plastic-wrap your tray for the elevator. Take your coffee, buko pie, breakfast, or halo-halo upstairs and sit at the 5th floor balcony tables before the meeting begins.
The 5th floor is an open balcony with tables, facing the Boulevard and ocean. There is almost always an ocean breeze. Smoking is allowed on the 5th floor balcony where ashtrays are on the tables. Bethel also has a quieter smoking balcony on the 3rd floor. It is more private than the 5th floor and catches the same ocean breeze.
Venue: Bethel Guest House, 5th Floor
Ground floor landmark: Cafe Filomena
Street / landmark: Rizal Boulevard, facing the Boulevard and ocean
Area: Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental
Meeting: Balcony by the Sea AA Meeting
Meeting days: Tuesday and Friday
Meeting time: 10:00 AM
Coffee and food: Available at Cafe Filomena on the ground floor
Smoking: Allowed on the 5th floor balcony where ashtrays are on the tables
Elevator access: Yes
Local color: Cafe Filomena makes the first visit easier because you do not have to stand around wondering where to go. Arrive early, order coffee, breakfast, buko pie, pancakes and eggs, or halo-halo, then take the elevator to the 5th floor when it is time.
Newcomer note: You do not need to buy food, explain yourself, or announce yourself before the meeting. You can arrive quietly, take a seat, and listen.
Dauin
Finding the Dauin Meeting at Uzi Beach Resort
Uzi Beach Resort, Dauin
The Beach Sand AA Meeting is at Uzi Beach Resort in Dauin, south of Dumaguete City. This is a real toes-in-the-sand meeting. It isn’t held in a city meeting room. You’re going to the beach, so plan the trip that way.
Coming from Dumaguete, head south toward Dauin. After the Dauin public market, turn left toward the beach. The big Dauin church will be on your left as you pass through town. Veer right onto Lopez Jaena and continue toward the shoreline. Uzi’s is literally on the beach.
There are native-style beach cottages, tables, hammocks, shade trees, tree swings, and a gently sloping sandy beach. The place is quiet, family-friendly, and well kept. There are toilets, showers, changing rooms, and places to grill or prepare food.
There is no fee to attend the meeting or sit at one of the tables. You can arrive with a cup of coffee, take a seat, and listen. A small fee may apply if you want to use the resort facilities, including the toilets, showers, or changing rooms.
You can also stay for a beach day after the meeting. Bring a swimsuit if you plan to swim. You can stop for breakfast, bring food with you, or arrange food later if you want to stay. People bring grilled food, and restaurants and cafes in the area may deliver. None of that is necessary for attending the meeting. It is simply part of how the place works if you decide to stay.
Venue: Uzi Beach Resort
Area: Dauin, Negros Oriental
Nearby landmark: Dauin public market and the big Dauin church
Route: Coming from Dumaguete, turn left after the Dauin public market and continue toward the beach
Meeting: Beach Sand AA Meeting
Day: Thursday
Time: 10:00 AM
Families: Welcome
Food: You can bring your own food and drinks
Meeting fee: None
What’s there: Toilets, showers, changing rooms, cottages, tables, hammocks, tree swings, and a place to grill. You may have to pay a small amount to use the toilets, showers, or changing rooms.
The shoreline slopes gently, and there are places to swim or sit after the meeting if you aren’t rushing back to Dumaguete.
Leave early enough to find the beach road without rushing. You don’t have to know anyone before you arrive. Come to the table, take a seat, and listen.
Lipayo
Finding The Last Resort AA Meeting in Lipayo
Across Sierra Resort, Lipayo, Dauin
The Last Resort AA Meeting is listed across Sierra Resort in Lipayo, Dauin. Use Sierra Resort as the landmark. That is the name people are most likely to recognize when you are looking for the area.
Lipayo is south of Dumaguete, in the Dauin area. This is not a quick city-center stop. Give yourself travel time, use the map, and aim for the Sierra Resort area first.
Meeting: The Last Resort AA Meeting
Meeting day: Saturday
Meeting time: 10:00 AM
Area: Lipayo, Dauin, Negros Oriental
Primary landmark: Sierra Resort
Location note: This is the one listed meeting venue on this page still waiting for a full first-hand site note. The practical direction is simple: go to Lipayo, use Sierra Resort as the landmark, and look for the meeting location across from it. This section will be updated with exact entrance notes, photos, parking, and local landmarks after an on-site visit.
Newcomer note: It is normal to feel unsure when visiting a meeting for the first time. Use the map, leave extra travel time, and do not worry if you are new. You can simply attend, take a seat, and listen.
Listening is enough
Can I Come and Just Listen?
Yes.
Many people attend their first meeting and simply listen. That is one of the most common ways people start.
You do not have to tell your story. You do not have to explain yourself. You do not have to stand up and speak.
If someone asks whether you would like to share, it is usually fine to say, “I’ll just listen today.”
Showing up is enough. Sitting down is enough. Listening is enough.
You do not have to know yet
Can I Come if I Think I Might Have a Drinking Problem, but I’m Not Sure?
Yes.
You do not need to arrive with a diagnosis, a label, or a final answer.
Many people come to AA because something about their drinking is bothering them. They are drinking more than they want to. They are making promises they cannot keep. They are worried. They simply have questions.
You do not have to be certain before attending a meeting. You can come, listen, and see whether you hear anything that sounds familiar.
The more useful question is not whether you are alcoholic enough. The useful question is whether alcohol is causing problems you can no longer ignore.
Belief can wait
Do I Have to Be Religious?
No.
You don’t have to be religious to attend a meeting in Dumaguete.
You may hear people talk about God, trust, willingness, prayer, a Higher Power, or letting go. Some meetings may include a prayer or a moment of silence. You don’t have to arrive with any of that worked out.
A lot of people come in doubtful, angry, tired, confused, or not believing much of anything. They are still welcome.
Letting go and becoming open to help beyond your own control may be one of the harder parts. Most people don’t arrive cheerful, surrendered, or with their beliefs neatly settled. They arrive because drinking is causing problems and what they have tried hasn’t fixed them.
Before your first meeting, the question isn’t whether you believe the right thing. It is whether drinking is causing problems and whether you are willing to sit in a room with people who have been where you are now.
You are not alone. There is a meeting waiting for you to find the door.
You don’t have to settle any of this at your first meeting.
You can come in, sit down, and listen.
You can listen first
Am I Going to Be Asked to Believe in Anything?
No. Not at your first meeting, and not at many meetings after that.
Nobody is going to hand you a test, ask you to sign a statement of belief, or expect you to agree with everything you hear.
You may hear people talk about God, a Higher Power, trust, or letting go. You can listen without deciding what any of it means to you.
If you keep coming, some of those questions may become clearer. You may begin to believe that a life without alcohol is possible, or that you do not have to carry everything alone. Nobody can give you that belief at the door, and you do not have to pretend you already have it.
By the time you want a deeper answer, you will have heard enough and seen enough to know what you think.
Find the meeting. Walk in. Take a seat. Listen.
Before you go
Practical Local Notes Before You Go
Bethel Guest House: Bethel is on Rizal Boulevard. Cafe Filomena is on the ground floor, and the meeting is on the 5th floor balcony. You can order food or coffee downstairs and take it up in the elevator. See Where Are There AA Meetings in Dumaguete? before you go.
Valencia: Valencia is uphill from Dumaguete. Rhed Flower is on Luna Street, on the ground floor of the grey building with large glass windows. Check the current meeting listing before you travel.
Dauin: Dauin is south of Dumaguete. Leave early if you’re taking a tricycle, motorbike, taxi, or private ride. For Uzi’s, use the big Dauin church and the public market as your landmarks in town.
Lipayo: The Saturday meeting is across from Sierra Resort in Lipayo, farther south in the Dauin area. Use Sierra Resort as the landmark and give yourself extra time to find the meeting.
First visit: Arrive a little early if you can. Find the room or table and sit where you feel comfortable. You don’t have to explain yourself. You may also want to read New to Dumaguete AA Meetings? before you go.
You may still be wondering
Questions You May Still Be Asking
What if I get there and can’t find the meeting?
Look for the room, table, or part of the venue described on this page. If you’re still unsure, ask someone working there where the meeting is being held.
What if I arrive late?
Go in quietly and find an open seat. You don’t have to explain why you’re late.
What if I can’t afford to order anything?
Come anyway. You don’t have to buy coffee or food to attend.
What if I don’t know anyone there?
You can walk in, choose a seat, and listen. You don’t have to know anyone before you go.
What if the first meeting doesn’t feel right for me?
Try another meeting. The places and people are different, and one meeting doesn’t tell you what every meeting will be like.
Can I leave when the meeting ends?
Yes. Some people stay and talk. Others leave right away. You can do either.
What if the listing is wrong when I get there?
Ask someone at the venue. Check the listing and map again. The meeting may have moved to another table, another room, or another nearby place.
If it isn’t happening there, try another meeting or come back on another day. Don’t let an outdated time or unclear direction stop you from trying again.
You still made the trip. You still showed up. That counts.
One last thing before you go
You Don’t Have to Decide Anything Today
You don’t have to know what the meeting will mean for you.
You don’t have to speak.
You don’t have to explain yourself.
Find the meeting.
Find the venue.
Find an open seat.
Sit down.
Listen.
That is a good first meeting.