More than 7,000 islands make up the Philippine archipelago and the main regions are Luzon, Visayas, Palawan and Mindanao. *I think Palawan is part of the Visayas, but this island is so beautiful that it deserves its own description.
Here is some information to know about the Philippines:
Megadiverse countries are a group of countries in which the majority of the Earth’s plant and animal species are represented, and are therefore considered to be the richest in biological diversity on the planet. Wikipédia
Megadiverse countries are a group of countries in which the majority of the Earth’s plant and animal species are represented, and are therefore considered to be the richest in biological diversity on the planet.
Wikipédia
In addition to beautiful landscapes, the Philippines are home to a kind and welcoming people. Despite the hardship life throws at them, they are always smiling and friendly. I have never known such a lovely people.
This first part of the trip looks like a marathon:
Davao is a city on the island of Mindanao. We went there because my brother-in-law is married to a Filipino woman and they have a house there.
When we arrived, in front of the house, there was a sign with our pictures, welcoming us. The poster was signed: Your family in the Philippines! Super cute!
We stayed in Davao for a week to get to know the family.
We did some activities, including gift distribution (for them) and karaoke, which is really the national passion in the Philippines. The gang arrived Friday night and left early Sunday evening. We never once were less than 20 people.
For an only child like me, it was quite a family experience!
Their house is in a super nice complex inhabited mostly by foreigners. It is a barricaded mini-neighbourhood, with a guardhouse at the entrance, where security guards indeed work. The houses are very beautiful, far from the reality of the rest of the country. There is a club, with gym, sports fields, infinity pool and restaurant. We felt a bit like in the South (wealth next to poverty).
We went for massages several times, shopped in nice malls and tried some great restaurants. We even went to the local “Costco”, which is called S&R and is exactly like here.
We had a family mani-pedi-hair experience: there were 6 of us at the lounge and it cost about $10 per person (for about 3 hours). This was a first for me.
In Davao we visited :
Fun fact
The girls said I looked like a Filipino singer, and as a result, they were always near me, taking pictures! 😀
I do not recommend this region. We went there exclusively for the family. It’s not worth the detour and seeing “task forces” all the time (armed soldiers with machine guns, searching the entire car) can be traumatic for the most sensitive. President Rodrigo Duterte is from the region and was once the mayor of Davao. This also explains the heightened security in the city, where attacks have already taken place.
Along with my brother-in-law, sister-in-law, her sister and her niece, we flew to Cebu, the country’s second oldest city. My sister-in-law’s other sister was waiting for us at the airport with a van. Quite a service!
We spent the day visiting the city:
Colonial downtown:
My sister-in-law’s sister is a nun in Cebu. We had dinner where they live, with all the nuns. Another different experience!
Anecdote:
Since travel shapes youth, anecdotes are an essential part of our adventures.
At the mall, we entered a shop. I told the saleswoman that I didn’t know what Asian size I should wear. She said to me: “I would recommend XL, sir, because you are very tall” (I am 5’8 / 1,73m…).
I told her that it was not me who was tall, but she who was short. We both started to laugh.
At Philippine airports, for security reasons, only passengers with a boarding card can enter the terminals. We go through security twice: to enter the terminal and to access the boarding rooms.
Even if our tickets are already paid for, we have to pay a tax before boarding. Have some money on you. We didn’t get charged this tax everywhere, but it’s better to be prepared.
We took a ferry to Tagbilaran, on the island of Bohol (about a 2-hour trip).
On arrival, a van was waiting for us. It’s a good thing my sister-in-law had organized the trip. Although many people in the Philippines are fluent in English, communication was sometimes complicated, with our accents and theirs.
We stayed in a charming little hotel near the beach of Alona, on the island of Panglao. We took a tuk-tuk to go to the beach. This was our first experience with this charming transport.
Once again, my sister-in-law organized our visits:
Very anxious, tarsiers are stressed by the human voice, a hand getting close or the flash of a camera. This can be enough to plunge them into distress and even end their lives. They stop breathing and die slowly. If you put them in a cage, they want to get out, so they bang their heads against the cage, and it cracks because their skull is so thin. Wikipedia
Very anxious, tarsiers are stressed by the human voice, a hand getting close or the flash of a camera. This can be enough to plunge them into distress and even end their lives. They stop breathing and die slowly. If you put them in a cage, they want to get out, so they bang their heads against the cage, and it cracks because their skull is so thin.
Wikipedia
After our stay in Bohol, we took the ferry back to Cebu. My sister-in-law was already at the ferry terminal with the van, to drive us to the airport.
My brother-in-law and the family went back to Davao and we took a flight to Boracay, the star island of the Philippines.
There are 2 airports in the area: Caticlan and Kalibo. Many people buy plane tickets to Kalibo, to pay less, but they don’t know that this airport is 70km (1h30 drive) from the small port, from where you take a boat to reach the island. Caticlan airport is a 5 minute walk from the port.
When you get off the small boat, you can: take a tuk tuk, walk or take the hotel shuttle.
The main beaches in Boracay are White Beach, Bulabog Beach and Puka Shell Beach.
White Beach is the main beach, where the vast majority of hotels, restaurants and shops are located. It is divided into 3 stations:
Bulabog Beach is the beach for kitesurfing and windsurfing. It is not very good for swimming.
Puka Shell Beach is a large, sandy beach in the north of the island. It is accessible by tuk tuk, but there are excursions that stop there as well.
We chose station 3, which is quiet, affordable and within walking distance of the other stations.
Our hotel was super nice, affordable and all the rooms had doors facing the pool. The hotel is H-shaped, and the pool is in the middle.
This is a hotel that, like many in Boracay, has one entrance from the street and another from the beach. The restaurant’s terrace overlooked the beach. It was nice to have breakfast outside every morning.
One day, we were approached by a young boy at the beach. He was looking for clients for companies. He suggested we go for Island Hopping the next day. We agreed, on the condition that we pay the next day (you know, with so many dishonest people, you end up not trusting anyone).
In the end, everything went well and we had a great day. We visited:
We were back at the hotel in time to get ready for the sunset, which is beautiful in Boracay.
Another day, we took a tuk tuk to go around the island. We visited:
At the end of the day, it was fun to walk on the sand from Station 3 to Station 1, and on the way back, see the sunset at Station 2 and then look for a restaurant or bar with chairs on the sand for drinks or dinner.
There are often presentations by local artists, who are trying to make a living, as best they can. Remember to encourage them!
For whoever might be interested: at Station 2, they rent out mermaid tails for photo shoots. No, I didn’t do it.
We took the hotel shuttle, to take the small boat towards the airport of Caticlan. Destination: Puerto Princesa.
At the Manila airport, during the connection, we noticed that they charged several foreigners for alleged excess baggage.
There was a lady with a scale just before security. We were forced to check our carry-on bags, even though at Caticlan airport everything went smoothly. Maybe our bags got fat during the flight… hahaha!
Many locals were boarding with huge carry-on suitcases. This must be a revenge, a historical reparation… (just kidding).
My brother-in-law and sister-in-law had already arrived in Puerto Princesa, but this time the van booked by my sister-in-law was not there. We asked for help from the tourist police, to call my sister-in-law and take a taxi to the hotel she had booked.
The next day, we went on a tour, organized by my sister-in-law:
Afterwards, we took a van to El Nido. It was a terrible 6-hour trip in a crowded van with no headrests.
In addition to having a flat tire, the driver often stopped to talk to people on the road, offer them a lift and he even stopped at his house to pick up something. We only had one stop, to go to the bathroom and get something to eat quickly.
That was part of the adventure, but it was far from pleasant. Travel experience! Always remember that travelling is a good education for the young! hahaha
I discovered (after the trip) a company (Swift Airlines) that offers flights between Manila and El Nido, which saves us the 12-hour trip (round trip) in the infamous van. I’ll remember this for a possible next trip to El Nido.
El Nido is a fishing village. You should not expect luxury. Everything is very simple around here. For those who might be interested, there are luxury resorts on some islands.
The first day, we took a tuk tuk to go to Nacpan Beach. We were 5 in the tuk tuk!
He put gasoline on the way (gasoline is sold in one-liter Coca Cola bottles). He said it was right next door, but we drove a good half hour.
The beach is very beautiful and we spent a nice afternoon. The tuk tuk driver waited for us.
In the evening we had dinner in a restaurant by the sea, where you choose the meat/fish you want, before entering. They give us a poster with our order number.
After dinner we walked around a bit, to see the little shops. We met by chance a couple from Quebec that we had met in the check-in line at the Montreal airport.
In El Nido, we ended up at the police station after an argument with the hotel owner. At first, there was no water in the bathrooms. When the water arrived, it was black.
We complained to the reception and the next day the man was yelling at the employees. We didn’t understand it all, but my sister-in-law understood the part where he mentioned certain clients (meaning, us).
He was not happy to see us and rushed aggressively towards my brother-in-law. He said he was going to complain to the police (I don’t know why, because he was the one who tried to hit us…).
Finally he arrived and the chief of police made a sort of courtroom at the entrance, in the garden, where the parties could speak. The gentleman decided to leave. The police chief told us that they often had problems with him. Some merchants have told us the same thing.
We had an excursion and we were already late. We were afraid the man would do something with our things at the hotel. The people at the tour company even offered to hold our bags, just in case. Finally we left them at the hotel. Apparently no one entered our rooms.
To end the story, the chief of police invited us to dinner with all the police officers in the village. We didn’t want her to pay, but she insisted. It was a great evening with the police!
Excursions
The excursions to El Nido are offered by letter (tour A, B, C and D). I had read that tours A and C were the best, and that’s what we chose. Almost all companies offer the same service. These are day trips, with dinner on the beach included. It cost about $30 per person.
Whatever your choice, you will see beautiful landscapes.
After seeing some beautiful scenery in El Nido, we took the infamous van back to Puerto Princesa, where our flight to Davao was leaving, with a connection to Manila.
This time we didn’t get charged for the carry-ons (although they were a bit heavier than before, because of souvenirs), but the checked suitcase stayed in Manila. I was given a big $50 settlement.
We went to the airport with my sister-in-law’s brother (I know, it’s getting complicated, with a big family) to get the suitcase, the next day.
We stayed with our family in Davao for a few days before flying to Hong Kong, where we spent a few days, before returning to Manila to catch our flights home.
I will soon do an article on Hong Kong and Macau.
It is still a little known country, because there is no mass tourism, as in Thailand. The main tourists are Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
I really recommend going there, before it becomes too commercial. This transformation has already begun. This can be seen in Boracay with the construction of resorts everywhere. The island even remained closed to tourists for a few months in 2018 so they could fix a problem with the hotels’ sewage.
Except for the suitcase episode at the Manila airport, I never felt like I was seen as a dollar sign on the streets. I found the salespeople to be very honest and unobtrusive.
People are poor and trying to make a living. They work very hard to get there.. They are not used to tips, and sometimes, they refused to accept them. I emptied my suitcase before leaving. I left all my clothes there and made a lot of people happy (even the hotel slippers, which were two inches longer than the feet of the person who took them). I only brought back the souvenirs I bought.
I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: the people are lovely (except for the hotel owner in El Nido). However, time is not an important factor there. You have to be patient,because things move slowly. It took me half a day to manage to buy a SIM card in a shopping center.
The Philippines: friendly people, breathtaking landscapes, without exceeding the budget. It is a beautiful and affordable country. Despite the poverty, we never felt in danger. The locals say that you have to be careful in Manila, but we didn’t go there (only for connecting flights).
Hotels booked with Booking.
Marriott, Accor, Hilton and Best Western are starting to open in the Philippines, but most of the hotels were unknown to me.
If you want tips on how to get free hotel nights in the Philippines with Marriott Bonvoy, check out this article:
Quebec City-Montreal: Bus (120$ return);
Montreal-Beijing-Manila: Air China ($853 return);
Manila-Davao: Air Asia ($82 one way);
Davao-Cebu: Cebu Pacific (54$ one way);
Cebu-Tagbilaran: Ferry (27$ one way);
Tagbilaran-Cebu : Ferry (27$ one way);
Cebu-Boracay (Caticlan): Cebu Pacific (95$ one way);
Boracay (Caticlan)-Puerto Princesa: Cebu Pacific (243$ one way);
Puerto-Princesa-El Nido : Van (about 20$ one way);
El Nido-Puerto Princesa: Van (about 20$ one way);
Puerto Princesa-Davao: Cebu Pacific (158$ one way);
Davao-Manila-Hong Kong: Philippine Airlines;
Hong Kong-Macau: Ferry;
Macau-Hong Kong: Ferry;
Hong Kong-Manila: Philippine Airlines;
Manila-Beijing-Montreal: Air China;
Montreal-Quebec City: Bus.
All the airlines used are excellent. We flew economy class. For domestic flights, we bought all the extras available.
I do not advise it. The traffic is chaotic and the adrenaline is pumping pretty fast. Look for private drivers or tours.
This 4-week trip (Feb/March 2017) was fully paid for. No points were redeemed.
I didn’t know Milesopedia yet and their best credit card offers in Canada, unfortunately, but I thank them for the opportunity to share my experiences.
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