{"id":515,"date":"2015-08-08T15:43:11","date_gmt":"2015-08-08T15:43:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vuelveaviajar.com\/?p=515"},"modified":"2024-11-23T10:06:28","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T10:06:28","slug":"boracay-philippines-the-crown-jewel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vuelveaviajar.com\/en\/boracay-philippines-the-crown-jewel\/","title":{"rendered":"Boracay, Philippines: the crown jewel?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Boracay,<\/a><\/p>\n

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My\u00a0friend Lorena and I were in Aplaya Beach Bar<\/a> drinking one of our last Red Horses together (in case you don’t know, Red Horse is the cheapest and strongest\u00a0beer in the Philippines). Suddenly, a friendly refined\u00a0waiter came to us and said: “the\u00a0man at that table would like to buy\u00a0both of you a drink”. Lorena\u00a0and I looked at each other\u00a0unsure if we had understood\u00a0while\u00a0the waiter\u00a0insisted:\u00a0“come on, choose whatever you want”\u00a0and my friend,\u00a0in a very humble way, replied: “well, maybe\u00a0another Red Horse…”. The waiter started laughing at us and said, “don’t be silly, go for a cocktail. Mango mojitos are the best”. We had just landed in Boracay, the island in the Philippines<\/a> with the country’s\u00a0best nightlife and this seemed like the beginning of an unforgettable night…<\/p>\n

However, after drinking that incredible\u00a0mango mojito (probably the best cocktail\u00a0I have ever had), we said\u00a0goodbye to that gentleman from Dubai who had\u00a0invited us and\u00a0headed back to our Airbnb accommodation.\u00a0The truth is, I was feeling out of place in Boracay. We had just come back from El Nido<\/a> and I was missing it badly. Boracay was definitely beautiful but way too crowded for my liking and\u00a0my\u00a0first impressions of\u00a0the island were not great:\u00a0I did not want to stay in Boracay and compulsively started looking for\u00a0tickets to go back to Palawan. However, since they were too expensive, I eventually decided to give\u00a0Boracay a try and ended up staying there for 5 more nights. After a few more\u00a0days\u00a0on the island, I was glad that I did it!\u00a0Boracay may not\u00a0be my favorite place in the world, but it\u00a0proved to have much more to offer than just crazy nights and the pretty, but overcrowded White\u00a0beach<\/a>. After I managed to acclimatize to the madness and explored the island in more depth, I certainly\u00a0enjoyed it. In this post, I will give you some ideas to explore Boracay and make the most of your time (and your money) on the island.<\/p>\n

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\"Boracay<\/a>

Boracay White beach (station 1)<\/p><\/div>\n

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Boracay, Philippines<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Boracay is supposed to be\u00a0the Philippines\u00a0“crown\u00a0jewel”\u00a0and definitely is its top tourist draw. With its 4km-long, picture-perfect White\u00a0beach and breathtaking diving opportunities, it is not difficult to figure out why. But, while it is really a tiny pretty island, Boracay is\u00a0not for everybody.\u00a0Crowded, overdeveloped and way more expensive\u00a0than any other\u00a0island in the Philippines<\/a>, Boracay is\u00a0seriously not the\u00a0place for you if you are seeking for a quiet, relaxed vacation.<\/p>\n

Everything around\u00a0Boracay White beach seems to have been designed for tourists and\u00a0there is not much of\u00a0Filipino left on the island. For example, one of the attractions is a restaurant called See Breeze where the\u00a0chefs put on a dancing show<\/a> for tourists every\u00a0night. I am\u00a0not sure if these chefs\u00a0were hired because of their cooking or\u00a0their\u00a0dancing skills!<\/p>\n

Another\u00a0thing that I did not like about Boracay was seeing\u00a0many small kids building beautiful sandcastles along the beach. The sandcastles looked great, but I noticed the\u00a0kids were up until late\u00a0and some of them were aggressively asking for money from the tourists who wanted to take pictures with\u00a0the castles. I am not sure if\u00a0these\u00a0kids\u00a0go to the school every morning, but I am afraid\u00a0they\u00a0prefer\u00a0making\u00a0a living out of\u00a0the money they get from the tourists.<\/p>\n

Having said that, I can not say I did not like Boracay at all. After my initial shock and first impressions, I made an effort to explore the island in more depth and I certainly found incredible and uncrowded\u00a0spots.\u00a0I have\u00a0good memories of my time in Boracay and the pictures I took there are probably the most captivating of my entire 3’5 months trip in Southeast Asia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"Boracay<\/a>

Boracay White beach.<\/p><\/div>\n

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How to Get to Boracay?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Getting to Boracay should not be too\u00a0difficult or\u00a0expensive. From Manila or Cebu, you can fly to Caticlan (nearest airport), Kalibo (2 hours van drive from Caticlan) or Iloilo (4 hours drive from Caticlan). Just play around with Skyscanner<\/a>\u00a0to find the best deal! (AirAsia <\/a>and Cebu Pacific\u00a0often offer\u00a0good promos to Kalibo International Airport). Being the nearest airport, flights to Caticlan tend to be\u00a0pricey. You can fly to Iloilo if coming from Puerto Princesa (Palawan) and don’t want to go through\u00a0Manila or Cebu first.<\/p>\n

Once in Caticlan port and\u00a0after\u00a0paying\u00a0100php terminal fees,\u00a0you need to take a\u00a0ferry (25php)\u00a0to access Boracay island.<\/p>\n

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Boracay Beaches<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"Panoramic<\/a>

Panoramic of Boracay White beach.<\/p><\/div>\n

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White beach is the center of the action in Boracay and the only one most tourists see. It is split between three stations\/areas: Station 1, containing top-class accommodation, Station 2, where most of the party and nightlife takes place and Station 3, having most of the budget accommodation.<\/p>\n

\"Sunsets<\/a>

Sunsets in Boracay are absolutely stunning!<\/p><\/div>\n

With its pristine waters and excellent swimming conditions,\u00a0I can not say I did not like the\u00a0White beach. However, I certainly did not enjoy having\u00a0hundreds of people around, including vendors and ladies continuously asking me if I wanted a massage (“massage ma’am??”).<\/p>\n

To be fair with the\u00a0White beach, I must also say\u00a0I enjoyed there one\u00a0of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen.\u00a0But beware. the beach gets especially crowded at sunset time (around 6:00 PM).<\/p>\n

If you want to run away from the crowds, I highly recommend exploring some of the other beaches Boracay has to offer.\u00a0In my opinion, Puka Shell Beach (Yapak beach)\u00a0\u00a0is your best bet. Almost empty if compared to White beach, you can relax there as much as you want! Plus, the\u00a0crystal\u00a0blue color of its waters is equally impressive as the pristine waters of\u00a0the White Beach. As\u00a0a proof, the following pictures! I didn’t use any filters or photoshop in these ones, the deep blue color of the water is just this kind of surreal…<\/p>\n

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\"Puka<\/a>

Puka Shell Beach – Boracay<\/p><\/div>\n

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Getting there<\/strong><\/span>: from Boracay’s main road take a non-chartered tricycle to Puka beach (last stop).\u00a0Just tell the driver that you are ok sharing the tricycle so that he can pick up\u00a0more passengers along the way. The price should be 40php. Confirm this price with the driver before getting in and, if he wants to charge you more, just say “no, thanks” and take another tricycle. A chartered tricycle will\u00a0cost you\u00a0around\u00a0150php each way.<\/p>\n

Another beach that you should not miss in Boracay is Diniwid beach. Situated away from the commercial center of the island, it is a quiet place to visit.\u00a0\u00a0A beautiful scenic walk from the north end of the White Sand beach will take you there.<\/p>\n

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\"The<\/a>

Fantastic Diniwid beach in Boracay.<\/p><\/div>\n

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If you make it till Diniwid, don’t miss having a drink\u00a0at Spider House! Located on the rocky headland of Diniwid, it is the perfect place to chill out after the sunset while enjoying the beautiful life and a freezing cold San Miguel.<\/p>\n

Tip> I recommend coming by walk\u00a0from the White beach\u00a0but, if you feel tired, a non-chartered tricycle should cost you not more than 35php from the main road of any of the 3 stations.<\/p>\n

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Going Out in Boracay, Philippines<\/span><\/h2>\n

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I told you before I did not like the nightlife in Boracay when I first arrived, I felt there were too many (drunk)\u00a0people around…\u00a0However, after exploring\u00a0a little bit, I found the right places for me.\u00a0There is plenty of chill out beach clubs offering jam sessions or live reggae all along the White Beach. I loved sitting\u00a0on the White beach terraces while enjoying nice live music, good company, and a\u00a0cold beer.<\/p>\n

Some of my\u00a0favorite beachfront bars: Red Pirates<\/a>, Treehouse\u00a0(station 3)\u00a0and Bombom bar\u00a0 (station 2). All of them offer\u00a0jam sessions or\u00a0live reggae.<\/p>\n

I am not much of a party girl, so I can not give you more information on this, but if you like to party hard, I promise\u00a0you won’t be bored in Boracay!\u00a0Just go to the White beach when the sun sets and enjoy the madness! You will find plenty of\u00a0bars, clubs, and people from all over the world around.<\/p>\n

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\"Views<\/a>

Views from Spider House, Boracay (Diniwid beach)<\/p><\/div>\n

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How to Visit Boracay on a Budget<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Prices all along the\u00a0White Beach are insane! However, I found it\u00a0is still possible to visit Boracay without going bankrupt. Here you have some tips to consider if you are on a budget:<\/p>\n

\"Boracay<\/a>

Boracay Sunset<\/p><\/div>\n