4 Months in the Philippines – Part 4: Beautiful Boracay

4 Months in the Philippines – Part 4: Beautiful Boracay

Perhaps the most well known destination in the Philippines is the island of Boracay. Located in the Western Visayas region, the beautiful island is about a 45 minute flight from Cebu City. Despite being in the Philippines for 16 weeks, I didn’t think I would get the chance to visit Boracay, as my schedule was 5 days on, 2 days off. Luckily, our schedule got moved around for Election Day, and I had a 3 day weekend to work with.

There are two main airports that serve the island. The larger of the two, Kalibo Airport (KLO), is about a 90 minute drive from the ferry terminal. This airports has many international flights and if you’re coming to Boracay from another country, this is likely the airport you would use.

Caticlan Airport (MPH) is located in Malay, just a kilometer or so from the ferry terminal. It is much more convenient to the island, but is only served from Manila and Cebu, as the runway is under 1,000 meters long. Being closer to the island, we decided to book tickets to Caticlan, to maximize our time on Boracay.

We booked tickets on Cebu Pacific, a discount carrier here in the Philippines. Total round trip ticket cost came to around $100, which was a great deal. After booking, I noticed that the equipment used on the flight was an ATR 72-500. Being an aviation geek, I was quite excited, as ATRs are difficult to come by in the United States, and I had never flown one before.

We arrived at the airport in Cebu around 11:30,  and headed to Gate 25 to wait for boarding.

Waiting to board

The gate area was crowded, with several flights departing at once to various domestic destinations. Our gate was a bus gate, and once boarding we called, we all climbed aboard the bus for the short drive to our plane.

Cebu Pacific to Caticlan

I had reserved 4A, a window seat to make sure to get a good view of the flight. Prop planes typically fly at lower altitudes, and since this was a short, 177 mile flight, I hoped to get good views of the islands. Takeoff from Cebu was uneventful, and I was greeted to a beautiful, albeit overcast view of Magellan Bay.

Magellan Bay

I also set up my GoPro Hero 4 Silver in the window for a time lapse video of the flight.

The flight was uneventful, and we touched down at the airport just shy of 2:30. We deplaned via the aircraft stairs and headed into the terminal.

Boracay Airport

The next step was getting from the airport to the ferry terminal. Inside the terminal, we arranged transportation to the ferry terminal, ferry tickets and fees, as well as transportation to the hostel on Boracay for 900 PHP per person. While we could have spent less if we had paid for each bit separately, it was well worth the extra $5 or so to have it all arranged for us. From the airport, it was a short 5 minute drive to the ferry terminal.

Caticlan Port Terminal

We then boarded the boat across to Boracay. The trip took about 30 minutes.

Banca to Boracay

Once on the island, we took our prearranged transportation to the hostel. This turned out to be a jeepney. Jeepneys are everywhere in the Philippines. They’re basically an open air van, and many of them were actually converted from US Army Jeeps left over in the Philippines after World War II.

Crowded jeepney

Boracay is world famous for its White Beach, along the western side of the island. It’s roughly separated into “Stations.” Station 3 is closest to the ferry landing, and then to the north you have Station 2, followed by Station 1. Our hostel was located in Station 2, right in the middle. This is by far the busiest section of the beachfront, with hotels, restaurants, souvenir stores, and more.

Frendz Hostel

After dropping our things at the hostel, we walked the beach and took in the sites. White Beach is beautiful but very, very busy.

Station 2
Station 2
End of Station 2

After walking the beach for a bit, we stopped at a hotel in Station 1 to eat dinner. I made sure to head outside for sunset though, and it did not disappoint.

Sunset #1

After dinner, we took in the incredible nightlife of White Beach. I haven’t been to Miami, though I’d imagine Boracay is quite comparable. There’s drinking, dancing, and music at every turn. We stopped for a bit and took in some fire dancing before heading back to the hostel for the night.

Fire dancing

The original plan the following day was to do a day trip to a resort called Ariel’s Point, which has cliff jumping, kayaking, paddleboarding, etc. Sadly, it was closed for Election Day. Luckily, there are dozens of people along the beach who hire out their boats for the day.

Beautiful morning on White Beach

The first stop on our boat tour was Crystal Cove Island, a small island off the coast of Boracay. The island is beautiful, and there a few caves that you can explore, including one you have to wade into the water for.

On the way to Crystal Cove
Crystal Cove
Cave #1
Cave #2

The walk around the entire island takes about an hour, and then we all climbed back into the boat.

Back on the boat

We then were taken to an area to snorkel for 30-45 minutes. One of my favorite memories from all of my travels was snorkeling in the Phi Phi Islands in Thailand, and the snorkeling in the Philippines was supposed to be just as good, if not better. Sadly, the ocean was incredibly rough, and I spent more time clearing my snorkel and mask than looking underwater. I did manage to get a few good pictures of the coral though.

Snorkeling

Our last stop on the boat tour was a quiet beach on another island. I spent a bit of time on the beach, but with it being as hot it was, the water was much more comfortable.

Relaxing in the water

We then headed back around the northern tip of Boracay back down to Station 2. The sun started getting low in the sky, leading to some beautiful photos.

Heading back to White Beach

Once back on White Beach, we were treated to yet another remarkable sunset.

Sunset #2

We again had dinner at one of the hotels in Station 2. We sat upstairs and out on a balcony, and were treated to a great view of the nightlife on the beach.

White Beach after dark

The following morning, we headed back to the airport for our early flight home. The Caticlan Airport terminal is brand new, and while the area immediately next to the two gates had very little seating, there is an upstairs section which has ample space.

Gate 2

Due to the short runway, you typically only see aircraft in like ATRs, Dash 8s, etc. I was also lucky enough to spot a BAe-146 parked at the gate as well. It’s my favorite aircraft, and I’ve always wanted to fly on one.

BAe-146

Our flight was called for boarding on time, and we walked out to the aircraft and bade farewell to a truly beautiful island. Boracay definitely lived up to the hype, and if you’re in the Philippines for any length of time, it’s without a doubt worth a visit.

Ready to head back to Cebu
Bye bye Boracay!

Stay tuned for a future post talking about an island I went to that I feel is even better than Boracay!

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