Among the 7,100 islands of the Philippine archipelago, you’d figure there be at least 7,100 beaches to visit, and truth be told there are probably more. But what sets Boracay, once a quiet and sleepy island, apart from other beaches in the Philippines is its fine white sand beaches, lively bars, and exclusive resorts which are located around this virtual tropical paradise

How to Get to Boracay
Boracay is located off the island of Aklan, accessible by 45min boat-ride from the port of Caticlan. Now to get to this port from Manila you’d have to catch a plane to Caticlan, then another shuttle or bus to the port. The plane ride will take less than 45mins and the shuttle ride about 30 to 45 mins. If you’re not in a hurry you can also ride a ferry from the port of Manila to Aklan, this will take about 16-18 hours, then a shuttle of about an hour to the port. The plane ride is faster but the ferry ride is more fun.

Where to Stay in Boracay
During the off peak season of about June to September, you can go to Boracay without a reservation and choose from the myriad of places to stay at, you’ve got a 5-star hotel like the Shangri-La Boracay, the 5-star resorts like Mandala Spa or you could choose among the numerous smaller and cheaper hotels. Be sure to get off at what they call Station One, it’s got places which front the beach and are closer to the bars and party places. For the smaller hotels you can even probably try to haggle the price of your stay, so long as you plan to haunt the beaches for more than 3 days.

This all changes during the peak season which is basically the rest of the year. During the months of March to May, the island fills up with local visitors usually from Manila or Cebu who take the time off from work or school to soak up the rays and enjoy the sands. For the other months, most of the visitors are foreigners looking to escape the colder climates of their home countries. During the peak season, it would be wise to go online before hand and get a reservation from a hotel, some even offer pick up and transfer services to and from the island the airport.

What to Do in Boracay
Once you’re there, there are just too many things to do that it’s difficult to know where to start. Well, you can just sit by the white sand beach and grab a gigantic ice cold fruit shake from one of many food establishments and watch the waves and people. If you get bored, you can join an island hopping trip around the island and see the snorkeling sites.

White sand beach on Boracay island

If you’d prefer to go even deeper underwater, there are dives shops and instructors and guides whose services you can hire to show you to the dive spots around the island. The island is a nature preserve so the corals and aquatic life remain unpolluted and undisturbed except by the occasional divers. If you’re with a large group of friends or family and you’re looking for something exciting to do, you can hire a ride on the banana boats or those “flying fish” rubber rides and hold on while the operators pull you across the waters of the island.

If you get hungry, there are a number of food establishments which cater to every budget and craving, from the small grill shops where you can just point out what you want and they’ll cook it for you, these are known as turo-turo. There are restaurants which serve different local and international cuisines from Japanese sushi to thick American style steaks. Just wander around and see what captures your fancy.

If you’re looking to put some ink on your skin you can visit the many henna and permanent tattoo shops on the beach side, for a price of about 400 pesos you can get a medium sized henna (non permanent) tattoo which will last for a few days. But if you really want to keep a permanent reminder of your trip to the island, you can get a permanent tattoo from the skilled artists on the island.

When the sun goes down, Boracay changes as the action moves from the waters to the beachside bars and bistros. Go in wearing just your swim wear and you won’t look out of place. These bars play the latest music, feature guest local and international DJs to make sure that the party lasts till dawn. The drinks are cheap, not just beer but the various other mixes and concoctions formulated to fuel the party till the sun comes up.

If you’re looking for a quiet evening, walk around the shore and walk into the pubs in the more quiet parts of the beach, just go counter the flow of people and you’ll find many of the smaller bars with acoustic and reggae bands. Just sit back and enjoy your drink while the music relaxes your tired spirit.

And that’s just for the first day, think of what else you can do for the others? You can shop for everything from clothes to souvenirs in the market, get a massage on the beach or at the more exclusive spas with a view from the top of the hills around the island or just simply walk around the find a piece of beach to call your own. I’d advise staying in the areas around station 1 and 2, as these are where the most activity is.

Boracay is a premier destination for tourists for the primary reason that it has everything that people would want in a beach vacation. I hope I’ve helped shed some light on what to do if you decide to travel to the Philippines and visit the island paradise of Boracay.

For centuries, the island of Corregidor has stood watch over Manila bay and the capital of the Philippines. During the Spanish colonization the island was used as a lookout point and fortress to protect the city of Manila from pirates and invaders. It also served as a correction facility or penal colony notorious for its hard labor and its virtually inescapable nature. It is said that Corregidor got its name from the Spanish word corregir, which means ‘to correct’.

Satellite image of Corregidor Island (center)

After the American government took over the Philippines, the US Military recognized the Corregidor’s strategic value and further transformed the island into a military base, complete with barracks, offices, gun emplacements, docks, and an underground tunnel to serve as a bunker is case of war. The base was named Fort Mills in honor of Brigadier General Samuel Meyers Mills, Jr., Chief of Artillery of the U.S. Army from 1905 to 1906.

Little did the builders at the time know just how crucial the island would be in the coming years for when the Japanese Imperial Army invaded the Philippines in 1941, General Douglas McArthur transferred most of the Filipino and American forces from the cities to Corregidor island at serve as a point of resistance against the Japanese invasion. Along with the Military, the Philippine Commonwealth government under President Manuel Quezon was also evacuated to Corregidor.

On May 6 1942, the island fortress of Corregidor fell to the Japanese army and signaled the surrender of the Philippines to the Japan. Regardless of the origin of its name, the island will always be remembered as one of the last bastions of Philippine and American resistance to Japanese invasion.

Today, the island is a premier tourist attraction, and if you’re travelling to the Philippines and staying for a bit in Manila, then a trip to Corregidor is something that should be on your to do list.

How to Get to Corregidor
To get to the island, you can take a fast water craft from the Sun Cruises port located at the CCP Complex along Roxas Boulevard. Most taxi drivers in Manila know this area so just jump into a cab and tell them you want to go to CCP and the boat going to Corregidor. The ship for the day trip to the island leaves at 8am. If you’re wondering why it starts so early, it’s because there are just too many things to see and do in Corregidor.

What to Do When You Get There
The day trip to the island includes a guided tour and one of the first things you’ll encounter on your journey are the ruined and bombed out buildings which were never really repaired or torn down. The foremost of these which you will see are the ruins of the barracks and NCO quarters. After these, you can visit the remains of the massive gun batteries which protected Manila Bay, all unusable, but still an amazing sight.

After the trip to the ruins you can go and visit the Pacific War memorial dedicated to the Filipinos and American soldiers who perished in the defense of the fortress. Similarly, there is also a separate memorial for the Japanese service men who perished when the island was retaken at the end of the war. Tours for Japanese visitors are separate from those of American visitors as, understandably; these stir emotions within veterans of the war. The Pacific war memorial also features an altar which, on the noon of May 6 of every year, visitors are required to observe a minute of silence to commemorate the fall of Corregidor.

A tour of Corregidor is not complete without a visit to the famous Malinta Tunnel, a bunker built by the Americans as a bomb shelter and base of operations on the island. Malinta Tunnel was the headquarters for American and Filipinos forces and housed the command center of General Mac Arthur and the office of the President of the Philippine Commonwealth. The tunnel was transformed into a venue for a walking tour with audio-visual presentation of the history of the battle for the island. The presentation featured recorded messages, radio communications and other sound bites from the war.

Entrance to the Malinta Tunnel on Corregidor Island

Of Course, There’s Food
If you think that’s all Corregidor has to offer then you’ve just seen the tip of the iceberg. The island also features a number of hotels, and restaurants, theme parks and beaches. There are also dive spots for those who wish to see the ruining which lie beneath the surface of the island’s clear waters. So staying overnight on the island is a good idea if you’ve got the time to spare as there are just so many things to do and see on former battlefield.

So remember when you travel to the Philippines, take a trip to Corregidor as the whole day tour of this 702 hectare island is just full of sights and activities guaranteed to intrigue and amaze you so bring your camera and be ready to take lots of pictures to bring home.

As the capital of the Philippines, Manila is the political, financial and, some would say, cultural center of the 7,100 islands. A metropolis of 13 million people, getting around can be difficult at times but I decided to focus first on the taxis in the city as more often than not, visitors will opt to take these over the other transport services available.

First off, the taxi fares in the city start at 35 pesos for the first couple of kilometers and will go up 1.50 pesos for every 500 hundred meters. This applies to the regular taxis but the airport taxis start with a meter of 70 pesos for the first couple of kilometers and 2.50 pesos per 500 meters. Upon getting off at the airport, you don’t often have a choice of which taxis to take as usually only airport taxis are allowed at the arrival terminals. This isn’t such as bad thing in itself as these taxis don’t try to negotiate a fixed price or overcharge. They usually just turn on the meter and go where you want them to.

Peso refers to the Philippine peso, which is the currency of the Philippines. As of this writing, US$1 is equivalent to P44.25 (pesos).

There are literally thousands of taxis around the city, some are owned by large taxi companies with hundreds of units while others are single taxis owned by small operators. You should be aware that there is a difference sometimes in the meters of those from the larger companies, which run slightly faster than the smaller ones, like instead of going up every 500 meters, some would go only 300 meters.

Be careful of taxi drivers who don’t turn on their meters once you get inside the cab, they’ll often try to overcharge you once you get to your destination. Other drivers on the other hand will just flat-out tell you how much, this is often a blatant overprice. If a driver tells you something like “500 pesos” for a place within the city, just get out and get another one. Getting around the city will only cost you somewhere around 50-250 pesos (250 being the maximum on a really bad day) so don’t buy into driver’s scams.

A typical taxi in Manila

Some drivers will ask for extra on top of the meter price, often its plus 30 or plus 50, depending on a number of factors including distance, traffic, weather, and his mood for the day. What I do in this situation is tell him that if it is traffic, I’ll give him extra, if not I won’t. All the other excuses are moot, just get out and get a new one. Rush hour traffic in the city can get crazy though, the hours of 7am to 10am and 5pm to 8pm  during weekdays would see most street clogged so be prepared for a long ride if you plan to leave during these hours. This traffic gets worse depending on the weather and time of the month. During the rainy seasons, traffic jams abound as vehicles move slowly and certain areas are flooded. Paydays, which are on the 15^th or the 30^th of the month are pretty bad for traffic, but payday weekends are the worst so during these days try to avoid shopping malls and markets.

Communicating with the taxi drivers usually isn’t  a problem because almost everyone speaks English, maybe not fluently but most can usually understand and express themselves pretty well. So if you’re going somewhere, just tell them where and they’ll usually get you there but having map or a clear route on how to get there greatly helps.

Before alighting from the cab, be sure to check your side if there are on coming bikes or motorbikes. Drivers of these love passing the gutter and often aren’t cautious enough to slow down. Open your door without checking and you might just hit or get hit by one of these two wheeled travelers. At this point it just becomes a hassle, trust me, I know. Also check your stuff before going down and maybe tip your driver if you feel he was generally nice and drove well. The high price of gasoline and the traffic have seen the income of many taxi drivers decline significantly, as such many work 24-hour shifts so a little change goes a long way,  often what locals do is to round-off the to the nearest 10s at least.

Taxis can also be contracted for trips to the surrounding provinces if you want to go on a day trip but the price for this has to be negotiated with your driver and this will often require you to pay for the toll, the maybe the gas, and sometimes if you’re feeling generous, his food as well.

Here are some of the basic metered fares for getting around the more popular places Metropolis in taxis based on my experience:

• Manila to Makati (Central Business District and Ayala area): 60-90 pesos
• Manila to Taguig [pronounced tah-gig] (Fort Bonifacio) 100-130 pesos
• Manila to Quezon City (Katipunan or Eastwood) 140-180 pesos
• Manila to International Airport (Parañaque) 180-200 pesos
• Makati to International Airport 200-220 pesos
• Quezon City to International Airport 220-250 pesos

Taxis are a pretty good way to get around Metro Manila but as always, be careful, keep your wits about you and trust your instinct and you’ll be fine. Most drivers are cheerful and conversational so don’t be afraid to engage and ask questions to make sure you’re trip is a nice one.

The Philippines has latterly gained itself a sullied reputation due to all the political on-goings in the country.

Clashes between rebel forces and the government, rumors of coup, standing of emergency declarations, and even suspected links to the al Quaeda no wonder some Western governments can’t help but release travel advisories against visiting this country. Before you decide against a visit to Manila, you need to remember the papers don’t always give an accurate image of a situation. Sensationalism is their business, and a sensationalized report is what you sometimes get.

Manila is found in the northerly island of Luzon. The terrorist stronghold is found in the southernmost part of the Philippines two massive islands away in Mindanao. The standing of emergency was indeed announced but non combatants essentially continued to live their ordinary lives even as it was in effect. The jeepney is the Philippines’ most commonly found form of transport. It is essentially based mostly on the US armed forces jeep but is longer and fits about 16-20 folk. You can also get on buses, the Metro Rail Transit, and hire taxis. Language isn’t a serious problem as even the people on the streets can talk basic English. You will find bars open till three or four in the morning.

The Makati and Malate areas are where you’ll be able to find the freshest clubs and bars. Makati is more costly but safer as well.

You’ll be able to find anything from designer brands to vague but terribly inexpensive brands.

You’ll be shocked at how friendly and useful a lot of them are. It’s really a different form of injustice they appear to treat Caucasians in a better way. Cost of getting by and traveling is so lower than in western nations. So if you have greenbacks or EU Bucks, chances are that you will have no issues availing services that meet your standards. Hostels and other accommodations are abounding and simple to find. If it’s the beach you need, then you can choose to go out of the town.

You can take an aircraft to other bits of the country if you’d like to see more. Whether or not you are traveling all alone or with your folks, Manila is a neat place to go to. It’ll be a rich cultural experience for you.