Traveling to the Philippines: opinions

Looking for opinions about the Philippines? As you may have noticed if you’ve read several articles on this blog, we can’t be 100% impartial. We’re unabashedly in love, so on our scale the good side will always weigh more than the less good. Throughout our site you’ll always find practical information and our opinions about traveling to the Philippines. However, on this occasion we’ve turned to other people who have visited the archipelago and wanted to tell us about it upon their return in our Facebook travelers’ group.

Here we’ve gathered some opinions about the Philippines, of course from the perspective of travelers, not residents or locals. In many cases you’ll also find the itineraries they followed, which can serve as guidance. Remember that you have many more in routes around the Philippines. In addition, you have detailed guides to each of the recommended destinations.

Opinion about her trip to the Philippines: Claudia López

We’re already back in Spain, after 18 wonderful days in Paradise! I’m going to add my two cents by telling you about our trip. We did (aside from Manila and Cebú as stopover cities) three islands in these 18 days: Siargao, Malapascua and El Nido.

We stayed in Siargao for 5 days and I have to say I already wrote a recap. I have to say this island was our favorite, it has a big place in our hearts and, without a doubt, I admit it was our top of the trip. Besides everything it is on its own, it was also everything it gave us, and you have to add that we formed an amazing team there with really great people and all of this helps it stay in your retina and your heart forever.

Second stop: Malapascua. To get there we did Siargao–Cebú by plane, Grab from the airport to the Cebu bus station, there we took a shared van (a bit tiring and with no space, but a cool experience and worth living) to the port of Maya. Once in Maya, boat to Malapascua (approx. 30min).

We arrived in Malapascua very tired, after a long journey, and with lots of emotions from Siargao still on us. I have to say that maybe I had expectations for this island that weren’t fully met… Or that my head had formed a wrong image of it. In my opinion, if you dive, I think you get much more out of the island than if you don’t (we didn’t because of a lack of days). By “get more out of it” I mean the range of activities to do on the island. On the other hand, Malapascua gives you peace, it gives you rest… And if you’re looking for that, you’re in the right place. Something that wowed us was the color of its waters, incredibly beautiful! I’ll summarize the plans we did on the island.

• Day 1: Arrival around 16.00h, drop things at the hotel, stroll and lunch/dinner (we hadn’t eaten on the journey) at the local market.
• Day 2: excursion to Kalaggaman and dinner at Angelina’s.
• Day 3: route up to the north of the island, Lapu Lapu Clif, the abandoned resort and Langob Beach.
• Day 4: snorkel excursion of about 3,5 hours for 400php. Sunken Japanese boat, coral garden (gorgeous)…

Third and last stop: El Nido. We went straight by plane from Cebú with Air Swift. We stayed at Cuna Hotel. As a hotel it’s great, very well located in El Nido Town, with a super pretty rooftop…

• Day 1: we arrived in the afternoon, went to the hotel, strolled around El Nido Town and had dinner at Happiness Beach Bar (very, very tasty).
• Day 2: Tour A + Big Lagoon. Sunset at the hotel + dinner at Altrove.
• Day 3: Duli Beach + Nacpan Beach (the latter blew our minds, what a beach… oh my! the most beautiful we saw for sure). Stroll around El Nido Town + pizza.
• Day 4: Las Cabañas Beach, where we lasted very little because honestly we didn’t like it much… We got a foot massage and headed to Lío Beach. We ate at Fat Choy, very generous portions and super friendly people. Sunset and mojitos at Panorama to say goodbye to the island. Last shopping around El Nido Town.

El Nido left us open‑mouthed with its landscapes and waters. It’s incredibly beautiful! We expected a lot more tourism than we saw; it’s true you can tell it’s a more touristy area, etc., but I was pleasantly surprised in that respect because I expected something much more “exploited” and I didn’t get that feeling.

In short: the Philippines won us over from minute one. It’s an incredible place, whichever way you look at it… I still can’t process or believe that I’ve been in such amazing places, that I’ve met such wonderful people, that I’ve done things I didn’t think I was capable of, that I’ve enjoyed every second of this trip like crazy, that I’ve lived, shared and learned so, so much.

I want to highlight above all its people, always with a smile on their face, always kind, humble, giving everything they have… Their smiles steal hearts and teach you so many things, and such beautiful ones… Salamat Philippines. See you soon!

You can see Claudia’s full trip recap here.

Opinion about a trip to the Philippines by Celia Velayos

Hello everyone! Since this group helped me so much when it came to looking for places, making decisions, etc., I’m leaving our trip through the Philippines here in case it could help someone. I’ll keep it schematic. By the way, it’s very, very true that transfer days are practically a lost day!

1. Camiguin: 4 full days. Two diving and two seeing the island. Riding a motorbike on the roads in the center is wonderful!

Hotel: Havendwell Resort. Diving: Black Beach Divers.

2. Alona: 3 full days. 2 days diving, another visiting the Chocolate Hills, etc. The diving is incredible. Everything feels very touristy after Camiguin.

Hotel: La sirenita. Diving: Bohol Divers

3. Anda: 2 full days. 1 day diving, another on a motorbike visit to rice fields and waterfalls. We liked it more than Alona, although we didn’t find the diving better.

Hotel: Zennit Resto bar. Diving: 1 peace.

4. Padre Burgos: 2 full days. Seeing the whale shark free in the wild is incredible! The dives were quite good overall.

Sleep and dive: Sogod Bay resort. Night ferry to Cebú from Maasin.

5. Malapascua: 4 full days. I don’t know where I read that you either love Malapascua or it bores you; I can understand it perfectly. We were in the first group.

Hotel: Slam’s. Diving: Dive4Help.

6. Corón: 5 full days. A typhoon caught us and the port was closed for 3 days. We rented a motorbike and rested. 1 day diving and the other island hopping.

Hotel: Vela Terraces. Diving: Reagge Divers.

7. Manila: Last day before heading back, we go to the Saturday Salcedo market and stroll around Makati.

In general, I loved the trip! And I know I’ll be back to keep discovering more.

Opinions about the Philippines by Marga Rita

Already back home I wanted to tell you a bit about our experience and give infinite thanks to Claudia and Jairo for this wonderful group that has helped us so much to plan the trip and, above all, for giving us the opportunity to meet so many wonderful people through the calendar.

– We started our adventure in Coron, arriving from Manila with Cebu Pacific. We stayed following the group’s recommendations at the Acacia Garden Hotel and what a great choice! Clean rooms and comfy beds, close to town but away from the hustle. We were able to rent a motorbike right at the door for 500php per day. As soon as we arrived we went on our own to 7 Pecados to snorkel and it was incredible—beautiful corals and thousands of fish of all sizes; even a turtle showed up and I swam with her for a bit.

On the second day we did the Ultimate tour with our guide, who accompanied us to the market to buy the food and cooked it for us on the same boat. He made sure to arrive at all the stops before anyone else, which meant we were alone almost all the time; I recommend it 100%.

On the third day we went scuba diving and saw several sunken wrecks with SEADIVE and spent an amazing day. On the fourth day we did the Escapade tour with another guide, who made us a super cool drone photo report and gave us an incredible day.

– Our second stop was El Nido and we took the 7:30 ferry and arrived in El Nido around 11:00. The first two days we did tours A and C and I couldn’t say which one we liked more.

On the third day early in the morning we went on the zipline, it was awesome and the day helped, with incredible views. Then we went to Nacpan Beach and really enjoyed the beach and the waves.

– The third stop was Port Barton; we left from the El Nido terminal by van at 8 and arrived around 12. Port Barton was very different from everything we had seen—very peaceful. We stayed at My Green hostel, all very new and nice although the double rooms don’t have air‑conditioning and we really missed it.

We rented a kayak to go to White Beach, stopping at Coconout Beach. After lunch we took a good nap to recharge. In Port Barton we didn’t do island hopping, but we rented a bangka that took us to Pamuayan Beach and we spent an amazing beach day practically alone; there’s a small stall to eat and a couple of huts; it also has a super cool palm tree to take some photos and lots of starfish on the shore.

– From Port Barton we went to Puerto princesa by van, stayed overnight and went to see the sunset at the “promenade” and ate at the stalls for next to nothing. Early in the morning we flew to Siargao, with a layover in Cebu.

– We dedicated the last 6 days of the trip to Siargao and we liked it so much! A surfer vibe and super cool shops, good places to eat and live music every night. We stayed at Little Nap on the main street of General Luna, clean, comfy and close to everything. We did the tour that includes Daku, Guayam and Nakked Island—crystal‑clear water and very cool beaches; it’s also not very crowded. Motorbike route up to Alegria stopping at the palm viewpoint and the natural pools. To finish we rented a driverless tricycle and went to Del Carmen to do the Sugba Lagoon and Kawhagan Island tour, with gorgeous landscapes.

That’s our first Filipino adventure; sorry for the long text but one gets excited and can’t stop. Thanks to everyone for all the tips and recommendations! Salamat.

You can see her opinion about the Philippines and all the photos here.

Sahila Ariño shares her opinion about her trip to the Philippines

Hi guys! I’m writing to tell you “briefly” about our experience. First of all, don’t try to rush in the Philippines. We spent 7D/6N in Corón and 6D/5N in Malapascua and they felt “short”.

First, when they warn you that traffic in Manila is horrible, it’s true. It took us 5 and a half hours to do a 2.5 or 3‑hour journey. We missed our flight to Corón for that reason. Even so, Philippine Airlines treated us great and for very few pesos they rebooked us on another flight that same day.

In Coron we stayed at Acacia Garden Inn and it was a great choice. No fuss from the center and you could walk to the port in a few minutes. We dived for 3 days (9 dives) with Reggae Dive Center. We would have dived one more day. The wrecks are some of the most impressive we’ve seen. In addition, each day they increased the “difficulty” of the wreck, so the sensations kept improving. A total success. If you’re a diver, just one day of diving there is a mistake. Don’t expect great visibility or big fish; your reason should be to enter narrow corridors and see what remains of those giants under the sea.

We climbed Mt Tapyas to watch the sunset and it was very, very beautiful. I think in few places can you get a similar panorama. And no, you won’t be alone. But it’s true you can find a spot away from the crowd to enjoy a moment like that.

We were going to do two private tours, but my husband got very sick (we assume because of the water or something that didn’t sit well) and he spent a day and a half between the bathroom and the bed. Impossible to leave the hotel. So we canceled Escape and preferred to do Ultimate on the last day since the landscapes are very different. A complete success. Maybe we would have removed Banul Beach from the route. It’s not that great. Instagram is to blame for wanting to see certain places. And honestly… it’s a beach. Much better to see Kayangan Lake at 7 in the morning with no one around. The Twin lagoon—the big one is much better than the small one. And Barracuda is great for freedive and videos if the light hits. Snorkeling in Siete Pecados is good too.

From there we flew to Cebú; with two Argentinians and another girl we took a taxi to do the airport–Maya route. In about 3 hours we were in Maya without suffering too much. Malapascua is a different vibe. 6 days that flew by. Since we arrived early the first day and on the last we stayed until 2 in the afternoon, we really enjoyed the island. We stayed at Malapascua Garden Resort and it was another great choice. Very spacious room and super friendly staff.

Without a doubt, diving in Malapascua is something exceptional. But we also had great luck, because a whale shark appeared out of nowhere. It’s not the area—don’t go there looking for it. But the sea wanted to make it up to us. We did 3 dives with the threshers, 3… They’re incredible and each dive was better than the previous one. If you can, don’t go down just once. The dives at Gato Island are great. We would have repeated them too. The Mandarin one, honestly, isn’t the best. Curious, yes, but not incredible.

We visited Kalangaman with the idea of spending the night. We dropped it. The sandbar is very spectacular, the drone photos are amazing buuuut… that’s it, an island with nothing. The snorkeling isn’t great; there’s a lot of dead coral. And honestly, we preferred to go back to Malapascua. Maybe our expectations were too high. We’ve been to the Maldives, and there’s no comparison. My husband said… this is trying but not quite. It’s a low‑cost Maldives. The island has trash and yes, it’s fine to spend a few hours… We have to say it was what impressed us the least on the trip. Even so, we think you should go. You have to see the two sandbars, you have to swim in that crystal water and, above all, you have to drink that rum that’s cheaper than a bottle of water while you soak in “paradise”.

And what to say about Malapascua? About its people? Filipinos are funny and as kind as can be. Visiting the north of the island won’t take you more than a morning, but it’s worth it. But the best thing is getting lost in its “streets”. Seeing the pigs, talking to the kids… The Ocean Vida happy hour is a mandatory stop every afternoon and the sunsets on the island, especially in the south, are straight out of a movie. Can you tell I came back hooked? We’re not the type to repeat destinations, but I think Malapascua will be one of those places we’ll return to.

Our bad luck (I haven’t told you everything because I said I’d be brief and I’m not being so) didn’t end, and the transfer back to Cebú because of traffic was endless, the flight to Manila that night was delayed, we had to “half‑sleep” at the airport because we didn’t have enough hours to go to and from the hotel we had booked… but the big surprise came when we arrived in China. The 72h visa is free. We planned to visit the Great Wall, we had a full day and they denied us the visa.

Despite everything, the trip was INCREDIBLE. And we’re sure we WILL RETURN. If you have any questions, I’ll be willing to help. But my last tip is really the first: don’t rush. Transfers are endless and the islands have sooooo much to offer. The Philippines isn’t Indonesia, it isn’t Thailand; even if you’ve already been to Southeast Asia, the pace is very different. Enjoy, live every moment.

You can read more about Sahila’s experience here.

Flor Meehan’s opinions about her trip to the Philippines

We’re now wrapping up the incredible trip to the Philippines! Thanks to the group for all the recommendations and especially to Claudia and Jairo who are always very present! I’m sharing our itinerary and experience in case it helps someone.

Day 1: we arrived in Coron at 9 in the morning so we did a private Ultimate Tour. We couldn’t do a group one because we arrived late and tours leave around 7. We still started at 10:30 and it was perfect! We loved the Ultimate. We saw several incredible lagoons and the snorkeling was great.

Day 2: on the second day we did the Escapade Tour in a group thanks to the calendar, which is very useful! It was amazing… There we visited the beaches and loved it.

Our personal take on Coron town is that it’s very run‑down compared to other places, so we just did the two tours over two days and it was perfect because in the late afternoon/evening it’s not like El Nido, where you have many very nice places to have a beer or something. So I also recommend going to a nice hotel in Coron if you can. Personally, I think two days in Coron is great!

Day 3: early ferry to El Nido at 7:00. They crank the air‑con so bring a jacket. We arrived and stayed in the Corong Corong area, also highly recommended because you’re very close to the center but away from all the noise—and with a sea view for breakfast! We rented a motorbike every day so as soon as we arrived we went to spend the afternoon at Nacpan Beach. We were thrilled! Lots of palm trees—gorgeous! Keep in mind that Nacpan is far and has a dirt road, so be careful with the motorbike.

Day 4: we did island hopping with Kraken tour. It was incredible and I highly recommend it!

Day 5: we didn’t do a tour and in the morning we went to Lio Beach, maybe not as beautiful as Nacpan, but very comfortable for hanging out with chairs to sit on and restaurants. Then we watched the sunset at La Cabañas Beach. Stunning

Day 6: we did the tour with Kraken, K2. It was truly spectacular.

Day 7: we left in the morning in a van at 8 am to Port Barton. The van was very uncomfortable, but it took less time than I thought, luckily… In 3 hours we were there. We arrived at the Oasis Hotel, which is spectacular, with breakfast included; clean and spacious with very good service. In the afternoon we hung out on the beach in Port Barton and it was great. At dusk the bars start putting on lights and it’s very nice to have a drink there.

Day 8: we went by boat to White Beach! It’s very, very beautiful and we also hopped over to Coconut Beach. It was a cloudy day and we still loved them!

Day 9: we went island hopping… It’s true the landscapes aren’t the jaw‑dropping ones of El Nido or Coron, but there are amazing beaches and the snorkeling was great! We saw a turtle from afar! The sad thing was all the tourists crowding it. That night we slept on an island in front of Port Barton at a hotel called Prince John. Ideal to disconnect for two nights! Some huts over the sea and you eat there at tables on the sand. It’s decorated with very cute little lights. We loved it!

Day 10: last beach day! We went to see some island waterfalls; they had little water but were lovely. And then beach time where we were staying. There are some stones but nothing serious; we were in relax mode and the water color is spectacular!

Day 11: van to Puerto Princesa. We left at 9:00 and arrived at the airport in 2 hours and a quarter—they drive like crazy!

I hope the route helps! We’re going back thrilled with the Philippines and eager to discover more. Thanks everyone!

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Do you want to give us your opinion about the Philippines? In the comments you can leave whatever you’d like to add. If you want to read even more, in our Facebook travelers’ group you’ll find hundreds, and you’ll also be able to get all the information you need for your trip. In addition, throughout our site you’ll find detailed guides to different destinations in the country, from the best known to more remote places.