Travelling the Philippines: My Two-Week Itinerary

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I can’t believe I actually made it to my ultimate bucket list destination.

I originally had tickets booked for May 2020, but we all know what happened that year. Fast forward four years, and I was sat at my laptop rebooking those flights to paradise.

It can be tricky to plan which of the 7000+ islands you want to visit, but blog posts, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook groups helped me out a lot when mapping out my Philippines itinerary. 

Now that it’s over I can confirm this seriously was the trip of a lifetime, so I’m excited to share all the details of my 14-day holiday in the Philippines to help others plan their trip and document the memories.

Days one & two: London to Cebu

We booked via Singapore Airlines to fly on Christmas Day, stopping over in Changi Airport for a few hours before connecting onto Cebu, where we eventually arrived on Boxing Day. It’s pretty surreal flying on Christmas Day to say the least.

As we were flying out again the next morning, we chose to stay in an apartment called Express Condotel as it was close to the airport. It was a basic room but had access to a large swimming pool, so turned out to be a good place to crash for one night.

Day three: Cebu to Coron

Early in the morning we ventured back to the airport via a Grab taxi (which is like Uber) and caught our short 90-minute Philippines Airlines flight to Coron. This was our first taste of the notoriously slow-paced lifestyle in the Philippines as the flight was an hour late to leave, but before we knew it we were inside a small propellor plane soaring towards the mountainous province of Palawan.

We had organised for an airport pick up for ease and later checked into the Coron Soleil Garden Resort. Unfortunately our room had a power issue so we were downgraded to the neighbouring Coron Soleil Express Hotel, but we were refunded the difference and still got to enjoy the facilities.

We spent our afternoon exploring the streets or Coron and grabbing lunch at Pacifico, before making the steep and sweaty hike up to the Hollywood sign dupe of Mount Tapyas for panoramic views of the surrounding islands.

After a much needed dip in the hotel pool, we wandered down to Sharky’s for dinner and a bit of live music.

Day four: Island Hopping 

Today was the start of a very big adventure. I had heard about these overnight island hopping expeditions so decided to kick off my trip with a two-night, three-day Keelooma voyage, leaving Coron and travelling down to El Nido.

It was a slow start to get everyone checked in, transferred to Coron Port, onto the boat, and given the all clear to set sail, but a few hours later we were on our way.

The boat was of typical Philippines style, narrow and tall but with wooden beams and poles spanning out on either side for stability.

We spent the day cruising through the waters of Coron Bay, getting to know the others on the boat, hopping off at several snorkelling spots, and feasting on an unbelievable lunch of fresh local food that was cooked and served onboard.

As the sun set we arrived to a new island, spotting the wooden huts we’d be sleeping in that night. The real fun of the expedition was swimming to the island from the boat with our bags following behind in a kayak, but if you’re not a strong swimmer you can hop in one of the kayaks with the Keelooma crew.

Each hut had bedding and a mosquito net, with access to shared toilets, chilly rain showers, and a sheltered common area where we gathered for another epic buffet and plenty of rum and cokes during a happy hour that didn’t seem to end.

Day five: Island Hopping 

Today was my 30th birthday and wow what a place to wake up. I managed to catch the sunrise and drink my coffee on the beach as monkeys played nearby, before swimming back to the boat for a tasty buffet breakfast. 

This day followed the same fun agenda, packed with breathtaking snorkelling sites and an indulgent spread of food shared with a great bunch of people.

I jumped off the boat into crystal clear lagoons, wandered through jungles to reach remote beaches, and even got presented with a watermelon carved to read “Happy 30th b-day Katie” which was so sweet of the crew. 

Arriving at our second island stay, the ocean floor was dotted with pink and yellow starfish.

We settled into our new spacious hut, checked out the facilities (aka bucket showers), ate more food, got together for some karaoke, and stargazed underneath the clearest sky I’ve ever seen. 

Day six: Island Hopping & El Nido

We were off to a slower start today as a lot of people had fallen sick after eating a coconut found on the beach. Who knew they could do so much damage if they’re not fresh.

Eventually we were paddling back out to the boat and continued on our adventure, stopping at another handful of locations. Our very last stop of this day was postcard perfect, a beautiful end to an unforgettable few days. 

We left the boat, were greeted with traditional Filipino dancing, and hopped in an old school American-style bus to travel to El Nido, where we said our goodbyes and settled into the gorgeous Charlie’s Hotel for an early night. 

Day seven: El Nido

It was now New Year’s Eve, and we took it upon ourselves to have the most adventurous end to 2024 by renting a kayak and travelling out to Paradise Beach on Cadlao Island.

For a good 90-minutes we were alone, just soaking up the ocean breeze and the heat of the December sun under the swaying palm fronds. On our way back we heard a turtle come up for air and just caught a glimpse before it sunk back beneath the still water. 

Once back on land we grabbed a quick bakery lunch and caught the last guided El Nido Canopy Walk of the afternoon. It’s quite expensive for how quick it is to do, but the views didn’t disappoint.

Finally we took a trike to Las Cabanas beach for the last sunset of the year, sipping beers by the water as the sun dipped behind the mountain.

Later we met up with some of our new friends from the Keelooma tour to party the night away in El Nido town. It was crazy, with fireworks filling the skies at midnight and dancing in the streets until almost 3am. 

Day eight: El Nido to Bohol

It was time to leave Palawan and head southeast to Bohol, again with a delayed but picturesque AirSwift flight. 

We checked into Panglao’s Diving Addiction Resort, a hotel that honestly was a bit of a catfish, and took a tuktuk down to Alona Beach for the most unbelievable sunset that turned the sky shades of coral pink.

I was feeling unwell with some sort of nasty flu, so for dinner we grabbed a quick pizza at Napoleat and caught up on some much needed rest.

Day nine: Bohol

There was a lot to see in Bohol but only one day to do so, so we organised a private diver costing approximately £30 who picked us up at 9am, took us to a few must see places, and dropped us back just before 5pm.

First we visited Loboc River and hopped on a 45-minute private boat cruise, taking us up and down part of the river for approximately £15. Further down the road you will pay twice the price for an hour cruise with lunch.

Via a drive through the Bilar Man Made Forest, next we arrived at the Tarsier Conservation Area, which is a brilliant place to see the tiny creatures in a habitat that lets them sleep in the trees without tourists prodding at them.

For our last stop of the day we drove onto the chocolate hills, a gorgeous vista of green domes that turn brown in the dry season. 

Arriving back at Alona Beach just in time for another perfect sunset, we sat on the beach with drinks bought from 7-Eleven and went for dinner at Kissa, a Japanese restaurant in the town. 

Day ten: Bohol to Siquijor

We had an afternoon ferry to catch but managed to squeeze in a few hours of sunbathing at Alona Beach beforehand. 

Our ferry eventually departed a little later than planned but we had a very pleasant journey to Siquijor, taking just under two hours. I was honestly relieved as we couldn’t see out of the windows from our seats and I’d heard these ferry journeys can be hell on earth in bad weather.

We caught another tuktuk and hurtled towards our new accommodation, Bermuda Triangle Bungalows, which is a slice of tropical paradise in a prime location with some of Siquijor’s best restaurants just a short walk away. On night one we dined at Luca Loko which I can’t recommend enough.

Day eleven: Siquijor 

In desperate need of a day with minimal plans, we took ourselves to Paliton Beach for a morning of swimming, snorkelling, and sunbathing, and tuktuk’d our way south to Tubod Marine Reserve for the afternoon. This is a fantastic spot for snorkelling alongside some incredible marine life, and the sunset put on a hell of a show for us once again.

For dinner we ate close to our hotel at Bahar Bar, a gorgeous looking restaurant with live music and a great menu.

Day thirteen: Siquijor 

Initially we’d contemplated heading out to do some more exploring, but our final few days ahead were going to be full on and often we forget this is a holiday and we’re also meant to relax, so we spontaneously found ourselves two sunbeds at Republika Beach Bar and stayed here from breakfast until sunset.

Day fourteen: Siquijor to Cebu

Sadly it was time to leave the healing island that I had grown to love so much, and we had a five-hour ferry journey to Cebu ahead of us.

Luck was on our side again, so it was a smooth ride with a short stop in Bohol on the way. To make the journey more comfortable we paid a small amount more for business class, which also meant we didn’t have to pay more for our baggage on arrival.

It felt like we were wasting prime island time in the city, but as ferries and flights can be heavily delayed or cancelled, it wasn’t worth the risk of not making our flight out of Cebu the next day. 

We spent our last afternoon in the Philippines at the ninth-floor pool of the Citadines Hotel, grabbed some local Filipino food nearby, and repacked our backpacks for what felt like the hundredth time.

The next day, it was time to fly out of paradise to spend 36 hours in Singapore.

Tips & hacks for the Philippines

  • Cash is king, very few places accepted card
  • Expect delays, flights and ferries especially 
  • It’s not the cheapest part of Asia but it’s still cheaper than western countries
  • Pack a lot of bug repellent and get the strong stuff
  • Expect to pay small amounts for tourist attraction entries, such as marine reserves and waterfalls 
  • A lot of tuktuk and trike journeys have set rates based on distance 
  • Be careful with food and drink, you only want to consume purified water 
  • Tipping culture is fairly inexpensive with 10-15% being reasonable for most restaurants 

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