Boracay Part 1

When people think of a beach vacation, Phuket, Bali or Batam usually pop into their heads! But one day my girlfriend suggested going to Boracay and I was like, WHERE? I never knew it was in the Philippines, much less that it existed. Since I've been to Phuket and Batam I thought why not! It's a chance to strike Philippines off my travel list (:

So for starters, here are some tips.

TIP 1: Plan the timing well - We booked months ahead and made sure we weren't going during the monsoon period. We chose January, mainly because everyone was free, and also because it was not a rainy season. However, the weather turned out to be not what we expected (been very erratic and unpredictable!) There was barely any sun, and drizzle on most days. For someone like me who loves to chill by the beach but hates to get tanned, the lack of sun was perfect for me! But the on/off rain really dampened my mood.

TIP 2: Pay for a better hotel - Boracay is still developing it's infrastructure, so many hotels/serviced apartments are still on the hospitality learning curve. If you want a comfortable stay, I recommend getting a good established branded hotel e.g. Shangri-La. Our apartment was beautiful, and had a nice view but the facilities within our apartment weren't as good as the decor. Our shower was cranky more often than not, and we hardly had a good bath on some days! The toilet was almost always flooded and the water pressure of the shower head was not ideal. Poor toilet/piping layout. Furthermore, the renovations ongoing in the hotel woke us very early in the morning and left a lot of dust on our balcony.

TIP 3: Stay near the Beach - Especially around the prime area Beach Station 2. Beach station 2 is the heart of Boracay. That's where all the shops/restaurants are mainly! I would recommend the hotels that have a private beach of their own, if you value exclusivity! Cos the main beach (White Beach) can get pretty crowded, even during non-peak seasons. Or else, choose any hotel along White Beach if you value convenience, cos they cater beach chairs specially for their hotel guests right on White Beach. You wouldn't need to worry about finding one/paying for one. However, if you're strongly against staying in a bustling area and want some privacy, hotels away from White Beach or the boat stations are good choices too, especially since most offer shuttle service to D Mall.

TIP 4: Bring extra Pesos - The Philippines airport requires passengers to pay tax before you are able to enter the immigration area. So make sure that at the end of the trip you have some extra money left! (If I remember correctly it's about $20SGD worth of Pesos? Better to prepare more in case!)

I'll add more tips as I go along! Okay, now onto the trip!

We planned the trip to coincide with Val's 24th birthday on 9th January! Was also planned to coincide with my bf's 25th birthday on the 13th. But he went to Canada for exchange. BOO! Departed Changi Airport after midnight. Took this picture right after blowing the candles on her cake!

Upon embarking the plane, we found out that the seats behind us were empty! Needless to say I had a good nap over an entire row of seats for most of the travel duration.

TIP 5: Be prepared for a very tedious journey! We had to take a commercial budget flight (Cebu Pacific) for 3.5 hours from Singapore to Manila. And our transit at Manila airport was 3 hours. After which we took a domestic flight to Caticlan. (Still not there yet!)  And the exciting/scary part is that we took a....

...propeller plane! Okay I'm not sure about the exact term, but basically it's a really small plane (four seats wide) and it's the smallest and most "fragile" plane I've ever sat in!

Yijie was sitting apart from us and he requested to change seats and the air stewardess were like, "So sorry you can't because we need the plane to be balanced." In my head I was like WHURTTTT. So serious. I couldn't help but feel uneasy the whole ride!

And after an hour, we reached! Safe and sound. I was so relieved, and almost kissed the ground. I kid.

But wait! The journey's not over yet. :/ Next we had to take a van to get to the boat terminal, then onto a boat.

TIP 6: Get your hotel to provide transfer service for you. Makes the whole traveling a whole load easier! It may cost more, but there will be someone from the hotel who will bring you through the different modes of transport.

Many locals take the boat as well. And this boat travels between Caticlan (sort of like the main island) to the smaller island Boracay! 

TIP 7: Carry your own luggage if you do not wish to pay tips. The boat men actually helped us carry our luggage (cause we didn't know better) and they demanded tips from us later on. The tips are pretty small  (a few SGD) but if you're cash-strapped then avoid passing them your luggage. Then again, this brings me to the next tip...

TIP 8: Pack light! With all the transfers between planes and vans and boats, it's best to be fuss-free. Some of my girlfriends brought only a backpack with the necessities for 5 days. 

Upon arrival at Boracay Island, we then took a van (again) to our apartment! So basically, its plane > plane > van > boat > van. We stayed at the Tanawin Luxury Apartments, somewhere on Mt. Luho. It's not within walking distance from the White Beach, but the hotel provides an hourly shuttle service to and from D Mall. (D Mall is the main shopping area beside White Beach.)

Waiting at the "Lobby" for our keys. First impression of the place - modern, clean, and overall very pleasant! We chose to live in an apartment versus multiple rooms because we get a kitchen (to cook maggi mee and our own breakfast as we didn't opt for breakfast from the hotel). And overall it's a more conducive area for a group to hang out together.

TIP #9: It's more cost-saving to bring your own food to cook if your apartment has a kitchen! Boracay is after all, a tourist destination. So expect tourist prices for most things! We brought maggi mee, instant porridge, canned soup, luncheon meat, wine, etc from Singapore. We did so because the reviews stated that the hotel was far from any store. But at D Mall, there is a mart where you can get all your groceries!

Our living room.

Our kitchen.

Bedroom Number 1

Bedroom Number 2

Jacuzzi in bedroom number 2's toilet! (Which we didn't get to use.) At this point in time I was so excited to move into bedroom number 2 that I didn't take a picture of Bedroom Number 3. Haha.

Dionne checking out the view from our room.

Good view IMO! We were on the "mountain" after all!

After exploring our home for the next 5 days, we took off to explore D Mall!

Getting some grub to fill our starving stomachs.

There are quite a number of food choices ranging from local fast food to pubs to restaurants at D Mall. So there's something for every kind of taste bud!

We settled on a place that was brimming with people, mostly locals, selling BBQ/grilled chicken. And it was delish! Didn't know what marinate they used but it was super tasty. No pictures cos we were all busy eating lol.

Explored White Beach for like ten minutes and got approached by touts. We took the chance to enquire about the price for island hopping tours/ parasailing and water sports.We were not comfortable with the price they gave us but they became really pushy so we had to escape into the shop. 

TIP #10: Know how much you are willing to pay for water sports. Touting is prohibited there but there are still touts around. If you aren't okay with the price they offer, politely decline and walk away. If you wish to plan some water activities, know your reservation price (price you're willing to pay) and bargain for it. However, don't expect it to be very cheap. There are many touts, but all of them will refer you back to the same few companies that are running the operations. So prices are more or less fixed save for the commission that the touts are trying to get.

After escaping successfully from the pushy touts, we decided to head back to the hotel to hit the swimming pool!

The pool area was definitely a plus plus plus point for me! Good view, cosy and bar nearby that was offering 1-for-1 alcohol and cocktails after 4pm! Alcohol there is already cheap anyway!We found out that there was a platform nearby higher up the mountain where people actually paid to see this view. And we got it for "free"! That was definitely one perk of this hotel.

Caught the beautiful sunset. (:

After some swimming and drinking, (I fell asleep on the pool chair after one cocktail. Not because of the cocktail but because of the lack of sleep! lol) we went back to bathe and cook noodles! Felt good to get a good night's rest after a long day, with a happy filled tummy (:

The next day, bright and early to explore the island! Love how we were all in bright colors that day (:

Had to get myself a crepe to share! Too tempting.

Getting some burgers.

And ShareTea! Yup. Bubble tea has taken over Philippines.

The couple (:

First order of the day was to explore White Beach and while walking along the stores we chanced upon an agent. Booked our island hopping, parasailing and banana boat with him cos he was nice, and gave us a price that we were okay with. I think for all three items, it was about $40 to $50 SGD per person.

We discovered a "Mother Mary" island along the beach.

Love how fair my skin looks here! Haha. Save for the stupid pimple on my nose. :/ Anyway, there was no sun that day, much to the dismay of my travelling buds, while I was the only gleeful one, happy to avoid a tan! Didn't want all my whitening efforts to go to waste!

Delicious corn on a cob!

Catching the sunset once again, this time from White Beach!

 Come nightfall, the tanning chairs on the beach are removed, and the eateries start lighting their candles and torches, extending their seating area close to the ocean.

We didn't want to splurge on an expensive seafood meal, so we opted for a quaint western restaurant. The pricing was around the price range of Astons, but 10 x more tasty! Pinoy food is so so tasty I kinda miss it now!

Headed to do some last minute grocery shopping before the shuttle bus arrived.

Not quite sure what caught their attention but everyone was so engrossed with looking into the fridge! Haha. Found it funny so took some pictures.

Will update Part 2 soon!