With 7,641 islands to explore, spilt across three vastly different regions of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, you’re certainly spoilt for choice if The Philippines is next on your travel bucket list.
Will you hit the beaches? You certainly should because this part of Asia has some of the best beaches in the world. And, with so many islands, ripe for island hopping, your might find yourself almost the only one on those beaches. I managed to achieve that rare experience of visiting a palm fringed beach of sweeping golden sands where a dog and two other people were the only visitors.
Even if beaches aren’t your thing, don’t worry – The Philippines is a country of diverse topography. From climbing volcanoes to visiting the lush green rice paddies of the Batad Rice Terraces, hiking to waterfalls and swimming in waterfalls, there’s plenty to do for the adventurous among you.
Speaking of adventure, don’t just blow through Manila. It’s a fun city with lots to see and do. You just need a lesson in how to get around Manila (because the traffic is gnarly and the rides something else).
And now for the controversial bit. I didn’t like the food in the Philippines. It was an utter shock to not like the food – it felt like the birthright of The Philippines to have good food, being located in Southeast Asia and surrounded by so many fantastic spices. I wasn’t quite expecting the food of Thailand or Vietnam. But I wasn’t expecting it to be so…well, bad. There, I said it. And I seem to have upset a fair few locals with my opinion. Sorry. But there we have it. You can read my opinion (and the feedback from the locals) in my popular article: Food in the Philippines: A Lingering Taste of Salty Disappointment.
And finally, make sure you get your visa sorted. Don’t do what I did and try to enter The Philippines on a one-way ticket. It just won’t wash and you’ll be left scrambling for an ‘at the airport‘ ticket purchase.
Every now and then I come across a country and for one reason or another we don’t get on – that was my experience with the Philippines. Don’t get me wrong, the country is beautiful, the people even more so it really was not them – it was me. Three months breezing through Hawaii at … Read more
After almost three weeks trying and unanimously failing to find food heaven in the Philippines, I stumbled across the food phenomenon that seizes the palette of wealthier Filipinos and ex-pats alike each weekend – the Sofitel Manila Sunday Brunch. I should start by saying that there is very little that is Filipino about the food … Read more
“Food in the Philippines isn’t very good,” they were words from a fellow traveller and they came as a crushing blow. How could that be? I was in Asia – one of the cornerstones of the spice trade, a region that had sent its cuisine global with pandemic success. The Philippines had to have good … Read more
My visa for the Philippines expires in two days so I was determined to take a trip to the north of Luzon and the Cordillera mountains to visit the Batad rice terraces. The terraces are dubbed the ‘eighth wonder of the world’ and although I have come across many self-proclaimed ‘eighth wonders’ on my travels, … Read more
Manila, like any capital city is a sprawling mass meaning you’ll need to investigation various forms of transport to see the sights – having navigated the Philippine’s main city (with varying degrees of success) here’s my guide for how to get around Manila. Taxi The huge plus to Manila is that the taxis are super … Read more
I’ve been a fan of one-way tickets for some time now, mainly because of the flexibility they lend to my travels, but this buy and fly method doesn’t always work, as I discovered this morning when I was introduced to the stringent entry requirements for the Philippines. Booking A Flight To The Philippines I booked … Read more