The Philippines 🇵🇭

Great for giant turtles.

Cebu activity

Series of waterfalls in a gorge that you can swim and jump in. There are less falls than Inambakan, but with some really cool cliff dives (one from inside a cave in the tallest waterfall.)

activity

Bohol activity

activity

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMMWu31vm/

Imported activity

Kawasan is a canyon with a beautiful river running through it. Multiple agencies run tours that involve swimming down the river and jumping off waterfalls. Definitely one of the top attractions for people staying in Moalboal.

Cebu activity

Great location for diving and snorkeling.

other

Unique coral hills that are a chocolate color in the dry season.

Bohol activity

A hostel especially popular for their 30 minute free drink happy hour at 7pm. Most travelers come for the happy hour, so it’s a great way to meet other people. The food is good too.

food

Small coastal town with island hopping and scuba diving reefs and WW2 shipwrecks.

Transportation

It’s common to take the five hour ferry from El Nido to connect this to a trip to the islands and towns there.
There are also a number of multi-day tours (mostly 3 days, some 5-6) that also go between El Nido and Coron that visit many small islands and reefs on the way. Tao is the most famous of these.
Coron has an airport with daily flights to the other major airports.

Coron Palawan other

Beautiful waterfalls (one large, several small) in a narrow gorge cut by the water. This is one of the most unique falls I’ve been to despite having smaller falls and less jumps. There’s a 200 pesos entrance/parking fee, and it’s recommended to tip the guide extra as well.

activity

Sustainable ecological whale shark tours.

other

Great location for diving and snorkeling.

other

Beautiful river gorge with five tiers of waterfalls. Most levels have a large pool that you can cliff dive into. Like the other nearby falls, there’s a parking fee, entrance fee, and mandatory guide with fee. Around 400 pesos total when I went.

activity

Beautiful slide down a waterfall into the river https://www.instagram.com/p/CGFdWLkhAmr/?igshid=1nh0so2x5zgxu Kawasan, Cebu, Philippines

Activities other

Beautiful brackish lake with a viewpoint of the bay. The viewpoint can get pretty crowded with a long wait for taking your picture on the main rock (20 minutes when I went.) This lake is part of the Ultimate Tour in Coron.

Coron activity

Location for swimming with whale sharks.

other

Good place to see thresher sharks.

Bohol activity

https://www.tiktok.com/@simmarino/video/7561976126185164052?_t=ZM-90suz5xLkB2&_r=1

Medium-sized beach town on the main island of Cebu.

What to do

snorkel just off the main “beach” (it’s mainly rocks and corral that was destroyed by the 2019 typhoon) to see the massive sardine runs. It’s also quite common to find sea turtles close to the shore during high tide.
go canyoneering at the nearby Kawasan falls
rent a motorbike and visit the many beautiful waterfalls/gorges that you can swim and jump in.

Getting there

four hour bus from Cebu City South Bus Terminal. The bus will drop you off on the main road, from where you’ll need to hire a tricycle (100 pesos or so) to take you to your accomodation
messy combination of three tricycles, one bus, and 2 ferries from Siquijor. Inquire at your accomodation because the hours and prices of this vary. I went the opposite way, from Moalboal to Siquijor, and three ferries sold out while I waited in line. I ended up on a ferry 6 hours later.

Cebu other

Overrun with tourists and a very unnatural feeding of whale sharks.

other

Fantastic coffee shop on the beach with great homemade brownies and banana bread. It’s a bit away from the city, so you can either walk to the end of the beach and take the small dirt path, or kayak along the coast.

food

Great location for diving and snorkeling.

other

A much quieter and less crowded beachfront town in Palawan. Most people visit here between trips to El Nido and flights to Cebu from Puerto Princesa

Palawan other

Hostel in a beautiful old mansion with a rooftop overlooking the city. There are daily free rum happy hours to meet the other guests and make plans for the next day. I did several tours and activities with the other travelers I met during the happy hour.

Coron lodging

One of the easternmost islands, famous for great surfing.

other

Shallow reef near the shore that’s incredible for snorkeling. It’s part of a number of boat tours (namely the Ultimate Tour), but you can also take a short motorbike ride down the coast and kayak out to it.

Coron activity

Cebu activity

Bohol other

https://www.taophilippines.com/

activity

Small sanctuary where you can see endangered tarsiers.

Bohol activity

Some of the best diving in the world, with large sharks, turtles, and whale sharks. It has a shorter season however: April through June.

lodging

Delicious vegan hamburger restaurant. The falafal and jackfruit burgers were delicious.

Coron food

Great roasted chicken, nasee goreng, noodles, curries. You can get a ton of food for 150 PP.

Coron food