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Philippines by Road

Buses out of Manila are heavily booked around national holidays, and not all of them seem roadworthy.

Getting Around Town

Customised jeeps, or jeepneys, are used to transport passengers around Manila and other major towns.

Philippines by Rail

There's only one railway; south of Manila to Naga. The train is slow, and is subject to breakdowns; but that's part of the fun of travelling.

Philippines by Boat

If you travel to a few of the islands, you'll probably pass through Cebu. There are boats to everywhere, and it's the best way to discover the Visayas group of the the Philippines; if you have the time.

Super Ferry:
Sailings between Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Coron, Cotabato, Davao, Dumaguete, General Santos, Iligan, Iloilo, Manila, Ozamis, Puerto Princesa, Tagbilaran and Zamboanga.

Philippines by Air

As more overloaded boats go down, flights are becoming increasingly popular; although the domestic system of wait-listing leaves a lot to be desired.

Airlines and Airports:
You will almost certainly have to fly to The Philippines, and if time is running out then you may need to fly back to Manila from one of the islands. Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the national carrier.

Philippines Tourism

Philippine Tourism:
The Philippine Department of Tourism.

Weather in The Philippines

View a graphical weather forecast for the week ahead in places around The Philippines.

Angeles Weather, Cebu City Weather, Manila Weather, Olongapo Weather, Pampanga Weather, Quezon City Weather, Tayabas Weather.

Luzon

The mountainous terrain on Luzon is a joy in the hot summer months, offering cool escapes from Manila to the rice terraces around Baguio.

Baguio City:
The highest City in the Philippines is an ideal place to go to escape the summer heat in Manila.

Manila

The capital of the Philippines is on Luzon Island, on the eastern shore of Manila Bay.

Although the port is large, if you don't work on a boat you will more than likely be flying in to Manila.

Intramuros

The original city, Intramuros, was founded by the Spanish in the late 1500s and still contains examples of 17th-century Spanish architecture, along with an encircling wall begun in 1590; despite extensive damage to Manila during World war II.

Malacanang Palace

Built by a Spanish aristocrat on the other side of the Pasig River, the Malacanang became the presidential home of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos.

Cory Aquino presented Imelda's shoe cupboard to the world, as a museum.

There are many other museums in Manila, and you will most likely travel between them in a Jeepney; colourfully decorated former US-army jeeps, or modern replicas of them, with two benches in the back, loud music in your ears, and bad breath up your nose.

Mabini Street

Most tourists stay in the Ermita district around Mabini Street, across the Rizal Park from Intramuros. There has been a clampdown on prostitution in the area, and the girlie bars have moved on.

The business district is a few kilometres away, in Makati.

Balibago:
Angeles City, or more specifically its entertainment district of Balibago, is famous for its bars and night-clubs. Having first arisen in the shadow of the now closed US Clark Air Base, this area just north of Manila is enjoying a new economic boom. While fewer in number, the bars in Balibago today are international class and attract visitors from around the globe.

Mandaluyong:
Mandaluyong serves as an ideal stop-over place for tourists whose itinerary includes touring Metro Manila and its periphery.

Accommodation in Manila

Hotels in Manila:
Find hotels in Manila with special online rates.

Sort Manila Hotels by: Hotel Price, Hotel Rating, Hotel Name.

Around Manila

Official website of cities and towns that make up the National Capital Region, also known as Metro Manila.

Caloocan City, City of Manila, Las Pi�as City, Makati City, Malabon City, Mandaluyong City, Marikina City, Muntinlupa City, Navotas City, Para�aque City, Pasay City, Pasig City, Pateros, Quezon City, San Juan City, Taguig City and Valenzuela City.

The Visayas

Travellers still flock to the tiny island of Boracay, although there is a lot more to see in the Visayas.

Bohol

Bohol:
Located in the Central Visayas, 800km south of Manila and 79km south-east of Cebu, Bohol is the 10th largest island in The Philippines.

As well as beautiful Alona Beach and the Chocolate Hills, Bohol's tourist attractions also include centuries-old churches and watch towers, scuba diving havens, majestic waterfalls and caves and historical landmarks as well as primitive and exotic fauna and flora.

Getting to Bohol:
By air or by sea, find the most convenient way to get to Bohol.

Boracay

Boracay Online:
Every day seems to be a holiday on Boracay -- all you need to do is relax and enjoy yourself.

Red Coconut Beach Hotel:
A beach front resort right at the centre of Boracay's main white beach shoreline.

Cebu City

Cebu offers something for everyone with its vast stretches of clean, white sandy beaches, excellent dive spots, modern malls, resorts, hotels, discos, bars, museums and parks.

Cebu is a rich and varied bouquet of attractions touched by the warmth and charm of its people; the Cebuanos.

Cebu City Tourism:
The Philippines is made up of 7,107 islands of which Cebu Island, renowned for its exquisite white sand beach resorts, is centrally located.

Accommodation in Cebu City

Hotels in Cebu City:
Find hotels in Cebu City with special online rates.

Negros

Getting to Negros by air takes about an hour from Manila. The overnight, super ferry crossing from Manila to Bacolod takes around 18 hours.

Ferries from Cebu to Danao Port, in Escalante City, take around 2 hours.

Bonista Beach Resort:
Located at Brgy Buenavista, Escalante City (2hrs from Bacolod), in the north-east of Negros Occidental, Bonista Beach Resort is one of the first international standard resorts established in a rural, unspoiled area; catering to 95% local people and 5% foreigners.

Filipino Language and Culture

The official language of the Philippines is Filipino; founded on Tagalog. Ten of the 80 or so ethnic languages are considered important.

English is widely used in education, government, and business, but the use of Spanish is not more so common.

The term Filipino originally meant a person of Spanish descent born in the Philippines; similar to the term Creole in the Spanish-American colonies.

Filipino now applies to the Christianised Malays who make up most of the Philippine population.

Easter in The Philippines:
The only Catholic nation in Asia, Filipinos take their belief seriously.

Filipinos:
The Filipino is basically of Malay stock with a sprinkling of Chinese, American, Spanish, and Arab blood.

Paraiso Philippines:
Philippine travel blog with various topics about the Philippines, to aid travellers, expatriates, local citizens and future retirees with reference and resource information about the country.

Diving in The Philippines

Evergreen Diving Resort:
Situated on Popototan island, south-west of Busuanga island, diving cruises leave the resort for the entire Busuanga diving area; including Coron.

Philippines Travel Guides

Books on Philippines Travel:
Browse Amazon's best-selling list of books on travel in The Philippines.