Hi All....will be finishing up a 14 day trip through Vietnam in late Feb. 08 and are considering taking a flight over to the Philippines for an additional week but know nothing about them....would initially stay in Manila (no more than one day) and then want to visit two or three of the more interesting areas/islands...I hope to do a dive or two somewhere and spend some time "beaching" as well as see some of the more interesting sights...know this isn't much time but better a few days than none. Any suggestions to include possible tour agencies we might get a hold of would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Bob and Ruth

There is an Aman which is very beautiful, that is something you could consider if it is in your budget, see amanresorts.com. I would also suggest a place called El Nido in Palawan, which has two hotels, which are quite not nice but not overly luxurious, if you want luxury then go to the Amanpuolo. I don't know what you are looking for. But very good diving. Travel there involves a flight to Manila, then a light plane trip of about an hour, then a boat trip of about 45 minutes. http://www.elnidoresorts.com/.

I have a relative in Manila who works for American Express- let me know if you want her email. As for what to do in Manila do a search on this forum for trip reports to Philippines or Manila and you should get some of my trip reports.

Cicerone...Will be looking into El Nido in Palawan. BillT...would appreciate e-mail for relative who works with AmX. lee bola70...thanks for great web site-good info. on Boracay, Palawan and Manila. Does anyone have any suggestions on local travel/tour agents we may want to use in putting this all together. Thanks, Bob and Ruth

By the way, just got back from staying at the el nido resorts in palawan--stayed at the miniloc island resort, which was fantastic. yes, it's more on the rustic side, but has an incredibly warm staff, and awesome activities: diving, kayaking, scuba diving, sailing, etc.

if you are looking for a massive resort (200+ rooms) like something you would find in hawaii, don't come here, but if you're looking for something more hidden and authentic, this is a great place

Here is the email of our relative in Manila who is an American Express travel agent. Tell her that Uncle Bill from Houston referred you. here name is Myrna Cassas:
[email protected]

We loved Boracay - it has a really good mix of peaceful beach, great night life, good restaurants. Very laid back. They call it the Ibiza of Asia! When we went we were practically the only europeans and we were made to feel very much at home. The sea and sand are beautiful but not the diving or snorkeling. Friday's is the best upmarket resort in my opinion but there are plenty of smaller and cheaper options. Feel free to e mail me for any Boracay questions. Manila is nothing special and I wouldn't spend more than a few hours there.

Manila has a number of interesting sites to explore- its definitely worth a few days. For history there is the tour of Corregidor (WWII, General MacArthur, etc) and Ft. Santiago. Good shopping and restaurants abound in Manila. Several good day trips are available from Manila. Boracay is good for the beach scene but frankly thats all you will get. I would suggest some time in both Manila and Boracay.

Thanks again to all of you for the good info. And BillT I have sent Myrna an e-mail.. appreciate your sending her address. We have decided to try and get out to Palawan as it appears to be more of what we were looking for...diving,kayaking, relaxing etc. Would appreciate any comments as to El Nido Miniloc, Lagan Isl., Club Noah Isabella, Club Paradise and if we were to stay in Puerto Princessa what you might recommend. We will also have some luggage we don't want to take to Palawan...does anyone know if there is somewhere at the Manila Airport to store luggage? Thanks again,
Bob and Ruth

Myrna has stayed at the El Nido resorts so she can help you there as well as your other needs.

We just returned from 2 weeks in the Philippines. The traffic and smog in Manila were unbearable - a day trip to Corregidor was great, but other than that, couldn't wait to get out of Manila. We did a three night trip to Banaue area - the rice terraces are unbelievable and we spent three nights in Boracay - the most beautiful beaches we have ever seen. We stayed at the Discovery Shores Hotel, which was pricey, but fabulous, with complimentary foot massages on arrival. We used a company in Manila for the arrangements - Rajah tours - they have a good website and were very reliable.

Take note that the traffic is no better no worse than Bangkok.

Make sure your flight is booked to Manila and not to Angeles City Clark Airfield (Diosdado Macapagal International Airport.) Some tourists book flights to Clark and think it is close to Manila it is not! Manila to Clark is around 2 hours by expensive taxi or 3 hours on a bus.

I used Philippine Airlines flying between the Philippines and Thailand.

In Manila you can stay in the Ermita area. In this area you have hotels in many price ranges. From this area you can walk to the Robinson Mall, MRT, casinos, bars, travel agencies for tours, restaurants, etc. Short meter taxi ride to the Mall of Asia, supposed to be the largest mall in Asia.

Map of Ermita:
http://www.agoda.com/asia/philippine...ps/malate.html

Don't be surprised when you see armed guards at the front doors of malls, hotels, Seven Eleven stores and other places. That's they way it has been for years.

This Ermita bar has a beach connection at Tagatay. (Drinks and food is reasonably priced, daily specials. Band in Evening.)
http://www.gpointmanila.com/

Good luck.

Thanks for the report Giblum. Rajah tours seems like just the kind of agency I was looking for. Any other helpful hints/info would be appreciated. Especially on Baguio. What were the accommodations like?

Baguio has what I would deem 3 star properties, the weather is much cooler than Manila and it is about an hour's flight away. Its in the mountains so that accounts for the cooler weather.

Hmmm, so I suppose the weather would be OK in March in Baguio? Looks like things start to get rather hot in Cebu at that time though, so I'm trying to decide if March would be an appropriate time of the year for a visit to the Philippines.

3 star is the best available for Baguio/Banue?

I would love to be able to rent a boat/yacht to tour the islands. Any helpful info?

Thanks Bill.

We will be in Manila from March 24 thru April 7th. I would say March would be fine for Baguio. But in Manila it can get into the high 80's low 90's best months weather wise for manila would be December/January.

We spent 3 nights at the Banaue Hotel. Considering the remote location, it was actually pretty nice. The electricity stayed on almost all the time and there was enough hot water to shower comfortably. They can arrange tours of the area - there is a sign by the reception desk which lists the places and prices. We had our own jeepney and driver for the two full days that we were there - the first day, we were on a ten hour trip that included Bontoc and Sagada - the destinations were great, but the ride on the winding roads was even more exciting. The next day, we went to Bagaan, which is a Ifugao village- amazingly remote. Let me warn you that the hike down is very hazardous- the railings are not present when you need them. I got scared and quit about three quarters of the way down, but my husband and guide did the whole hike.
If we had the extra day, we would have taken the 4 night trip that included a night in Baguio.
We had a van and guide take us from Manila to Banaue. The guide came with us on the jeepney tours and the van driver had the time off (probably to recover from the ride from Manila and back). The jeepney came with a local driver.
There is a clinic, called Good News just up the hill from the Banaue Hotel run by Dr. Ligot - he is a medical missionary from Manila who has run the place for the past 20 years. We toured the facility - their Xray equipment is from WWII and still works.
We are still working on our photos which we will post on my husband's website. I will post a link when we are through.

Thanks for the additional info. Can't wait to see the pics.

Carrom....have been out of town and am now getting back to e-mails. Appreciate you comments about Fridays and have booked a weeks stay there. Would appreciate any comments concerning restaurants you might have liked, activities etc. You could e-mail me at [email protected]. Thanks, Bob Young