Northern Highlights Palawan Experience Secrets of the Visayas Cebu and Bohol
An
archipelago of 7, 107 emerald islands stretching from southern China down to the northern tip of
Borneo, comprising over a hundred ethnic groups and a mix of foreign influences all of
which have created today's Filipino culture.
 Essentially an Indo-Malay Chinese
community the Philippines became a Spanish colony in the 16th century. After the
Spanish came the Americans, until independence in 1946 after the second world war.
It is the third largest English speaking country in the world, and is divided into three
geographical areas; Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
Climate: There are two distinct seasons. The dry summer months from November to May and rainy months from June to October .
The capital of the Philippines is
Manila, the centre of government and commerce, and the northern gateway. Apart from
business travellers, if you choose to stay in Manila then we recommend the colonial
Manila Hotel.
To the north of Manila is Luzon,
where there are mountain ranges, rapids, volcanoes, rice terraces and the summer capital
city of Baguio. We can arrange a tour of this area. To the south of Manila is
Visayas where amongst the strings of islands are to be found some of the best beaches in
the world and some of the Philippines most romantic hotels.
Palawan has some of the Philippines
best natural attractions and here you will find beautiful isolated hotels such as Club
Noah-Isabelle and El Nido Miniloc . Boracay is a resort in itself
with open air bars, pubs and food stalls. Here there is a selection of places to
stay from Paradise Garden, the Lorenzo Resorts, to Friday's Resort.
  Cebu is the southern gateway to the
Philippines from where it it ispossible to travel to nearby Mactan Island, Bohol and the
southern area of Mindanao. On Mactan Island amongst the most recent developments are
the Whitesands Beach Resort, Shangri La's Mactan, or the sprawling Plantation Bay.
Off the southwest corner of Cebu Island is the isolated but idyllic resort on Badian
Island. On the northeast coast of Cebu Island is the superb Alegre Beach
Resort. On adjacent Bohol Island is the simply but very hospitable Bohol Beach Club.
Down in the deep south of the
Philippines is the island of Mindanao where you will find two of the Philippines mo st
charming hotels. Around the headland from Dapitan Bay is the secluded Dakak Park
& Beach Resort, having beautiful rooms in bamboo cottages. Not far from Davao
City on Samal Island is the Pearl Farm Beach Resort, comprising Samal style houses built
on stilts along the shoreline.
We have several highlights tours to
cover the Northern or Southern Philippines
Being close to Hong Kong and Taiwan
the Philippines is an excellent complement, and with flights from Cebu to Singapore and
Malaysia can also be part of a multi-centre itinerary.
|
