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Published: July 19th 2010
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Boracay is a small island with a huge reputation. The famous white beach on the west coast of the island is often shortlisted as one of the best beaches in the world. Thanks to its long stretch (just under 2 miles) of super fine white sand flanked by crystal clear warm waters on one side and coconut trees on the other. Because of this, plus easy and relatively cheap transportation access from Manila, this island is one of the top tourist destinations of the Philippines and has been inundated by tourists for over 15 years. We spent the past 3 days here and fortunately for us, we were too far south to be affected by the typhoon that hit Luzon. We did get a few showers and it was cloudy for the first 2 days but we did not mind it since the only thing on our agenda was to lay on the beach and relax.
Relaxing, we found out is a little hard to do on white beach.It is a very vibrant place and even now in the lean season it seemed crowded with the a lot of vacationers especially from Korea. The whole length of the beach front has
been developed.There are bars and restaurants right on the beach ( there is even a big strip mall appropriately called D'Mall) and it's hard to go more than 5 minutes without someone approaching you to sell souvenirs, food, massage services and tours. Unfortunately this was not exactly what we had in mind. After all the excitement of Bangkok we just wanted to be left alone and enjoy some R & R.
The solution to our dilemma came on the third day. We decided to succumb to the offers for island hopping tours. There are several ways to do this, you could use a speed or motor boat which is the faster option or like us, you could opt hire a "paraw". These are the outrigger sail boats typical to this part of the country. The tour operators will usually give you a price quote per hour but try to negotiate for a whole day price since depending on the wind conditions it can take a long time to get around the whole island. Our boat was operated by B-Boy plus his 2 assistants. They were very friendly and we had a good time talking about Boracay and they gave us
tips on other less explored wonders of Panay.
We told them we wanted to go to Carabao island which is an island off the coast and is actually already a part of the next province (Romblon). I read that it's a less visited and relatively undiscovered destination. It will probably stay that way since the beach was much coarser than Boracay's and the snorkelling was not good. We then proceeded to Puka beach which is on the northern end of Boracay island. This was our favorite stop on the tour. A relatively secluded beach with no development except for a few eateries and a souvenir shop. Just the crystal clear waters, the beach and a back drop of lush forest. The forest vegetation was lush and we even saw a couple of monkeys as our boat landed. We could have spent all day here but we had to go around the rest of the island to make it back to white beach.
Our boat guys suggested we stop by Crocodile island which is known as a good snorkelling site. It was just okay, the fish were plentiful but the corals not as healthy looking. Also the current was very strong
that day and we had to hold on to a rope to keep from getting swept away. Then it was on to Crystal cove which is another small island which had 2 caves that opened out to the ocean. The caves were interesting and easy to access but the rest of the island was decorated much like a theme park. It was very strange seeing so much artifice in such a naturally beautiful setting. I guess they could not leave well enough alone.
We made it back to White beach just before sunset, very hungry but satisfied that we were able to enjoy the rest of the island. Being on the paraw was so relaxing and quiet. It's for us the best way to explore Boracay. A welcome refuge from the crowds with nothing else but the waves ,the wind (plus a few good boat men) and the beautiful scenery to keep you company.
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Paul M
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I can't believe your trip is coming to a close soon. Loved reading all about your adventures in Manila and beyond.