Travel to: The Philippines
Boracay by Lutz from Flickr, click for source.
This is a travel blog, and as much as I want to fill the pages of it with my own travels, the sad truth is I am only a part-time traveller at the moment. But I'm not going to let that stop me from sharing travel tips and advice! There are plenty of other travel bloggers out there who are visiting some amazing places that I would love to see, and have great advice that I think my readers and I could benefit from too!
First up in my "Travel to" series is the Philippines. I chose to write about it first because it's been on my radar a lot lately; heaps of travellers I follow seem to be going there at the moment, giving me FOMO.
Why travel to the Philippines?
My interest in the Philippines has piqued recently after seeing heaps of photos on Instagram of people swimming with whale sharks in it's beautiful clear waters. Aussies and Kiwis are always travelling to Bali, Fiji or Thailand, and for good reason, but the more I look into the Philippines, the more I like what I see. Here are what some other travel bloggers have to say about it:
The Wandering Quinn answers "Is it really more fun in the Philippines?"
I really loved looking through Ellie's posts about the Philippines because they were refreshingly honest. Her post "Is it really more fun in the Philippines" gives the pros and cons of travelling to the Philippines which is really helpful if you're thinking of travelling there. I also loved her post "The True Manila tour" which took her around the slums of the large, overpopulated city, because it shows a different side to the country and one that probably wouldn't get touched on by other bloggers.
The Wandering Quinn with some children on the "True Manila" tour
Boats moored on a beach in the Philippines
Alyssa Nicole writes about Cebu, Palawan, Boracay, Bohol and Manila
Alyssa's photos of the whale sharks are stunning, and they make me want to grab my bikini and GoPro and jump on a plane right now! I love her photo galleries of the cities and beaches she visited in the Philippines, especially of Spider House in Boracay, I will definitely be staying there when I visit! As long as the name isn't literal...
Alyssa Nicole swimming with whale sharks in the Philippines
The Spider House shot by Alyssa Nicole
Just One Way Ticket - 10 Reasons Why You Should Travel to the Philippines
Honestly, some of the pictures alone make me want to jump on a plane and spend my days lounging around the stunning beaches of the Philippines; they make Bali look like the ugly step-sister! Did you know 90% of the population of the Philippines speaks English? And that it is home to the fourth largest shopping mall in the world?
Then there's this article, Phillippines From The Air, accompanied by the below video, which has the most amazing drone shots! Honestly if you're not sold by now you're bonkers!
Have you been to the Philippines before? How do you think it compares to other countries around it?
Revision 23 November 2017.
Since writing this article, I have come to realise that it is not good to swim with whale sharks in Oslob. Although the tourism has brought a huge boom to the local economy, the practice of swimming with whale sharks is perhaps not in the best interests of the animals. It is try that they are there of their own choice but they are fed by the local fisherman, which has caused them to deviate from their natural migration paths, become too trusting around other boats (the tour boats that tourists go on are motorless, but now the sharks relate boats to food, and it can cause them to be in danger when in other areas), and it just looks like a petting zoo when everyone is in the water. Although they say it is a safe practice, I wouldn't entirely trust this. Please do your own research when considering a swim with whale sharks in Oslob.