Toot or Boot? Boracay, The Philippines

Sailing across to the small island of Boracay from the mainland is like heading towards a tropical paradise. With 3 main areas to stay in, also known as ‘stations’, travellers can choose to stay in the hustle and bustle of station 1 or 2, or relax in the serene, stripped back dwellings located in station 3. Whatever your choice, you won’t get bored easily in Boracay.

Pros

• Excellent diving: The Philippines is renowned for its amazing diving and snorkelling. With lots of beautiful fish to spot and ship wrecks to explore, you can spend plenty of hours in the water. Scuba diving experiences come in at around £50GBP for a beginner’s day course.
• Ideal for socialising: Boracay attracts many crowds and with this, comes a mixture of all different ages, cultures and interesting characters. You’re never far from bumping into a like-minded traveller or integrating into a new social circle. For some serious mingling, check out the Boracay pub crawl.
• Lots of adventure activities: In Boracay, you can throw yourself off a cliff into the crystal clear waters, tear through the waves whilst kitesurfing, or take a sail on one of the local long tail boats. There’s more than enough activities to keep you entertained for the duration of your trip.
• Great for an all rounder holiday: Boracay has plenty of restaurants, bars, activities and shops to explore. That’s why it’s ideal for an eventful, fun-seekers holiday.

Cons

• Very touristy: Boracay is slightly spoiled by sheer amount of tourists that head over to the island. As a result of this over tourism, the beaches can often be crowded (however this can be easily rectified by taking a stroll down to station 3) and Boracay suffers from pollution issues as a side effect of the mass of visitors. This definitely dampens the island’s charm and can skew your opinion of Boracay.
• Stormy weather: It’s worth checking out when high season occurs as visiting Boracay during off season can result in tropical storms and gusty winds – not ideal if you’re one to chase the sunshine.

Toot or boot?

I think that Boracay would be considered as a fun destination for most, so it’s a toot from me! I really enjoyed my time here, despite choosing to visit during a poor weather week. If you’re looking to travel to somewhere which will both entertain you and exude the island lifestyle, then Boracay is the perfect choice.