A few years ago I’d never even heard of this tropical paradise. Now all my friends are asking me how to get to Boracay Island.
Just after we left the Philippines, we got a text.
“Did you hear that Boracay Island was voted #1 Island by Travel and Leisure Mag?”
We hadn’t heard. But we were not at all surprised.
My trip to Boracay was sponsored by Tourism Philippines and was a fast, fun and informative look at all this wonderful island has to offer tourists, be they adventure seekers, families or spa enthusiasts.
I’m a little bit of all three, so I was thrilled, and I’m even more thrilled to share some of what I learned with friends back home. Not many of my local Southern California friends have considered traveling to an island in the Philippines and many are shocked to hear that is is surprisingly affordable and offers options and accommodations that are often a far better deal that the usually considered options in the Caribbean.
In fact, before traveling we priced out a trip to Boracay vs a trip to Jamaica, and found that our total travel time from LAX to Jamaica was almost ten hours longer than our direct flight to Manila. Travel to Asia was also $300 less per ticket! Lodging and activity options were also far cheaper/nicer in Boracay, which made our decision very easy to make. We don’t regret a thing!
Click here to read about our experience flying to Manila on Philippine Air
To get to Boracay Island from Manila, you must first get to Caticlan ferry terminal, from where you will take a short ferry boat or private speedboat. The easiest way to do this is to fly into Caticlan airport which is a short (less than five minutes) drive from the ferry terminal.
It’s also possible to fly into Kalibo, a larger airport, but you will drive for a couple of hours from there to the ferry.
Flights from Manila to Caticlan are short – about an hour and not terribly expensive at around $100-150RT. Your two main choices are Philippine Airlines, and Cebu Pacific.
My group flew on Philippine Airlines, on a Bombadier propeller plane. If you are uncomfortable on small planes, larger jets do fly into Kalibo, but I will say I was remarkably comfortable on my short flight, despite bad weather and a usual fear of flying.
Upon arrival we were escorted from the airport, all the way to the Lind Hotel. This involved a very short (5 min) private van ride to the ferry terminal, then a private boat ride (about 15 minutes) to the island, and then another ten minute van ride to the the Lind.
The Lind is a new and modern styled luxury resort on White Beach. This is the beach most know for it’s nightlife, with nightly pub crawls. You can stroll down White Beach, from the hotels at the far end, all the way to D’Mall, where you will find shopping and restaurants.
There’s even a Starbucks at Station One, facing the beach. This is also where you can catch a sunset Paraw (outrigger sailboat) cruise or other island cruise. It’s probably best to arrange these trips through your hotel, though in a pinch they can usually be arranged on the spot. You’ll just pay a little more.
Many hotels, besides the Lind, have private boats and can arrange for your travel from the airport or ferry terminal, all the way to your hotel. This service was also provided by Shangri La Boracay and Discovery Shores, as part of booking packages if needed.
However, it was not particularly difficult to make arrangements for travel on our own.
My husband traveled separately from me and the tourism group and made his own arrangements to the island for himself and our kids who were not a part of the FAM travel group. Even booking at the last moment he, he quickly figured out how to get to Boracay and had no troubles “bushwhacking” his way independently to the island and the hotel, though it took him a bit longer.
Here was his route of travel to Boracay from Manila:
- 1 hour flight into Kalibo on Philippine Airlines (Kalibo was the farther of the two airports)
- Multi passenger van to Caticlan for the Ferry (two hours long but extremely scenic)
- Public ferry to Boracay Island (about a half hour)
- Local tricyle to the Hotel (another half hour)
While I wouldn’t describe his journey as quite as luxurious as mine, he and the kids were not uncomfortable and rather enjoyed traveling like locals. The short island tricycle ride was a real adventure for them. They compared it to a ride at Disneyland.
Once ensconced at the Lind, we almost hated to leave….
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