Boracay Philippines - More sights to see!

Ahh.. Boracay.. with its unique white powder sand (that never heats up regardless of the time of day)...the long shoreline... the shallow crystal clear blue water...the people, booze, bars, restaurants and dance events! According to TripAdvisor.com, Boracay beach is the 2nd of the Top 25 Beaches in the World this year (2011). I can assure you, it is definitely true!

For those of you who want to visit the island of Boracay in Aklan, the easiest route from Manila is taking a nice one hour or so plane ride to either Kalibo or directly to Caticlan. Based on my experience, I took the Kalibo route once via Philippine Airlines. This way the plane lands in Kalibo Airport. Taking Kalibo route will require you to take a van or bus to travel another hour or so to reach the Caticlan port. For the other times, I took the smaller plane via Cebu Pacific Air which land directly at the Caticlan Airport which is very near the ferry port. In either cases, the Caticlan Ferry port is where you want to go because the island of Boracay is only 10 minutes away from it.

There are a lot of hotels in Boracay island to choose from. It's just a matter of budget. Some hotels are located beach front, some are located right at the back where you only need to walk 2 minutes from the beach to reach them. If you are willing to spend, you can stay at one of the hotels in Boat Station 1 where there are less crowds and is more quiet, perfect for honeymooners and those who wish to relax. If you want to stay in the areas that have cheaper accommodations, there is Boat Station 2 and Boat Station 3. These Boat Stations are near D'Mall, which is the heart of the commercial establishments in the Boracay beach. There are restaurants, bars, pharmacies, groceries, shops, etc all in this area. At night, the bars open up, fire dancers show their skills in the beach front, people can drink while enjoying the performers in some bars on the beach.

I just recently came back from my yearly visit to the island of Boracay last month. I must say, the island is becoming more and more commercialized by the day. Nothing wrong with that, I mean, I went with my friends last year too to see The Thrillseekers spin at the Annual Big Fish Party on the beach. This year it was Ferry Corsten who enjoyed spinning until 7am to the avid event goers. There are summer bar and dance events in Boracay and this is just one of them.People flock during the summer, especially during the Holy Week (which is usually mid-April) and trust me, if you like to party, people-watch and just simply have fun, Boracay is the place to be. In fact, I felt like I never left the city when I came to this island. Everything I needed was here!

Since I mentioned that the island is getting commercialized by the hour, I still wanted to feel like I was on a beach island and not at the mall. My family and I still went snorkeling to the same usual places but to our dismay, there were just a small amount of living corals and there were lesser and lesser fishes to see. "There are more people than fishes here!" according to my friend, which is true. I do not know what really is happening to the beaches but so far, snorkeling has not been as fun as before. Maybe because of the pollution? Maybe because the corals are being damaged? Who knows.

However, besides snorkeling, there are lots of other things to do like Parasailing, Banana boats, Flying Fish, Jet skis, Kite Surfing, Glass Bottom boating and Katamaran sailing. There is also the Island hopping tour, where the guides and boatmen will bring you to different snorkeling areas in the island and you can have your lunch where you want to.

When we got tired of doing the same activities over and over again, we looked for new places to discover. My husband and I hired a tricycle and we went to Mount Luho. I never really knew that there was a mountain here with a super fantastic view of the Bulabog Beach and the Fairways and Blue Water Beach. These beaches are right behind the White Beach (where the usual "boracay" boat stations, hotels, bars, etc are located). The view was breath taking! There were people doing kite-surfing and windsurfing and it was very fun to watch. The viewing deck can actually hold only 4-5 people at a time. The wind is strong (so that's why there are a lot of people doing kite-surfing in this side of the island, and not on the White Beach itself.

My husband is a photographer hobbyist. He loves to scour the ends of the earth just to get great shots. He wanted to go to the Dead Forest somewhere in the island, so we hired a tricycle to bring us there. He asked for a guide ( a dive master) from the diving hotel we stayed in so he could visit this Dead Forest that he was talking about. But why the name?

"The Dead Forest is a product of a biological imbalance or occurrence where a local saltwater dam broke and the saltwater flowed into the nearby forest and killed off the vegetation - hence the name. The rich forest life like mangroves were completely destroyed and any trace of them are marked by stumps or shoots protruding from the waters surface." (source: http://www.boracayboard.com/dead-forest.php)

People visiting here should bring a clean towel, some alcohol, tissue wipes and something to hold on to (like a tripod). My husband bravely walked through the muddy,stagnant water with his tripod feeling like a hobbit in Lord of the Rings. Who would have thought it would yield such great results?

This is something new. Zorbing has been a thing in New Zealand and other countries, but I never thought that the island will have its Zorb too. This is good news for daredevils out there who want to experience what it's like to be strapped tight and rolled in a course (just a short one though). For those who wish to enjoy a more relaxing Zorb, they can try the Aqua Zorb where they sit in the ball with water and the ball rolls on the course without the people inside getting tossed around.

Boracay island is really a gem. It is not all about partying and bar-hopping.If you wish to be on the beach while feeling like you're still in the city, you have found your place. There are still other things to discover; like the Crystal Cave, the Bat Cave, and people could still rent ATV's and mountain bikes to go out and about.

People should remember that Boracay was known for its beautiful turquoise water and perfect powder-fine sand that never gets hot. I hope that people will keep it as such; take care of it, love it and come back to it. I have been to this island and I will keep on coming back to cherish it.