Morning
Land at NAIA
Ninoy Aquino International. Terminals are far apart and the inter-terminal shuttle is slow; a Grab into Ermita takes 30-45 minutes.
Afternoon / Day
Check in: The Manila Hotel
One Rizal Park, Ermita. Trading since 1912 and a five-minute ride from the Intramuros gates.
Fort Santiago
Santa Clara St, Intramuros. Rizal was held here before his execution; PHP 75 entry and the gates stay open until 10 PM on weekdays.
San Agustin Church
General Luna St. The oldest stone church in the country and a UNESCO listing; the painted trompe-l'oeil ceiling is the reason to go in.
Casa Manila
Plaza San Luis, General Luna St. A rebuilt 1850s merchant house, Tue-Sun 9 AM-6 PM. Closed Mondays, so do it on arrival day.
Evening
Sunset on the Baywalk
Roxas Boulevard. Manila Bay is the city's one uncontested attraction; walk the promenade south from Rizal Park.
Dinner at the hotel
One Rizal Park. Eat in the lobby wing on arrival night - Ermita is not a walking neighbourhood after dark and the flight is early.
Morning
Fly Manila to El Nido
NAIA to Lio Airport, a single strip north of town. The cheaper route is a Puerto Princesa flight plus a five-hour van up the coast.
Van from Lio Airport
Shared vans meet each flight and run into El Nido town and Corong-Corong in about 20 minutes.
Afternoon / Day
Check in: Cadlao El Nido
Sitio Caalan, Barangay Masagana. Beachfront on El Nido Bay facing Cadlao Island; three pools and Jinjer Restaurant out on the sand.
Book Tour A and Tour C
Book both boats today at any Sirena St travel desk, and pay the municipal eco-tourism development fee - operators check the receipt.
Las Cabanas Beach
Ten minutes south of town by tricycle. West-facing sand, the best sunset in El Nido, and a zipline strung across the bay.
Evening
Dinner at Art Cafe
Sirena St, Buena Suerte. The long-running boutique, travel desk and farm-to-table kitchen in one - the safe first night in town.
Pack a dry bag for tomorrow
Since 2023 El Nido boats no longer cook on board, so bring your own lunch and drinking water, plus reef-safe sunscreen.
Morning
Breakfast at Jinjer
On the sand at Cadlao. Eat early - Tour A boats pull off the beach mid-morning and the schedule is not yours.
Big Lagoon
Bacuit Bay. Bangkas anchor at the mouth and you paddle a kayak through the karst gap into jade shallows.
Secret Lagoon
Miniloc Island. You squeeze through a waist-high crack in the cliff face into a roofless pool of green water.
Afternoon / Day
Shimizu Island
The Tour A lunch stop. Snorkel off the rocks at the northern end while the crew lays out the packed food.
Seven Commandos Beach
Last stop before the run home - palms, a coconut stand, and shallow water. Boats are back in El Nido around 4 PM.
Evening
Grilled catch at Corong-Corong
The sand-floor grills on the strip south of town. Take a table facing west and order whatever came off the boat that afternoon.
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Morning
Helicopter Island
Dilumacad Island, named for its profile from the water. Long beach and easy snorkelling off the left-hand end.
Matinloc Shrine
An abandoned convent and school on Matinloc Island; scramble up the rock behind it for the whole sweep of Bacuit Bay.
Afternoon / Day
Lunch on Talisay Island
The Tour C beach stop where the boats pull in to eat. Shade is limited, so claim a tree early.
Secret Beach
You swim through a crack in the limestone to reach it - the stop that sells Tour C. Swell closes it some days.
Hidden Beach
Walled in by limestone with a shallow sand shelf - the calmer sibling of Secret Beach and the better swim.
Evening
Sunset from Caalan Beach
Walk north from the resort along the shore. Cadlao Island goes black against the light and the bangkas come in.
Second dinner at Art Cafe
Sirena St. Two boat days in and the Italian and Indian end of the menu starts to look better than another grilled fish.
Morning
Tricycle to Nacpan
About 45 minutes north on a paved-then-gravel road. Agree the return time with your driver before you set off.
Nacpan Beach
Four kilometres of open sand with real surf - the antidote to three days on a boat. Walk south to the twin-beach headland.
Afternoon / Day
Lunch at a Nacpan shack
Simple grills under the palms at the southern end of the beach. Bring cash; there is no ATM out here.
Back into El Nido town
Same tricycle, same road. Aim to be back by mid-afternoon while the light is still good on the cliff.
Taraw Cliff canopy walk
The limestone spine straight above town. The bolted canopy walk is the safe way up; the old scramble route needs a guide.
Evening
Last dinner at Jinjer
On the sand at Cadlao. Order the grilled fish and watch the bangka lights come on across El Nido Bay.
Confirm the Cebu flight
El Nido to Cebu is not on every day of every schedule. Check yours tonight and, if it has gone, connect through Manila.
Morning
Van to Lio Airport
Twenty minutes north of town. Lio is one room with a fan, so there is nothing to do early.
Fly El Nido to Cebu
Roughly 500 km east across the Sulu Sea to Mactan-Cebu. If the direct is not running, connect via Manila and land mid-afternoon.
Afternoon / Day
Check in: Bayfront Hotel Cebu
Kaohsiung St, North Reclamation Area. Plain but well placed - the Bohol fast-ferry piers are a ten-minute ride from the door.
Basilica del Santo Niño
Osmeña Blvd. Built around the Santo Niño image Magellan handed over in 1521; the pilgrim courtyard outside is busier than the church.
Magellan's Cross
Magallanes St, in a kiosk beside the basilica. Free, takes five minutes, and it is the reason the city is where it is.
Fort San Pedro
Plaza Independencia. The oldest and smallest triangular fort in the country - ramparts to walk and a garden in the middle.
Evening
Dinner at Rico's Lechon
Axis Entertainment Avenue, N. Escario St. Order the spicy lechon by the half kilo; kitchen closes at 9 PM Monday to Thursday.
Morning
OceanJet ferry to Tagbilaran
Cebu pier to Tagbilaran across the Bohol Strait, roughly two hours on the axe-bow craft. Book the seat online, pay the terminal fee at the pier.
Transfer to Panglao
Tagbilaran pier to Alona Beach is about 30 minutes over the two causeways onto Panglao Island.
Afternoon / Day
Check in: Amorita Resort
Ester A. Lim Drive, Tawala. On the low cliff at the quiet end of Alona, with steps cut down to the beach.
Hinagdanan Cave
Bingag, Dauis. A limestone chamber with a swimmable pool lit through two holes in the roof. Small fee, very slippery steps.
Walk Alona Beach
A kilometre of sand lined with dive shops and bangka captains - this is where every countryside van and reef boat gets arranged.
Evening
Dinner on Alona Beach
Tables go out on the sand after dark and the grills fire up. Walk the strip and pick by what is on ice, not by the menu board.
Arrange the countryside van
Book a private van through the resort or any Alona desk, and leave by 8 AM to reach Carmen ahead of the tour coaches.
Morning
Van into the interior
Panglao to Carmen is about two hours of inland road each way. The early start is the entire trick of this day.
Chocolate Hills Complex
Carmen. Some 1,268 conical mounds spread over roughly 50 sq km; climb the steps at the complex before the heat builds.
Afternoon / Day
Loboc River lunch cruise
Loboc. Floating bamboo restaurants motor upriver to a waterfall and back over a buffet. Unashamedly touristy and still the best hour.
Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary
Canapnapan, Corella. The conservation-run forest rather than a roadside cage: no flash, no touching, guides point out sleeping animals.
Baclayon Church
Baclayon. One of the oldest coral-stone churches in the country, rebuilt after the 2013 earthquake; the small museum holds the vestments.
Evening
Dinner at Amorita
Ester A. Lim Drive. Back late and sunburnt - eat on the cliff terrace above Alona rather than walking the strip again.
Confirm the Balicasag boat
Boats leave Alona before dawn for the dolphin run. Confirm the pickup time and the marine-park fee the night before.
Morning
Bangka out from Alona
Leave in the dark. The sea off Panglao flattens at first light and roughens again by late morning.
Dolphins off Pamilacan
Spinner dolphins run this channel at sunrise. The boats chase in a pack, so stay seated and let the pod come to you.
Balicasag Island reef
A marine sanctuary where the wall drops away metres from shore. Snorkellers are capped per day and assigned a guide and numbered boat.
Afternoon / Day
Virgin Island sandbar
A curved bar that only exists at low tide, with vendors wading out selling sea urchin. Check the tide table before committing.
Late lunch back on Alona
Boats are in by early afternoon. Eat on the sand, then do nothing at all until the light starts to go.
Evening
Sunset on Dumaluan Beach
Ten minutes east of Alona and far emptier - the better stretch of Panglao sand for a last evening.
Settle up and pack
Salt-stiff everything. Book the airport transfer tonight - Sunday morning traffic onto the Panglao causeways is unpredictable.
Panglao to Manila, and Out
Morning
Breakfast at Amorita
Ester A. Lim Drive. Last look at Alona from the cliff before the drive across Panglao.
Transfer to Bohol-Panglao airport
TAG is about 20 minutes from Alona - the one real reward for ending the trip on Panglao rather than in Cebu.
Afternoon / Day
Fly Panglao to Manila
A little over an hour north to NAIA. Leave four hours for an onward international connection; the terminal transfer eats time.
Evening
International connection out
NAIA Terminal 1 or 3 depending on the carrier. Clear immigration early and eat landside - the airside options are thin.
