The Island Explorer

Cagayan de Oro is one of the most pleasant cities in the Philippines. It has great restaurants, a laid back city culture and a passion for the arts. However, CDO is more known for something totally different, its adventure spots. I always wanted to go white water rafting, and so we headed off to CDO in the month of August, supposedly a good time for white water rafting as it was the rainy season. We took an early morning flight via Cebu Pacific, and was met up by our tour operator, Red Rafters. We arrived around 7AM in CDO, and grabbed a quick breakfast before heading off to the jump off point on the river. We were given some quick lessons. I was so excited that I really didn't pay attention to the lesson. We were joined by our tour operators, since you need at least four people to make the ride stable. I gave my camera to our driver and instructed him to take some pictures as we took off. It was great that we left early, as the tour operators said that most of the tourists arrive

After Bantayan and Malapascua of Northern Cebu, I had to go South. We were supposed to go to Moalboal, but I missed my turn and headed straight to the Southern most end of Cebu, the town of Oslob where you get off to get to Sumilon Island, privately owned by the Maribago Blue Water Group. Sumilon Island is another small island that is nearer to Dumagete in Negros Oriental than Cebu City. In fact, it will only take you an hour and a half by ferry to go to Oslob from Dumagete. So this is one option to take if you do wnat to go to this island. I must admit, I was hesitant in going here because it was privately owned and a bit on the luxury side. I was scared that it won't be as peaceful as I want my beach experiences to be. Though a bit pricey when you see it in brochures (P7k a night), all of this will go away once you're there. Sumilon Blue Water Resort has a port in the mainland where two rooms can also be found. The rooms here are priced lower, at 4,000 pesos a night.

Cebu is one the country's best islands. Cebu City is the Queen of the South and if I would escape Manila, I would move to Cebu. Imagine having nice beaches 30 mins. away and great ones just hours away. Let's start with the most idyllic and touristic island that is 4 hours by bus north from Cebu City, Malapascua. The island is listed in most international travel guide books, and Lonely Planet lists it in one of the best islands in the Philippines. As a result, foreigners make up a majority of the island's visitors. From the port of Maya in the mainland, passing through Daanbantayan, we ferried ourselves to Malapascua, for about 45 minutes. Once you arrive at Bounty Beach, the main beach, you will immediately feel at home in paradise. Malapascua has white sand beaches, and several beach front resorts. Prices are quoted in both dollars and pesos. We stayed at Blue Water Resort that cost us around 1,800 a night for a cottage. The laid back island is rather small, and one could

I've been trying to find one of the best beach retreats just 3 hours or less (200 KM roughly) away from Manila, and so far, I've selected White Cove (now Canyon Cove) in Nasugbu in Batangas and Laiya in San Juan also in Batangas. Now, I think I have found the best beach retreat that is 3 hours away from home, Anawangin. I thought the road to Anawangin was longer, so I was surprised to find out that it was less than an hour away from Subic. Well, to go to Anawangin, one can opt to stay in Pundakit, a barrio in San Antonio in mainland Zambales. Adventurers choose to trek for 4 hours to the place. Since we were a very big group, and some weren't into trekking or camping, we took the former option and stayed in Canoe Beach Resort. (More on the resort and Capones Island as well in another post) From there, we took a 20 minute scenic boat ride to amazing Anawangin Cove. The beach was wide with the bald yet mystical Zambales mountains painting the background. The sand wasn't a

It's time to go to the East Coast of Malaysia to experience what they say are their best beaches. Redang and the Perhentians are the top two destination in the Northern East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. When I inquired about the islands, they told me that they were closed. Yes, the islands were closed, and they are every monsoon season, from November to February. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, so I asked directly from the resorts there. Fortunately, one responded that they will be opening on Feb. 1, the day we planned to visit. From Kuala Lumpur, take an Air Asia flight to Kota Bharu or Kuala Terengganu. We flew to the former since it was 30 minutes less travel time by land to the Kuala Besut jetty, the jump off point for the Perhentians. If you wish to go to Redang, Kuala Terengganu is the place to fly into. The flight takes only 50 minutes, the land trip around 45 mins and the speed boat also 45 mins (because of the rough waters). Make the total travel time three hou

Greetings! This is the first post of a journal that hopes to share the best kept secrets of the Philippines and the world. This journal will be featuring several destinations in the Philippines, some known, some never heard of and some you heard of but don't know much about. By getting a first hand experience on all these secrets, we hope to imbibe that sense of adventure that makes life worthwhile. Welcome to The Island Explorer.