Best Islands to Visit in The Philippines

With over 7,000 islands to choose from, it can be a bit daunting trying to pick just a few top spots when planning a trip to the Philippines. What I learned fairly quickly when planning my own trip was that you need at least a month to properly explore this exotic country. However, since that timeline may not be realistic for most travelers (including myself), I suggest picking fewer spots and spending more time in each place.

Traveling to the Philippines: What You Need to Know

For my two-week trip, we ended up seeing three different islands, Siargao, Cebu, and Palawan. It may have been a little ambitious, however, I still felt like we had plenty of time to see and do everything we wanted to in each destination.

Keep in mind, transportation from town to town on each island can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 5 hours, so if you have a flight and then have a long car ride ahead of you, don’t plan on exploring the rest of the day.

Sometimes there is only one bus a day connecting two towns (example: El Nido to San Vicente in Palawan), which can make it even more difficult to plan out your time. That’s why I highly recommend giving yourself an extra day or so in each spot so you can actually experience it rather than just check it off your bucket list.

So with that being said, let’s dive into some of the top destinations to visit in the Philippines. I’m hoping that this blog post can help anyone who is trying to plan a trip themselves and that it can at least provide a general idea of what to see and do in each spot.

In this article, I’m going to highlight several islands I visited during my two-week travels. I’m also including some other islands that I previously researched but didn’t have enough time to visit myself. Hopefully, through this blog post, you’ll be able to have an easier time narrowing down your top islands when planning a trip to the Philippines.

Top Islands to See in The Philippines

Siargao

For me, Siargao was the most underrated island we visited during our time in the Philippines. Surfing is this island’s claim to fame and there are plenty of local surf shops to give you a private lesson. Whether you catch some waves at the famous Cloud 9 Pier or go to one of the other 15 seasonal surf spots that are located around the island, Siargao is the best place to learn.

Aside from Surfing, this island has a number of natural wonders to explore as well. I would even say that one of the best parts of the island was just driving on the motorbike and taking in its incredible landscapes, palm tree vistas, and secluded white sand beaches.

What I loved: As I said, Siargao was my favorite spot in the Philippines and I loved it because it was so wild and under-developed without a lot of tourists. While I know the island’s popularity will probably increase over the next few years, I still think that Siargao is the Philippine’s best-kept secret.

What I didn’t love: So the main problem with Siargao was its weather. Now I know this can’t be avoided, however, if I were to redo it I would have tried to go in the dry season of July and August, or at least closer to it. We were told if you go outside of these months, you can expect rain almost every day. During our couple of days in Siargao, it rained the entire time, and some days it was so bad we couldn’t even leave our hostel. If you’re planning a trip yourself, take this factor into consideration so you can take advantage of everything this island has to offer.

Places to visit in Siargao:

Magpupungko
Island Tour to Naked Island, Guyam Island, and Daku Island
Daku Island
Cloud 9 Pier
Sugba Lagoon
Tayangban Cave Pool
Surf Lessons
Santa Monica Beach

Cebu

Famous for its canyoneering, snorkeling, whale sharks, and waterfalls, Cebu is the perfect destination for the adventure enthusiast at heart. What I loved most about Cebu was the number of waterfalls that you could stop and explore in the southern tip of the island. I stayed in Moalboal during my time in Cebu and felt like it was the perfect home base for exploring. However, if you’re not comfortable doing long rides on a motorbike, you may want to try splitting your time between Moalboal and a more southern town like Oslob.

Keep in mind that Cebu City is super populated and polluted, it’s not where you want to go if you are planning on exploring beaches and jungles. That’s why you’ll want to rent a cab or take the bus to a different town as soon as you land.

What I loved: The thing I loved the most about Cebu was Kawasan Falls. Here you can see some of the most beautiful waterfalls in the world. The turquoise waters contrasted dramatically against the surrounding cliffs and jungle, making for a perfect day of swimming and relaxing. If you go behind Kawasan falls, you can also venture further back into the jungle and check out several other falls and even do some cliff jumping as well.

I highly suggest getting there as early as possible. We got to the falls at around 8:30 am and had the entire place to ourselves for about half an hour. By 9 am, Kawasan Falls was overflowing with tourists in orange life vests…not exactly what you want to see when visiting such a beautiful place.

What I didn’t love: Another thing I wanted to mention about Cebu was about the whale sharks. Now, after just a quick search on the internet, you’ll see that swimming with whale sharks in Oslob is one of the most popular things to do here. While I initially thought this would be an amazing experience, I became a bit wary of the idea after I read more and more articles from people against the practice. Before penciling this into your itinerary, just do your own research.

While I’m sure it is a beautiful thing to see these gentle giants swimming in the ocean, just remember it is also a tourist attraction that is exposing this endangered species to thousands of humans every day. To me, it’s not the most humane practice and when I saw it from the shore in Oslob it was very disappointing.

Places to visit in Cebu:

Kawasan Falls
Tumalog Falls
Canyoneering
White Beach
Scuba Dive at Pescador Island
Aguinid Falls
Sumilon Island
Lambug Beach
Sardine run at Panagsama Beach
Binalayan Hidden Waterfalls

Palawan

Known for its island hopping, blue waters, limestone cliffs, and breathtaking landscapes, Palawan is the epitome of rugged and natural beauty. When I came here, I stayed in the town of El Nido, which is by far the most popular area to visit if you want to do the famous island tours and scuba diving. However, my favorite part of the island was actually outside of El Nido, like when we went to Napcan Beach and then spent 24-hours in San Vicente.

What I loved: What I loved most was Napcan Beach and San Vicente. Both these places weren’t initially planned when we first arrived, however, after talking to some other travelers, we decided to check them out. Both spots offered the breathtaking views of turquoise waters and limestone cliffs, however, they were way less touristy with a fraction of the crowds.

What I didn’t love: Because El Nido is so famous, you can expect to be sharing it with a lot of people. This became a bit of a problem when doing the island hopping tours since you had to share each spot with boat-loads of other tourists as well. While the natural beauty of the coves and lagoons were spectacular, I would also suggest making some time to experience the lesser-known towns that this island has to offer.

Since island hopping is so popular in El Nido, I decided to include a description of each. Everyone recommends doing tour A and tour C, however, if you have a week or so to explore, you may want to check out the other options as well.

Tour A (Known for lagoons): Small Lagoon, Big Lagoon, Secret Lagoon, 7 Commando Beach and Shimizu Island.
Tour B (Known for caves): Snake Island, Pinagbuyutan Island, Cudugnon Cave, Entalula Island, and Cathedral Cave.
Tour C (Known for beaches): Helicopter Island, Matinloc Shrine, Secret Beach, Star Beach & Hidden Beach.
Tour D (Known for the Cadlao Islands): Pasandigan Beach, Nat Nat Beach, Bucal Beach, Cadlao Lagoon and Paradise Beach.

Places to visit in Palawan

Coron
El Nido
Island hopping in El Nido or Port Barton
Port Barton
Napcan Beach
Underground River in Sabang
San Vicente

It’s important to note that Palawan is a large island, and each town has a variety of activities to do and places to see. These few points will just give you a better idea of what to look for while researching your trip.

Other Islands to Visit in the Philippines

Since I was unable to go to every place I wanted to, I thought it would be a good idea to write them down so I can remember it all for next time. Below are a few islands that are also popular to visit in the Philippines.

Boracay

One of the first islands that come up when researching the Philippines is Boracay. Known for its pristine white sand beaches, laid-back atmosphere, and rowdy nightlife, this island may be the perfect place if you want to spend most of your time drinking and relaxing. However, over recent years, this island’s popularity has skyrocketed, leading to crowded beaches and polluted water. Last year the Filipino government even had to shut down the beach for several months due to contaminated beaches.

Since I was trying to escape the crowds and get more into nature, I decided to skip Boracay. Even though the weather seems to be better in this region and the beaches did look beautiful, I felt that I may have been disappointed if I went to the Philippines to a super-touristy island vacation that I could do anywhere in the world. However with that being said, it is still known for being one of the best islands for a reason, so maybe if I had more time I would have tried to visit for a few days.

Apo Island

If you want to see wild sea turtles and colorful coral, this is apparently the place to do it. This small volcanic island off the coast of Negros Oriental Island is a scuba diving paradise, offering an abundance of marine life and coral gardens throughout its marine sanctuary. Luckily if you are limited on time, you can do this island in a day.

Siquijor

Known for its local ancient history of witchcraft traditions, Siquijor’s reputation has been made famous from its magic healers and mystery. Today, Siquijor is a relaxed island that is more underdeveloped than most but offers a local experience and plenty of natural wonders to explore. Here you can expect waterfalls, scuba diving, forest walks, and cliff diving.

Bohol

Bohol is a tropical haven known for its lush mountainous vistas, impressive wildlife, and beautiful beaches. During your stay in this exotic island, you can visit the famous chocolate hills and the Philippine Tarsier, which is the world’s smallest (and cutest) primate. If you want to switch up your island hopping for forests and open rolling hills, Bohol may be the perfect destination.

Wrapping Up

Now that you have a better idea of the top tropical islands to visit in the Philippines, you’ll hopefully have an easier time choosing which places to go to. If I can give you one tip of advice when visiting the Philippines, it would be this: give yourself plenty of time to see the islands you choose. While I know spending two weeks in just a single spot may not be realistic if you are limited on time, at least give each spot a few days without any flights or long car rides. Having that extra time will also allow you to talk to other travelers and learn about cool spots to visit around the island as well!

Have you already visited the Philippines? What was your favorite island? Let me know in the comments below!