Dreamin’ of the Philippines

I didn’t realise this until the other day, but I live really close to Asia.  Now, a few of you  may laugh when I say this, but we’re only like a whopping eight hours away!  That’s really close for us Aussies because we’re basically a big desert rock floating in the middle of the ocean…

Anyway, my point is… Asia is really close to Australia and there’s a lot of great things to do on this side of the hemisphere.  So, where  in Asia would I next like to go and explore next?  Why not the Philippines!  

The Philippines are a bunch of islands – there’s like over 7,000 of them and with that much waterfront – and with that many beaches, it’s one of the BEST places in the pacific to go diving!  There’s dive school everywhere and if you think about it, that kinda makes it one of the best places to get your SCUBA diver certification.

But hold your horses… there’s a few things to consider.  Firstly, the weather… There’s a bit of a dry spell from around March and April… so if you’re into that sort of Aussie-esque either…. then go for it… otherwise, just wait until November. That’s when the weather will be top notch…

Another thing to consider is what kind of holiday do you want… you can go completely luxury… or you can mermaid with the fish and dive the entire time, or focus on being one with nature chillin out with our insect creature friends.  But be mindful because there might not be much running water…

So, I’ve narrowed a bunch of cool islands that I’m gonna consider… Imagine this is an episode of Survivor and every island’s fire is burning and we’re all voting on which island is the best for a holiday… Here we go:

A) Puerto Galera and Anilao in Batangas – these two islands are close to Manila and great for diving if you’re a beginning…

B) Palawan –  Ohh my gawwwd.. is Palawan heaven?  After doing a bit of research online it seems that this island is a great island because it’s less touristy and basic.  I also feel like you can really channel your inner James Bond.  What really intrigues me is the lack of hot water and internet. Also, there’s a bit of a diverse diving scene.

C) Tubbataha reef –  Cracks knuckles.  Anything with REEF in the name must be good!  And by the looks of it, it’s one of the top ten dive sites in the world and requires living on a boat for a few days.  That sounds good to me too.

D) Bohol –  This is where you want to be to dive with dolphins and Manta Rays. And, yes… you have sandy white beaches and crystal clear water!

Now, there’s looooads of other places to go exploring, diving or just relaxing.  I literally JUST FOUND OUT that there is an UNDERGROUND RIVER!  So if you’re a romantic, you can have your dream honeymoon here or if you want to be one with nature, you can completely leave all the comforts at home behind and get yourself amongst it.  There’s really a bunch of different things you can do depending on budget and style.