INSPIRATION

Ride the underground river at Puerto Princesa in Palawan. 

Enter through the mouth of the UNESCO World Heritage sea level cave and pass under its stalactite teeth for a journey along this underground river.

Test your nerves in Cebu City. 

The Sky Experience at the Crown Regency Tower in Cebu provides a number of amusing aerial challenges. 

Ascend the 140 metre (461 feet) tower on a motorised vertical zip, then enjoy the giddy illusion of the rooftop climbing wall as it bends away to appear as if nothing but the city is below you. Calm your nerves with a drink in the Skybar before zip lining to an adjacent building. All good fun!

Take a relaxing Kalesa horse and carriage ride through the colonial Spanish heart of Vigan, taking in the atmosphere and imagining the comings and goings of former times along the cobbled streets and beautiful mansions of this UNESCO World heritage site.

Snorkel with the gentle giants of Donsal. 

If you’re not a scuba diver, don’t despair! You can still enjoy the thrill of seeing the awesome and harmless whale sharks with no more than a mask and snorkel. These amazing giants are the world’s largest fish growing up to 12 metres long and weighing up to 20 tonnes and can only usually be seen on a dive, but in Donsal these unbelievable creatures swim right up to the surface.

Head into the wonderful world of the Cordillera and its delightful assortment of ancient peoples and practises, including mummification. 

Visit the UNESCO World Heritage rice terraces carved into the hillsides for over 2,000 years by the Ifugao People at Banaue, Batad, Bangaan, Mayoyao and Nagacada, and marvel at the profound ancient landscaping skills of these former headhunters.

For that surreal otherworldly white sand, impossibly blue ocean experience, visit one of the Philippines’ incredible sandbars at Kalamangan Island near Palompon in Layte, White Island at Caminguan near Mindanao, Cebu’s Sumilon Island sandbar, Snake Island in Palawan’s Honda Bay, Bulubadiangan Island at near Iloilo on Panay, Naked Island near Siargao or Bohol’s magnificent Virgin Island.