There are 7,641 islands in the Philippines, and no one has been to all of them, including us. What we can tell you is which ones are worth building a trip around, what each is really like, and who will love it. This is our list, with honest trade-offs.
Palawan: El Nido
The limestone island most people picture when they think of the Philippines. Karst cliffs rise straight out of turquoise water, lagoons hide behind rock walls, and the island-hopping is among the best in Asia. The trade-off: El Nido town is busy, noisy and still catching up with its own popularity. Stay outside town, on a quieter beach or an island resort, and go out early.
Best for: first-timers, couples, lagoon kayaking, island-hopping. Best season: roughly December to May.
Palawan: Coron
Coron is wilder and less polished than El Nido, which is exactly why some people prefer it. Its highlights are underwater: Second World War Japanese shipwrecks sunk in 1944, which make Coron one of the world's great wreck-diving destinations, and the freshwater lakes of Kayangan and Barracuda. Coron town itself is functional rather than pretty. The beauty is out on the water.
Best for: divers, snorkellers, adventurous couples. Best season: roughly November to May; more sheltered than El Nido in the wet season.
Siargao
The surf island that became a lifestyle. Siargao has palm-lined roads, island-hopping to Naked, Daku and Guyam, rock pools at Magpupungko, mangrove lagoons and a relaxed, young, international scene in General Luna. Cloud 9 is one of Asia's most famous waves. The trade-off: General Luna has grown fast and gets busy; head north to Pacifico or Burgos for the quieter island.
Best for: surfers, young couples, digital nomads, anyone who wants a beach life rather than a beach resort. Best season: roughly March to October; surf peaks from about August to November.
Bohol
A gentle, green island with plenty to do: the Chocolate Hills, tarsiers in a proper sanctuary, river cruises on the Loboc, old stone churches, and the beaches and dive sites of Panglao and Balicasag. Bohol is easy to reach from Cebu by fast ferry and works well for families and first trips.
Best for: families, first-timers, countryside and culture. Best season: most of the year; relatively sheltered.
Siquijor
Small, quiet and slightly mysterious. Siquijor has a reputation for folk healers, waterfalls you can swim in, a coastal road you can drive in a day, and some of the best sunsets in the Visayas. There is very little to do in the conventional sense, which is the point.
Best for: slow travellers, couples, anyone who wants a few days of nothing. Best season: roughly November to May.
Boracay
Boracay is the Philippines' most famous beach and, yes, it is busy. White Beach is a long, soft, bright stretch of sand, the sunsets are excellent and the island is easy. After a major closure and rehabilitation in 2018, it is cleaner and better regulated than its reputation suggests. Choose your end of the beach carefully, and go if you want convenience and nightlife, not seclusion.
Best for: easy beach holidays, groups of friends, short stays. Best season: roughly November to May.
Cebu: Moalboal and Malapascua
Cebu island is a gateway and a destination in its own right. On the southwest coast, Moalboal has the famous sardine run, a shoal of millions of fish a few fins' kicks from the shore. In the north, tiny Malapascua is the place to see thresher sharks at Monad Shoal at dawn. Southern Cebu also has canyoneering at Kawasan.
Best for: divers, snorkellers, active travellers. Best season: most of the year.
Camiguin
A small volcanic island off northern Mindanao with seven volcanoes, hot and cold springs, a sunken cemetery and the white sandbar of White Island. Camiguin is far from the main circuit and feels it, in a good way.
Best for: second-time visitors, families, slow travellers. Best season: generally good much of the year; outside the main typhoon belt.
Batanes
The northernmost islands of the country, closer to Taiwan than to Manila. Rolling green hills, stone houses, cliffs and a culture shaped by wind. Batanes looks like nowhere else in the Philippines. Flights are limited and weather-dependent, so give it time.
Best for: photographers, hikers, curious travellers. Best season: roughly March to May.
Negros: Dumaguete and Apo Island
Dumaguete is a university town with a seaside promenade and a friendly pace. Offshore, Apo Island is one of the best-known community-managed marine sanctuaries in the country, with turtles and healthy coral. Nearby Dauin is a muck-diving favourite.
Best for: divers, slow travellers, combining with Siquijor. Best season: most of the year.
Not islands, but not to be missed
The rice terraces of Banaue and Batad, in the mountains of northern Luzon, are among the most remarkable landscapes in Asia: terraces carved by hand into steep valleys over many generations, still farmed today. Nearby Sagada has pine forests, limestone caves and hanging coffins on the cliffs. Getting there takes time, usually around nine to ten hours by road from Manila, but if you have three weeks, the mountains make the perfect contrast to the beaches.
How to choose
If you have two weeks and it is your first trip, pick one limestone island (El Nido or Coron), one countryside island (Bohol or Siquijor) and finish somewhere you can do nothing (Siargao, or a quiet resort in Palawan). If you are diving, build the trip around Coron, Cebu and Negros. If you are surfing, Siargao in the autumn. If you are back for a second time, go north to Batanes or south to Camiguin.
And resist the urge to collect islands. Three islands well chosen will give you more of the Philippines than six islands rushed.
