Philippines Beaches

Barocay Island

White Beach, Boracay Island, near Panay island
Boracay has a tranquil atmosphere with friendly locals, though can be congested with tourists and hawkers at times and noisy in places, it depends where you stay, where you wander and what month you go there. There's no airport on the island but there are plenty of trike taxis and some trucks creating a racket inland.
White Beach sand is exceptionally white, soft, never gets hot and stretches for 3 miles, though the finest sand is found at the north end near boat Station 1, the prettiest part of the beach. Hotels: Station 1 is where the better beachside, upscale hotels are based. The cheapest hotels and guest houses can be found around Station 3 at the south end, while the Station 2 stretch is the place for action, busy buzzing. Boracay hosts a huge variety of hotels, restaurants and bars offering cosmopolitan cuisine just off the beach, laid-back, cheap and comfortable.
If you are fed up with White Beach you could try the little hideaway of Balinghai Beach [northwest] or Puka Shell Beach [north Boracay, also known as Yapak Beach], but beware strong currents. Both are accessible by road or sea.
There is no coral off White Beach, but plenty of dive boats can take divers to good dive sites.
For those who enjoy a good pampering try the well recommended Tirta Spa.
Best Boracay weather: Ideal months are January-May. Best windsurfing months are December-February.
OK: June- September [with some rain]; April and May are local school holidays and the place gets noisy and crowded then.
Worst months: Don't consider October-November when it's windy, grey and wet.

Getting there: Boracay island, 315km/200miles south of Manila, has no airport so visitors fly to Panay island from Manila by domestic airlines such as PAL [Philippine Airlines] and SEAIR, then it's a one kilometre, 20 minute ride by banca, an outrigger boat.
Boracay is a part of Aklan Province, known for the lively Ati-Atihan Festival in January.