|
|
|
Philippines Hotels
|
Amanpulo Resort
01 Jun - 31 Oct 2012
from £335pp
|
|
Fridays Boracay Resort
01 Jul - 15 Oct 2012
from £100pp
|
|
Makati Shangri-La Manila
01 Apr - 31 Mar 2013
from £109pp
|
|
Shangri-La Mactan Resort & Spa
01 Apr - 31 Mar 2012
from £103pp
|
|
Shangri-La’s Boracay Resort & Spa
09 Apr - 12 Oct 2012
from £172pp
|
|
The Peninsula Manila
01 Apr - 31 Mar 2013
from £81pp
|
|
|
|
|
|
    |
|
Overview
|
The
Philippines is an
archipelago located between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, east of
Vietnam and north of
Borneo. There are over a hundred ethnic groups
a mixture of foreign influences and a fusion of culture and arts that have
enhanced the uniqueness of the Filipino Race. There are over 7,000 islands
within the Philippines all are abundant in
nature, rich in culture and filled with pleasant discoveries. English is widely
spoken making it an easy destination to visit and travel
around.
Philippine
Holidays Adventure
The
Philippines is a paradise blessed
with gorgeous waterscapes, an island never lacking in today’s liveliest water
encounters. It has been described as the most exciting surfing destination in
the world, with great waves like Cloud 9, Tuason Point, Majestic, and Cemento,
all ranking among the world’s best. Plus for white water action, there are
attractions a plenty; lakes, waterfalls, and rivers that create excellent
kayaking and white water runs. With all the islands and magnificent coastline
the Philippines has warranted its nickname ‘Asia’s Diving Capital’ as well as
wreck diving, you may be lucky enough to see the largest fish in the world, the
Whale Shark, locally known as Butanding, that regularly swims in the Philippine
waters.
Gourmet
& Dining Out
With
over 120 different ethnic groups with the Philippines the cuisine is varied and
diverse and one that everyone can enjoy. The Chinese who came to trade sometimes
stayed on, cooked the noodles of home; certainly they used local condiments and
surely they taught their Filipino wives their dishes, and thus Filipino-Chinese
food came to be. The names identify them: pansit (Hokkien for something quickly
cooked) are noodles; lumpia are vegetables rolled in edible wrappers; siopao are
steamed, filled buns; siomai are dumplings. When the Spaniards came, the food
influences they brought were from both Spain and Mexico, as it was through the vice-royalty of
Mexico that the
Philippines were governed.
Fil-Hispanic food had new flavours and ingredients—olive oil, paprika, saffron,
ham, cheese, cured sausages—and new names. Paella, the dish cooked in the fields
by Spanish workers, came to be a festive dish combining pork, chicken, seafood,
ham, sausages and vegetables, a luxurious mix of the local and the foreign. Add
to the above other cuisines found in the country along with other global
influences: French, Italian, Middle Eastern, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese.
They grow familiar, but remain ‘imported’ and not yet
indigenised.
When
restaurants were established in the 19th Century, Chinese food became a staple
of the pansiterias, with the food given Spanish names for the ease of the
clientele: this comida China (Chinese food) includes arroz
caldo (rice and chicken gruel); and morisqueta tostada (fried
rice).
|
|
Sightseeing & Activities
|
Boracay
The
island is located approximately 315km (200 miles) south of Manila and 2km off the northwest tip of the island of Panay in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. In the past it has been
voted as one of the best beaches in the world.
Banaue
Wander
over the world heritage site, Banaue Rice Terraces, Eighth Wonder of the World,
carved from the high Cordilleras over 2,000
years ago. Banaue is the best example of an exquisite time-honoured
breath-taking panorama built with only primitive tools and olden methods by the
ancient Ifugaos.
Bohol
The
Chocolate Hills are probably Bohol's most
famous tourist attraction. The hills look like giant mole hills, and most people
who first see pictures of this landscape can hardly believe that these hills are
not a man-made artefact. The chocolate hills consist of are no less than 1,268
hills (some claim this to be the exact number). They are very uniform in shape
and mostly between 30 and 50 metres high. They are covered with grass, which, at
the end of the dry season, turns chocolate brown, from this colour, the hills
derive their name. At other times, the hills are green, and the association may
be a bit difficult to make.
Palawan
The
world's longest underground river system accessible to man is located in the
capital of Palawan. The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National
Park, which has been inscribed in UNESCO’s World Heritage List,
is Palawan's most popular attraction and covers
5,349 hectares of lush forest, dark mountains, caves, and white beaches. Paddle
through eight kilometers of a snaking, underground river leading to a clear
lagoon. Walk on the Monkey Trail, a series of wooden paths that winds into the
forest, lined with 40,000 tropical flora and fauna.
Jeepney
The
Philippine jeepney began as a post-war creation that had been inspired by the GI
jeeps that the American soldiers brought with them to the country during the
1940s. Enterprising Filipinos salvaged the engines of surplus GI jeeps that were
about to be disposed of, and used them to manufacture then much needed low-cost
mass transportation vehicles. The engines were given an all-new body and design,
and with an unsurprising touch of creativity and ingenuity, out came the
uniquely Filipino jeepney.
Today,
the jeepney is the most popular mode of transport in the Philippines,
owing to cheap fare and the convenience offered to passengers who can board and
alight practically anywhere they want. Every single Philippine jeepney is
personalised; each one dressed up and given little touches that are often
reflective of common-man sentiments of the time.
|
|
Events
|
The
fiesta is part and parcel of Filipino culture, through good times and bad times,
the fiesta must go on. Each city and barrio has at least one local festival of
its own, usually on the feast of its patron saint, so that there is always a
fiesta going on somewhere in the country. But the biggest and most elaborate
festival of all is Christmas, a season celebrated with all the pomp and
pageantry the fun-loving Filipino can manage.
January
The
Sinulog Festival is celebrated every 3rd Sunday of January, is Cebu’s biggest and most popular festival. The feast is in
honour of the Holy Image of Senior Santo Niño de Cebu. Fiesta Senior, as it is
widely known, is the most celebrated among Cebu’s festival where people converge along the routes of
a grand solemn procession and partake in the gaiety amidst a mardi-gras parade
immersed in wild colours and the constant beating of
drums.
February
The
Chinese community celebrates the Chinese New Year with pomp and colour through a
dragon dance. This parade is performed at the prominent malls and department
stores, and the giving of moon cakes.
April
Kadaugan
sa Mactan Festival is a week-long commemoration of the historic battle of
Mactan, that took place between the Spanish Conquistador Fernando Magallanes and
the Mactan Chieftain Lapu-Lapu.
This festival is celebrated in Mactan and Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.
The
International Dragon Boat Festival competition held in
Boracay.
May
The
Flores de Mayo is a Catholic festival held in May. It lasts for a month, and is held in
honour of the Virgin Mary. The
Santa Cruzan is a parade held on the last day of Flores de Mayo in honour of
Reyna Elena.
June
Independence
Day is celebrated with a re-enactment of the historic proclamation of the
Philippine independence and is held at the mansion of Gen Emilio
Aguinaldo, the first president of the Philippine
Republic. This celebration in
observed in Cavite and Manila and other
historical sites.
August
Kasuotang
Pilipino Exhibit & Fashion Show is a yearly exhibition mounted at the Museo
ng Makati in Makati City featuring the evolution of Filipino
costumes per region. This is a rich
and colourful celebration of Filipino costume.
October
The
Inasal-Halad Festival is a celebration in honour of Sta. Teresa de Avila. The
city of Talisay
comes alive with activities such as trade fairs, nightly variety shows, civic
parade and street dancing featuring the city’s famous products like lechon,
cooking demonstration and food fair with tastiest lechon
contest.
November
/ December
The
Lantern Festival is a month long Christmas bazaar featuring displays and
activities which include colourful lantern parades and the display of all
winning entries of lanterns and decorated Christmas trees. The Lantern Festival is held in Paskuhan
and Surigao del Norte.
December
Misa
de Gallo is a Filipino yuletide tradition that starts on the 16th December and
culminates in a midnight mass on Christmas Eve. Roman Catholics attend the daily
mass at three or four in the morning. Upon exiting the church, the hungry are
enticed by the sight and smell of puto bumbong and bibingka (native delicacies
made of sticky and glutinous rice sold nearby).
|
|
|
Weather |
|
|