Philippines – Page 6 – The Wknd Travel

Flight Report: CEBU PACIFIC AIR 5J 905 – Manila to Caticlan (Boracay) – Short & Relatively Empty Flight To Paradise Island

Hello & welcome to another flight report. I’ve been away for a while, but fret not, I am now back & ready to share more with you. I have close to 10 flight reports (from Cebu Pacific Air, Singapore Airlines, Brussels Airlines & Czech Airlines) coming up; so stay tuned for these reviews & posts.

Look at that beautiful wing tip of the Airbus A320 sharklet that flew us from Manila to Boracay.

In the last flight reports, I shared with you details about by Indonesia Air Asia flights from Jakarta to Yogyakarta & back, from Yogyakarta to Jakarta. I also gave some details about my Cebu Pacific Air piso-fare flight from Manila to Jakarta which was booked just 2 months before the trip. Today, we’ll go back to my most-used local airline – Cebu Pacific Air. This time, I’ll take you with me from Manila to Caticlan (Boracay).

Check out the post below as I share with you some information about this short flight to the paradise island of Boracay.

cebu pacific air

As mentioned in my previous flight reports (Legazpi to Manila & Manila to Jakarta), Cebu Pacific Air is the Philippines’ largest low-cost airline that flies to various destinations within the country, across the Asia Pacific & the Middle East. It is wholly-owned by JG Summit Holdings, led by the Gokongweis. Including its subsidiary Cebgo, the airline operates a fleet of 70+ Airbus & ATR commercial & cargo aircraft with a number of new generation aircraft orders in place.

The airline has opened the opportunity for every Filipino to fly domestic & international at extremely low prices compared to its industry rivals. It is known for its ₱1-base fare promotions offered a few times a year. It has its own loyalty program called GetGo & is a founding member of Value Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of low-cost carriers.

airfare

Early this year, my friends booked a September Boracay trip for about ₱4,500 per person. A few weeks after they secured their tickets, I decided to secretly join them & booked my return ticket for ₱1,147.72 & 100 GetGo points. Yes, I paid about 1/4 of what my friends paid & even got better flight times.

By the way, the ticket only included a seat in both flights & a carry-on baggage up to 7 kilograms. Nothing more, nothing less. It only takes about an hour to fly to Boracay & it was only a weekend trip; there was no need to bring a lot of stuff. Check out the screenshot of my ticket below.

flight information

The flight was operated by a 6.4-year old Airbus A320-214 twin jet aircraft sporting the new Cebu Pacific Air livery. The plane was built & delivered from Toulouse, France last July 2013. It operates an all economy class configuration with 180 seats in total. The flight, including taxiing, took about 1 hour & 7 minutes. The plane was only airborne for 42 minutes.

We pushed back a few minutes behind schedule, but we were able to land at Caticlan Airport earlier than the scheduled arrival time. The flight was alright, with a few turbulence experienced.

Check In, Baggage & Boarding

Cebu Pacific Air offers counter, mobile & web check in for all their domestic flights. Since I was travelling light (no check in baggage), I immediately went to the boarding gate with my mobile boarding pass. There was no need to drop by the check in counters for check in.

Here’s a screenshot of my mobile boarding pass for 5J 905 from Manila to Caticlan (Boracay).

The airline offers prepaid baggage for all its flights. Guests have the option to travel light (7 kilogram carry on baggage only) or to purchase baggage for their flights. The baggage rates depend on when the allocation was purchased. See the updated baggage rates to & from Caticlan (from Manila) from the Cebu Pacific Air Fees Summary page as of 24 November 2019.

The boarding process was fast & efficient. It didn’t take long because the flight was not full. There were many empty seats & available cabin storage space. Take note that the ground staff checks your identification card when you are boarding with your mobile boarding pass. They make sure that the passenger on the ticket & boarding pass is the one taking the flight.

There were many empty seats in this domestic flight to MPH. Seats 16D, 16E & 16F were vacant!!

Seat, In-Flight Meals & Entertainment

Cebu Pacific Air, being a low-cost carrier, offers everything for a fee. Preferred seats are available for purchase up to 4 hours before the flight. If no seat is purchased, the airline’s system automatically assigns seats to all passengers a week before the flight. Each seat has a standard 28-inch pitch & has a basic recline. The seat pitch & recline doesn’t really matter for short flights like this. My friend & I were seated one row apart; it kinda sucks because we had 2 separate booking reference numbers. He eventually moved in the seat beside me since it was not occupied.

Snacks & meals are available for pre-purchase up to 24 hours before the flight. If you missed out booking your meal, you can always buy from the snack trays being rolled out by the cabin crew during the flight. The prices of in-flight snacks are expensive. It’s best to just bring your own snack, which the airline allows by the way.

The airline doesn’t offer in-flight entertainment. The back of the seats in front of each passenger has nothing. Each passenger has a seat pocket in front; the seat pocket contains the aircraft safety card & in-flight magazine.

The crew held a fun game during this flight. They asked 3 questions under a category & gave airline merchandise to the passengers who gave the correct answers. It’s this small touch that gives some passengers something to look forward to flying with the airline.

lavatory

We were only airborne for 42 minutes & I didn’t have the chance to visit the lavatory. I always go to the toilet before boarding because I want to avoid the hassle of asking my seat neighbor to stand up & make way for me going to the toilet.

cabin crew service

Cabin crew service in this flight has been just alright – it was not outstanding or special. They greeted each passenger entering the aircraft during boarding. One thing I noticed is they finished the meal / snack service just a few minutes after the seat belt sign was turned off. I suppose there were not many people who bought snacks during the flight.

verdict

Overall, it was a usual Cebu Pacific Air flight. I really did not expect so much considering I only paid ₱1,147.72 return; that’s half of that fare for this flight. What I particularly liked about this flight is it being on schedule. We were able to arrive Caticlan Airport earlier than expected & managed to surprise our friends who were already in Boracay that day.

I have a few upcoming Cebu Pacific Air flights on their Airbus A330 & Airbus A321 aircrafts. I wonder if the experience will be different from this flights, but I am already looking forward to that. In case you are wondering about the specifics of this flight & the aircraft used, check out the details listed below.

Airline: Cebu Pacific Air
Flight Date: 13 September 2019
Flight Number: 5J 905
Route: Manila (MNL) – Caticlan (Boracay) (MPH)
Duration: 1:07 hours
Seat Number: 16A (changed from 16C)
Aircraft: Airbus A320-214 Sharklet
Aircraft Registration: RP-C3275
Age: 6.4 Years Old
Year Delivered: 2013

Have you used Cebu Pacific Air in your recent flight? How was your experience? Do you plan to fly with them again in your future flights? Let’s engage into a discussion in the comments section below. You can also share your experiences, ideas, comments & suggestions via email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. Don’t forget to turn your notifications on for my social media channels – Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Please also help me promote these pages to your families & friends.

Thank you for joining me in today’s flight report. Watch out for the next one!

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.

Flight Report: CEBU PACIFIC AIR 5J 328 – Legazpi to Manila – ₱600 ($11.50) Flight Back To Manila

Last month, I introduced a new section in my website called Flight Report. This section will talk about my experiences on the flights I took in the past. My 1st flight report was about our Taipei to Manila flight with EVA Air last June. It was a decent flight for such an affordable fare. Check out the post here to know more about this 5-star airline economy experience.

Weeks after the 1st post, here I am sharing with you another flight report of a recent flight I took. 2 weeks ago, I went home to my hometown to surprise my mom on her birthday. I took the bus from Manila to Bicol & took a flight back from Legazpi to Manila with Cebu Pacific Air. The flight back to Manila will be the subject of this flight report. How did the flight go? What aircraft was used for the flight? Was it on time? Find out in the text below.

Cebu Pacific Air

View from Legazpi Airport’s pre-departure area. Hello to the A320 aircraft & to Mayon Volcano! 🙂

Cebu Pacific Air is the country’s largest low-cost carrier flying to over 60 destinations within the Philippines, across Asia Pacific & the Middle East. This private airline is fully-owned by JG Summit Holdings, led by the Gokongweis. It has a wholly-owned subsidiary called Cebgo which flies to smaller airports in the country. The airline operates a fleet of 70+ planes consisting of Airbus & ATR aircraft & has new-generation aircraft orders in place.

Cebu Pacific Air is known for providing the lowest fares in the Philippine airline sector. They are famous for their ₱1-base fare promotions to all of its routes, being offered a few times a year. They also hold special & regular fare promotions that enable a lot of Filipinos travel to destinations at affordable fares. The airline is one of the founding members of Value Alliance, the world’s largest alliance of low-cost carriers. It also has a loyalty program known as GetGo.

Airfare

Believe it or not, I only paid ₱596.32 ($11.50) for this flight from Legazpi to Manila. The airline had a ₱11.11-base fare sale last 11 November 2018 & offered flights from Legazpi this cheap. The fare only includes 7 kilograms of carry-on baggage. Check in baggage, in-flight snacks & seat selection are offered for additional cost; basically how modern low-cost carriers work. I was only travelling light, so I didn’t need to avail of these additional services. Imagine only paying that much. The fare was cheaper than the usual bus fare from Legazpi to Manila.

Flight

I initially booked a flight for 30 July 2019. The airline changed my original flight schedule & offered change booking, full refund, travel fund storage or rerouting options. I took advantage of this flight change & booked the night flight day before.

The flight was operated by a 6-year old Airbus A320-214 aircraft delivered to the company in December 2012. It operates an all-economy class 3-3 configuration & has 180 on-board seats in total. The flight took about 42 minutes, from the scheduled 1 hour & 20 minutes flying time. It departed Legazpi Airport on time & arrived Manila Airport 30+ minutes ahead of schedule.

Check In, Baggage & Boarding

Cebu Pacific Air provides counter, online & mobile check in for all their flights. Legazpi Airport has a relatively small but efficient check in facility. I already checked in online & have my boarding pass on my phone so I didn’t have to go through the usual counter check in. Passengers also don’t need to print their boarding passes – less paper used plus a good move for the environment.

Here’s a screenshot of my mobile boarding pass; didn’t go through manual check in. I removed the QR code for security purposes. The staff also asked for a government issued ID during boarding 🙂

The airline offers prepaid baggage for all their flights. Passengers have the option to include baggage at the time of booking or in the manage booking section up to 4 hours before the flight. Baggage fees vary per weight allocation & prices change as the day of the flight approaches. If you want to get reasonable baggage fees, include the baggage allocation while booking the flight or add it at least 15 minutes before the day of the flight.

Here are the check in baggage fees from Cebu Pacific Air’s official website as today, 11 August 2019.

The boarding process was alright – the flight started boarding around 20 minutes into the scheduled departure. The passengers rushed up to the gate when the ground staff announced boarding. I waited for the majority of the people to board & decided to board last. The ground staff checked my mobile boarding pass together with a valid identification card to confirm my identity.

Seat, In-flight Meal & Entertainment

Cebu Pacific Air offers in-flight services for additional fees. The airline automatically assigns seats to its passengers days before the flight. If the passenger wants to be seated in front or in exit seats, he / she must pay for the seat. The seats have a 28-inch pitch & a basic recline. The seats don’t have the best legroom but it’s okay for short flights. Each passenger has a seat pocket in front; the seat pocket contains the aircraft safety card & in-flight magazine.

Here’s the amount of legroom that you get when you fly on a Cebu Pacific Air Airbus A320 aircraft.

Preferred seats can also be booked through the website.. Here are the rates as of 11 August 2019.

The airline doesn’t offer free in-flight meal & has no on-board entertainment. Snacks are available for pre-order in the website up to 24 hours before the flight & are also available for purchase on-board. The airline also offers items or souvenirs (blankets, eye shades, neck pillow, etc.) for sale. The full snack menu & brochure of items for sale can also be found in the in-flight Smile Magazine.

No in-flight entertainment or whatsoever. You only get a plain seat with a tray table with an ad.

Here are the meal prices as of 11 August 2019 – meal includes a free drink if you pre-book it online.

I did not avail of any add-on for this flight. It was a short flight back to Manila & I didn’t have many things with me. Basically everything beyond the free 7 kilogram carry-on baggage allowance is offered for additional fees. This is how low-cost carriers operate. They make money out of everything they can charge so they can offer fares at the lowest possible cost.

Lavatory

The flight only took 42 minutes – too short for me to use the lavatory. It didn’t take long when the seat belt sign was switched on again & when we started our descent to Manila. Perhaps, next time on a longer flight?

Cabin Crew Service

Cebu Pacific Air’s cabin crew were nice & very welcoming. They make sure that they greet all passengers upon entering & before leaving the plane. Safety instructions were shown manually by the cabin crew. They performed all necessary security checks before we departed for Manila. While on air, they walked down the aisle & sold snacks & goods to the passengers with smiles on their faces. I’ve been flying with the airline for years now & I can say that they’ve maintained their service through time. The in-flight cabin crew service was great – beyond what I expected from a low-cost airline.

Verdict

My experience with Cebu Pacific Air on 5J 328 last 29 July 2019 was awesome. The cheap ticket was a steal given my only aim was to fly back to Manila. The services were very basic – 7 kilograms free carry-on baggage & a typical low-cost airline seat pitch. Every other add-on (baggage, seat preference & in-flight snack) came with additional fees. Glad I didn’t have to avail of those additional services.

Will I fly them again? OF COURSE! Cebu Pacific Air offers a handful of flights between Manila & Legazpi every day. Having a range of convenient flight schedules to choose from (especially night flights) gives us locals more time to spend with our families in our hometown. I’ve been flying with them between Manila & Legazpi for years now & I don’t mind doing the same thing in the next few years. Thanks to this airline for offering cheap flights to & making hometown within reach.

In case you’re interested with more information about this Legazpi to Manila flight, check out the full details below:

Airline: Cebu Pacific Air
Flight Date: 29 July 2019
Flight Number: 5J 328
Route: Legazpi (LGP) – Manila (MNL)
Duration: 42 minutes
Seat Number: 9B
Aircraft: Airbus A320-214
Aircraft Registration: RP-C3272
Age: 6 Years
Year Delivered: 2012

One last photo of the Cebu Pacific Air Airbus A320-214 that flew me from Legazpi to Manila. 🙂 🙂

Are you a Cebu Pacific Air frequent flyer? If yes, what is your favorite destination flown by the airline? Can you share the cheapest ticket you got from them? Believe it or not, I got a Manila-Narita-Fukuoka-Manila ticket with them worth ₱1,613.19. I used this ticket last February when I went to Tokyo, Nagano, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara & Fukuoka with my family. What are your ₱1-fare stories with Cebu Pacific Air?

Feel free to share yours in the comment section below. You can also tell me via email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. I’ll respond as soon as I can. Don’t forget to follow me & please please please also help me in promoting my social media channels – Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Thank you for joining me in this Flight Report! Looks like the next flight report will be about Cebu Pacific Air again but for an international destination. Any guesses where I’m going next?

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.

Spontaneous BACOLOD Weekend: 48 Hours In The City of Smiles

Hey yo, hey yo! How have you been? I am very sorry for being missing in action for the last few weeks. I’ve been really busy with trips, work & engagements. My siblings & I also moved out of our house of 12 years. Imagine the amount of things we packed! Anyway, I’m super happy I finally have time to write again. I have so many trips & things to share with you. I know I haven’t started posting about my recent Japan trip, but I’ll definitely put up the posts soon.

Last weekend, my current & former colleagues went on a 48-hour spontaneous tito (or tita for my female friends) weekend trip to the City of Smiles, Bacolod. The city is located in the Visayas & is the capital of Negros, Occidental. The city is popular for the annual Masskara Festival (Festival of masks), the abundant sugar cane plantation & the famous piaya snack.

Now back to the trip. Don’t expect this to be an adventure-filled weekend. We flew to Bacolod with no plans at all & our goal was to have a break from the busy life in Makati. Let me share with you the whereabouts this 48-hour relaxing trip to the City of Smiles.

Plane Ticket

The trip started when my friends & I (a group of 7 people) booked a return Bacolod ticket for ₱3,706 each last January 2019. We found the fare deal in one of Philippine Airlines‘ low fare sale. The tickets include in flight snacks, 7 kilograms carry-on baggage allowance & 10 kilograms of check-in baggage allowance. Considering the flight schedule, flight dates & the fare inclusions, the ticket we got was worth it. Plus, it’s Philippine Airlines – our country’s flag carrier. Philippine Airlines’ fares are not as affordable as low cost carriers’ fares, except during seat sales.

Our flight left Manila at 3:55 in the afternoon & arrived Bacolod at 5:15 pm (with a few minutes delay). The flight back left Bacolod after 6:00 pm & arrived Manila before 7:30 in the evening. The schedules were perfect – we only took the Friday afternoon off from work plus we had enough rest time after the trip.

accommodation

Our trip was pretty last minute so the famous accommodations were already booked out. Good thing we found Jay’s property in Booking.com. The units were in CityScapes Bacolod, a relatively new residential building along 6th Avenue, a few meters walk from Lacson Avenue. We booked 2 units (one unit for the ladies & 1 unit for the gents) for 2 nights. It only cost us ₱970+ per person already for 2 nights. Affordable, right? The units were equipped with private shower & toilet, free Wi-Fi, private balconies, small refrigerator & a whole lot more. The units exceeded our expectations.

Click this link to check out Jay’s property at Booking.com. You may also opt to contact him directly for bookings – his number is +639477786688. Book early, his units are always in demand.

around bacolod

We flew to Bacolod without any plans at all. The only thing in our mind was to rest, eat the best chicken inasal & have dessert in Calea. We figured out our itinerary when we arrived. We initially thought of spending a day in Lakawon Island but we got stressed by expected travel time & resort / island fees. We decided to just go to the nearby upland town & go around the city. Check out the following places we went to & the local restaurants we tried.

The Ruins

The Ruins is an ancestral home mansion of Lacsons. It is located in within the family’s plantation in Talisay City. The house was burned down during the World War II. The remains of the mansion after the fire is now Negros Occidental’s most famous tourist attraction.

Aida’s Chicken Inasal

A visit to Bacolod is never complete without having the famous chicken inasal. One of the best places to have this staple Bacolod food is in Manokan Country, right beside SM City Bacolod. One of the most visited restaurants in this place is Aida’s Chicken. We went here for dinner on our 1st night.

Bacolod New Government Center

My friends & I stopped by the Bacolod New Government Center to have a photo with the big BACOLOD signage.

Don Salvador Benedicto

Our driver recommended that we go on a half day tour to Don Salvador Benedicto. It is a small town 45 minutes to an hour away from Bacolod City. This municipality is called Negros’ Little Baguio because of its location in the mountains & its (not so during our visit) chilly weather. We went to different viewpoints & Instagram-worthy places, plus Nami Island-like place full of pine trees. We also saw Malatan-og Falls from afar; we had no more time to hike down to the falls.

Balay Negrense

Balay Negrense is another ancestral house previously owned by the prominent Gaston family of Silay City. The house was abandoned years after the death of Don Victor Fernandez Gaston & was later turned over to the Negros Cultural Foundation & the Philippine Tourism Board. The house was restored into a museum in 1994 & was declared a heritage site by the government.

Seaside Restaurant

We headed to a seaside community in Silay City to have lunch. I forgot the name of the place but it’s a small row of ‘paluto‘ restaurants that offer cheap but fresh seafood. My friends ordered 2 buckets of oysters at ₱65 per bucket. We also had rice, buttered shrimp, pork sisig & liempo & a few more dishes for a very affordable price.

Calea Pastries & Coffee

Calea Pastries & Coffee is Bacolod’s most famous dessert place. They have a large range of cakes & pastries to choose from. They also have a wide variety of coffee & drinks to try. We were a group of 7 so we each got a unique cake of pastry. Their best seller Imported Chocolate Cake was so-so. We liked the pecan apple pie & pistachio cake.

Negros Occidental Provincial Capital Grounds

We dropped by the provincial capitol grounds before going back to our accommodation. We took photos of the building against the sunlight & the partly blue sky.

21 Restaurant

We had hopes of having batchoy for dinner at 21 Restaurant only to find out they only offer it until 5:00 in the afternoon. We had no choice but to order other kinds of food. We still had a good meal even if we felt we were under-dressed (we were in shorts & shirts).

Ted’s La Paz Batchoy

We can’t get over the fact we missed 21 Restaurant’s la paz batchoy so we decided to have lunch at Ted’s. Batchoy is a local noodle soup with round noodles & pork, chicken or beef as flavor. The broth is very rich & tasty. The soup is best paired with pandesal or puto (steamed rice cake). Ted’s la paz batchoy originated in Iloilo (another Visayan city in Panay Island) & fortunately has branches in Bacolod.

Felicia’s Pastry Shop

We spent our last few hours in the city at Felicia’s Pastry Shop. I didn’t try their signature chocolate cake because it didn’t look enticing to me. I got the pecan cheesecake instead. It was okay, nothing special. Their ensaymada with signature hot chocolate was so good!

Pendy’s Napoleones

One of Bacolod’s famous delicacy is napoleones. It is a pastry made of sugar, egg, flour butter & milk topped with white sugar glaze. In my opinion, Pendy’s & Roli’s have the best napoleones in the city. We went to Pendy’s the updated price as of early March 2019 is ₱18 per piece or ₱180 per box of 10. It’s a must buy pasalubong from Bacolod, of course together with the famous piaya.

That basically sums up our quick 48-hour trip to Bacolod last weekend. We basically went there to have food trip. Everything was relaxed & spontaneous, no plans or whatsoever. I look forward to more trips like this.

Any suggestions on where I should go next for 48 hours? Or maybe have you been to Bacolod? How was your visit? Which food or place did you enjoy most? Feel free to start the discussion in the comments below. You can also share your thoughts via email to contact@thewkndtravel.com. Make sure to follow me & please also help me in promoting my social media channels – Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Until the next 48-hour weekend trip! I don’t have anything planned or booked yet but let’s see where I’ll go next.

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.

2018 Run-Through: Reuniting & Travelling With Friends

Hey, you! I hope you’re having a wonderful holiday with your families & friends. 2019 is just a few hours away. Another year will soon pass. Before we go into 2019, join me as I look back on how another year of travels went by.

2016 was all about going solo & exploring places by myself. 2017 was about exploring both known & relatively unknown places. 2018’s theme is about reuniting & travelling with friends. After months & years of travelling alone, I reunited & travelled with friends in all of my trips this year.

Let me share with you where my friends & I went to this year. It was a fun & memorable year exploring with friends!

sapporo🇯🇵

Last February, Shane & I went to Sapporo for a week. We flew in to Tokyo & took another domestic flight to Sapporo. We explored Sapporo city on our 2nd day – walked around historic buildings & structures plus tried the famous Genghis Khan meat for late lunch. We tried the world-famous Hokkaido king crab in Nijo Market on our 3rd day, then went to explore the port city of Otaru in the afternoon.

Shane & I went skiing on our 4th day. We took a beginner’s ski course in the morning & skied on a downhill slope in the afternoon. It was tiring but a fun experience. We enjoyed it & we plan to do it again on our next winter trip. We chose to relax on our 5th day & tried a traditional Japanese onsen on a snowy day. At first, it was weird walking around naked but hey, everyone’s naked so there’s nothing to worry. We flew to Tokyo on our 6th day & do some last minute pasalubong shopping before flying back to Manila on our last day.

Believe it or not, we only spent less than ₱45,000 each including airfare & hostel accommodations. It was a trip of many firsts (my first legit winter trip) & also an affordable one. Check out the Sapporo blog list below.

Blog List:
Hokkaido Winter Series: The Ultimate Japan Winter Experience Without Breaking The Bank (7 Days For Less Than ₱45,000 all-in)
Hokkaido Winter Series: SAPPORO – A Winter Paradise City
Hokkaido Winter Series: OTARU – An Afternoon In The Nearby Historical Harbor City
Hokkaido Winter Series: SAPPORO TEINE RESORT & HOHEIKYO ONSEN – Recommended Day Trips From Sapporo City
Hostel Of The Day: THE STAY SAPPORO – Budget Sapporo Accommodation With Top-Notch Amenities
Hostel Of The Day: OAK HOSTEL ZEN – My Favorite Tokyo Hostel
Tuesday Tip: 7 SAPPORO Eats You Shouldn’t Miss

Hong Kong🇭🇰

My high school friends & I went on a weekend trip to Hong Kong last March. We left for Hong Kong on a Friday late afternoon & arrived back in Manila Sunday night. It was a quick 48-hour trip but we managed to visit a number of interesting places. Jericho & I explored went to Victoria Peak, Quarry Bay Monster Building, Nan Lian Garden & Kowloon Pier while our friends went to Hong Kong Disneyland. We met them in Mong Kok for dinner & went shopping together.

The following day, the whole group went to mass at St Teresa’s Church in Kowloon Tong in the morning. We all went to Ngong Ping via the cable car in the afternoon & went last-minute shopping at Citygate Outlets. We headed back to our accommodation to pick up our bags & went straight to the airport for our flight back to Manila.

Blog: High School Squad Weekend: 48 Hours In HONG KONG

Nacpan Beach🇵🇭

Maanne, a friend who is now based in Vancouver, went home for a few weeks & asked us to join her visit Nacpan Beach in El Nido. I’ve been to El Nido & Nacpan Beach a number of times. It was Maanne’s 1st time in Nacpan. We spent a whole day at the beach area. The weather didn’t cooperate so we found ourselves having a good time (having lunch + free drinks / shots) at Mad Monkey Hostel Nacpan Beach. Our stay in El Nido & Nacpan was mostly spent in our hostels, Mad Monkey & Outpost Beach Hostel due to rainy weather.

Blog List:
Hostel Of The Day: MAD MONKEY HOSTEL NACPAN BEACH – Beach & Party In One Place
Hostel Of The Day: OUTPOST BEACH HOSTEL – Social El Nido Hostel By The Beach

Port Barton 🇵🇭

After spending 2 days & 2 nights in El Nido, we headed down south to the small coastal village of Port Barton. I’ve been to this place in 2017 & had the best times so I decided to bring my friends to this paradise. We spent another 48 hours here, went island hopping, relaxed on the village beach & had great times with old & new friends.

Blog: PORT BARTON Revisited – 48 Hours In Palawan’s Next Popular Destination

Siargao 🇵🇭

My colleague & friend, Shiela, & I went to Siargao for 4 full days last July. We booked our tickets a few months back before I left for the airport for my Sapporo trip. Another friend in the name of Geof (from Siquijor 2017 trip) was also on the island with friends. We met up on our 1st day for dinner & decided to go together for crazy party nights & inland tours. We took the Sugba Lagoon & Magpupungko Rock Pool tour together & met a new set of friends. This marked the birth of the Siargao Squad. Half of the group left the island on our 3rd day while we took the Sohoton Cove & Tri Island Tour.

Shiela & I also had crazy nights with our roommates at Bravo Beach Resort & our ex-colleague Vanessa. This trip was all about exploring the island in the morning & drinking / partying at night – typical Siargao getaway. I look forward to flying back to Siargao to do the same time.

Blog List:
4-Day Siargao Weekend: It’s All About Epic Tour Days & Crazy Party Nights
~~Hostel~~ Resort Of The Day: BRAVO BEACH RESORT SIARGAO – Reasonably Priced Shared Luxury Accommodation in Paradise Island

Sydney 🇦🇺

Last August, I flew to Sydney with my N9 buddies, Shane (from Sapporo trip) & Leng. It was my first trip outside Asia (finally lol). We took the free walking tours & explored Sydney by foot. The weather was not too hot & not too cold (well for me) so it was perfect for walking. My friends & I also went to see Bondi Beach & Coogee Beach, 2 of the many suburban beaches of Sydney.

We took a wine-tasting day trip to the mountains of Hunter Valley. We went to 3 wineries, tried different kinds of wine & had lunch at a fancy country club. We drowned ourselves with free wine that same day. We took another day trip to Blue Mountains National Park in Katoomba. The place is about 2 hours by train from Sydney. We walked around the peaceful rainforest of Jamison Valley plus enjoyed the thrilling rides of Scenic World. It was a perfect day out with the nature. Check the N9 in Staya Series blog list below.

Blog List:
N9 In Straya Series: Exploring SYDNEY By Foot Part 1 – Heritage Sites Within The City
N9 In Straya Series: Exploring SYDNEY By Foot Part 2 – City Icons, Alleys & Harbours
N9 In Straya Series – BONDI BEACH & COOGEE BEACH – A Short Trip To Two of Sydney’s Suburban Beaches + BOUNCE SYDNEY HOSTEL Tribute
N9 in Straya Series: HUNTER VALLEY Day Tour – Australian Wine Tasting At Its Finest
N9 in Straya Series: SCENIC WORLD BLUE MOUNTAINS – Nature & Adventure In One Place
Hostel Of The Day: THE POD SYDNEY – Minimalist & Contemporary Hostel In The Middle Of A Busy City

Brisbane 🇦🇺

I left my friends in Sydney & flew to Brisbane to spend a weekend with my relatives & cousins. My uncle, aunt & cousins took me around the city. We went to the koala sanctuary, had lunch at Mount Coot-tha overlooking Brisbane CBD, walked around South Bank, rode the Brisbane Wheel & drove around the central business district. They also took me to Gold Coast to see the famous beach, to go up Gold Coast’s highest view deck & to have lunch in a revolving restaurant.

Blog: N9 In Straya Series: BRISBANE Weekend – Quality Family Time In QLD

Bohol 🇵🇭

My high school friends & I went on a quick weekend getaway to Bohol last September. We flew in Saturday morning, went straight to the countryside tour. We saw both the chocolate hills & the tarsiers on our first few hours on the island. We decided to skip the Loboc River Cruise & went to Bohol Bee Farm to have lunch. We passed by a few more places before heading to our booked accommodation near Alona Beach. On our 2nd day, we chased dolphins, swam with the turtles & snorkelled in Balicasag Island. We flew back to Manila the morning of the 3rd day. The trip was just right for a small island like Bohol.

Blog: High School Squad Weekend: 48 Hours In BOHOL

Penang 🇲🇾

Both planned trips in November got cancelled so I booked a last-minute trip to Malaysia. My initial plan was to spend 3 days in Penang & another 3 days in Kuala Lumpur but I had to cut short my trip for another last-minute invite. This 36-hour Penang stopover was the only ‘trip’ of the year when I was alone.

I flew in to Penang via Kuala Lumpur on the 1st day, explored Kok Lek Si & Georgetown (plus the murals) on the 2nd day & left for Singapore on the 3rd day. I stayed in a very cool shop-turned-guesthouse property called The Frame Guesthouse. I haven’t posted about my Penang trip, but watch out for the article soon.

Blog List:
Penang Blog – To Follow
(~~Hostel~~) Guesthouse Of The Day: THE FRAME GUESTHOUSE PENANG – Beautifully Restored Heritage Property In The Heart Of Georgetown

Singapore 🇸🇬

As mentioned above, I had to cut my Malaysia trip for another trip in Singapore. I flew into Singapore a day before the event. I headed my hostel near Haji Ln & Arab St & met up with my friend Lord who is now based there. We first had late lunch in a Japanese restaurant at Bugis Junction Mall then headed to ATLAS Singapore to have afternoon drinks.

I sneaked in a quick trip to Marina Bay Sands & Gardens By The Bay before heading over to Zouk Singapore for the pre-sailing party of Its The Ship 2018. Check out how I managed to spend by 24 hours in Singapore. It was a quick one, but hey, I’ve been to a lot of places in such a short span of time.

Blog List:
SINGAPORE Stopover: Quick & Packed 24 Hours In The Lion City
Tuesday Tip: SINGAPORE Tipid Hits – 9 Ways to Explore On A Budget

Its The Ship 2018 🇸🇬🇹🇭

Its The Ship 2018 was the main reason why I had to cut short my Penang / Kuala Lumpur planned trip & why I flew to Singapore on the 3rd day. Lord, my friend based in Singapore, invited me to join him in this party cruise. Thank you, Lord! Double meaning, I know. LOL.

This yearly 4 days / 3 nights cruise trip to Phuket (from Singapore) & back is Asia’s largest festival at sea. This year, the cruise turned into a massive party boat with international DJs over 3 stages. The cruise also had scheduled fun activities with the artists, plus an international buffet (which runs almost 24/7). This was my 1st cruise experience & will definitely be not the last.

I haven’t posted anything yet about my Its The Ship 2018 experience. Make sure to wait for that post next month.

Blog: To Follow

Cancelled Trips 🇨🇳🇲🇳🇯🇵

I know I have a long list of trips that pushed through this year, but I also had 2 international trips that didn’t push through. First is the 10-day trip to Beijing, China & Mongolia. My friend & I booked tickets to Beijing for less than ₱1,800 each & planned to go to Ulanbaatar by land. Unfortunately, we had to forego of this trip due to visa restraints. Apparently, the Chinese consulate does not grant double entry visas to first time applicants. We need this type of visa because we planned to go back to Beijing to catch our flight back to Manila.

Another cancelled trip was another set of flights to Japan. I was supposed to fly to Tokyo & Nagoya with my high school friends (from Hong Kong & Bohol trips) but I had to cancel. I had to attend an important family event that falls in the middle of that supposed to be 11-day trip. These China, Mongolia & Japan trips might have been cancelled, but I know I’ll visit these places soon. I’m still thankful most of my planned trips pushed through.

This pretty much sums up my year full of travels with friends. It was a year of many firsts – first winter trip, first out-of-Asia trip, first cruise experience & the list goes on. It was a year full of unforgettable experiences & memorable laughs. I may not have a clear plan on what’s in store for 2019 but I am positive it will be another year full of travels. Thank you very much for joining me. Happy new year & cheers to more fun travels in 2019!

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.

High School Squad Weekend: 48 Hours In BOHOL

Did you know that my Hong Kong trip with high school friends last March 2018 had a follow up trip? We (a group of 8 people) recently went on another weekend trip, but this time to a nearby domestic destination – Bohol. Yes, we only spent 48 hours in the beautiful island of Bohol. It may be too short, but I think we covered the places we wanted to visit. This barkada trip was more of a rest & relaxation one, so there was no pressure for us to explore everything the island has to offer. Let me share with you the details of this quick weekend trip.

Bohol squad with the Chocolate Hills! Photo credits to Mark 🙂

In case you missed it, I’ve been to 2 other 48-hour weekend trips this year – Hong Kong & Port Barton. Check out these stories to know more about these quick but super fun trips!

Airfare & Accommodation

We didn’t wait for any airline offer or promotion when we booked our tickets. We used Traveloka‘s discount codes instead. Our Tagbilaran return ticket cost us ₱3,264.12 each, after the discounts.

We were a big group of 8 so we had a hard time looking for a place to stay. Good thing we found this newly-opened accommodation called Casa Teofista. This accommodation is located a few meters off the main highway & about 8-10 minutes walk from Alona Beach.

We only stayed in Bohol for 48 hours but we fell in love with the place.

We got 2 spacious family rooms with 2 double beds each for ₱9,856 for 2 nights – that’s ₱1,232 per person already for 2 nights. We didn’t choose a beachfront & luxury accommodation because we were only there for a short time anyway. I forgot to take photos of our accommodation – I’m sorry. If you want to contact Casa Teofista, head over to their Facebook page & shoot them a message.

DIY Countryside Tour

My friends & I opted for a do-it-yourself countryside tour because we wanted to skip a few places (Loboc River, Blood Compact Shrine & Loboc Hanging Bridge) from the usual tour, plus we planned to go to Bohol Bee Farm for lunch (instead of the Loboc River Cruise). We hired a van with driver for ₱2,800 for a full 8 hours including gas & parking fees. We asked the driver to pick us up from the airport & we went straight to our countryside tour. We asked to be dropped off at Casa Teofista at the end of our tour.

This was a DIY tour so we paid the following entrance fees – ₱50 for Chocolate Hills, ₱60 for the Tarsier Conservation Area & ₱45 for the Butterfly Garden. Check out the countryside photos below.

Chocolate Hills

Tarsier Conservation Area

Man-made Forest

Butterfly Garden

Baclayon Church

Bohol Bee Farm Organic Lunch

We had mango pizza for appetizer? Lol so good!

Filipino food for lunch – everything organic!

That’s us having lunch at Bohol Bee Farm!

Also tried Bohol Bee Farm’s famous ice cream. Got Guyabano & liked it.

If you are travelling alone, you can always rent a motorbike & explore Bohol by yourself. You can also join countryside group tours. Rates vary from one agency to another.

Alona Beach Dinner & Night Out

Alona Beach at night

After a few hours of rest & sleep, we headed out to Alona Beach to explore the area. We had dinner at Pyramid Beach Resort & transferred to Outback Bar & Grill for drinks. I also met up with James, another friend of mine who was in Bohol, in Outback Bar & Grill.

Met up with James who was also in Bohol that weekend. Photo c/o James 🙂

Private Island Hopping Tour

We hired a boat for a private island hopping tour for our second & last full day in Bohol. The boat cost ₱2,500 for the whole day including gas & guides. We left Panglao Island at 7:00 am & went dolphin watching. We then went to Balicasag Island for snorkeling & swimming with the turtles. The last stop of the tour was Virgin Island, which is known for its long & beautiful sandbar. We were there during lunch time, so the sand bar was still submerged in water. We were back in Panglao at 1:00 pm.

Given ours was a private tour, we paid ₱650 each in Balicasag Island for entrance fee, environmental fee & snorkeling gear rental. Solo travelers can join group island hopping tours for a certain rate. Again, rates vary from one agency to the other.

View of Balicasag Island from our motor boat

I don’t have photos of the dolphins, turtles & the underwater creatures because I forgot my adventure camera. Let me share with you photos of Balicasag Island & Virgin Island’s (almost) sandbar.

Balicasag Island

A beautiful & sunny day in Balicasag Island 😍

Virgin Island Sandbar

Crowded Virgin Island Sandbar

Last Night In Bohol

Inside St. Augustine Church in Panglao

We started our last night in Bohol by attending Sunday mass in St. Augustine Church in Panglao. We went back to Alona area afterwards to have dinner at Irene’s Restaurant. Majority of the group went back to our hotel after dinner. Marc & I went to Aluna Bar & met up again with James for a few drinks.

Last dinner in Bohol with the whole gang

That sums up our 48 hours in Bohol. The place is very beautiful & relaxing. We may be there for only 2 full days but we surely enjoyed the place with great company. We made memories which we will treasure for the rest of our lives.

Have you been to Bohol? How many days did you spend there? How do you think of the place? Are there other places that are worth-visiting? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. If you want to keep your identity, feel free to send ’em to contact@thewkndtravel.com. You can also drop me a message on Facebook, post a comment on Instagram or send me a tweet on Twitter.

Thanks for the time & see you in the next 48-hour or maybe 24-hour trip?

PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.