This three-week loop is for travelers who want the full spread of the Philippines: Spanish-era Manila, the cold mountain provinces of the north, Palawan’s limestone islands and a final stretch of surf and lagoons on Siargao. The pace is relaxed for a country made of 7,000-plus islands, with two or three nights in most places and no two long travel days in a row. You’ll ride long-distance buses and vans through the Cordillera, jeepneys and tricycles for short hops, one fast ferry between Coron and El Nido, outrigger bangkas on almost every island day, and three domestic flights.
Days 1-2: Manila’s Old Core and the National Museums
Start in
Manila and spend your first full day on foot inside
Intramuros, the walled Spanish city, where the cobbled streets around the cathedral are quietest before 9 a.m. Walk south afterward to
Rizal Park and Rizal Monument, then give the afternoon to the free National Museum complex next door. The
National Museum of Fine Arts holds Juan Luna’s enormous “Spoliarium”, …
read more 👉This three-week loop is for travelers who want the full spread of the Philippines: Spanish-era Manila, the cold mountain provinces of the north, Palawan’s limestone islands and a final stretch of surf and lagoons on Siargao. The pace is relaxed for a country made of 7,000-plus islands, with two or three nights in most places and no two long travel days in a row. You’ll ride long-distance buses and vans through the Cordillera, jeepneys and tricycles for short hops, one fast ferry between Coron and El Nido, outrigger bangkas on almost every island day, and three domestic flights.
Days 1-2: Manila’s Old Core and the National Museums
Start in
Manila and spend your first full day on foot inside
Intramuros, the walled Spanish city, where the cobbled streets around the cathedral are quietest before 9 a.m. Walk south afterward to
Rizal Park and Rizal Monument, then give the afternoon to the free National Museum complex next door. The
National Museum of Fine Arts holds Juan Luna’s enormous “Spoliarium”, and the
National Museum of Anthropology across the lawn has the Manunggul burial jar and pre-colonial gold. Two nights here is enough to beat the jet lag without letting Manila’s traffic eat your trip.
Days 3-4: Banaue and the Batad Terraces
Take the 9-hour bus north to
Banaue (around PHP 700 to 900, US$12 to 16) and treat the arrival evening as a rest. The next morning, ride a jeepney or tricycle to the Batad saddle and walk down into the amphitheater of the
Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras, the UNESCO-listed Ifugao terraces that are still farmed by hand. The
Banaue Rice Terraces viewpoint near town is a 10-minute ride and works as a quick sunset stop. Nights drop to 15°C or lower, so pack a fleece.
Days 5-6: Sagada
A 3-hour ride via Bontoc brings you to
Sagada, a pine-forested town where the hanging coffins of Echo Valley sit on limestone cliffs a short walk from the center. Book a guide at the municipal tourism office for the Cave Connection (roughly 3 to 4 hours of scrambling, squeezing and wading between Lumiang and Sumaguing caves) and spend the second day slower, with Sagada’s lemon pie and a sunrise trip to Kiltepan for the sea of clouds.
Days 7-9: Baguio and Back to Manila
The 6-hour bus down the mountain road to
Baguio is the longest stretch since Banaue, so two nights here break up the journey before the drop back to the lowlands. Baguio is cool, hilly and full of students, with the Session Road cafés and the public market for strawberry jam and ube. On day 9, take the 4- to 6-hour bus to
Manila and sleep near the airport for an easy morning flight.
Days 10-12: Coron
Fly to Busuanga and transfer to
Coron town, the base for the lakes and wrecks of northern Palawan. The standard island tour stops at Kayangan Lake, whose viewpoint over the karst is a 10-minute climb, plus Twin Lagoon and Barracuda Lake, where the water warms noticeably at depth. Divers can spend a day on the Japanese supply ships sunk by US aircraft in 1944; snorkelers can still see the shallow Skeleton Wreck from the surface.
Days 13-15: El Nido, Bacuit Bay and Nacpan Beach
The fast ferry south takes about 4 to 5 hours and delivers you straight into
El Nido. This time, skip the busiest lagoons in the morning and book Tour C, which threads the outer cliffs of
Bacuit Bay to Hidden Beach and Matinloc Shrine, then rent a scooter for a lazy day at
Nacpan Beach, a 4-kilometer curve of sand about 45 minutes north of town. Pay the PHP 400 environmental fee once; it covers 10 days of tours.
Days 16-20: Siargao Island and Bucas Grande
Fly out of El Nido to Cebu or Manila and connect to
Siargao Island, where five nights let the trip end on beach time instead of airport time. Base yourself in General Luna, watch the surfers at Cloud 9, and take the classic three-island boat trip to the sandbar of
Naked Island, the fishing village on
Daku Island and the palm-tufted islet of
Guyam Island. Set aside one full day for
Bucas Grande, where boats slide through a narrow gap into Sohoton Cove and its jellyfish lake. Fly home on day 21 via Cebu or Manila.
If a friend asked me where to go off the obvious track here, I’d send them on the 2-hour guided walk from Sagada down through the Fidelisan terraces to Bomod-ok Falls, and I’d tell them to start early and wear sandals that can handle wet stone.
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