Boracay: A Paradise Indeed

Last October 5, 2012, we treated ourselves a weekend getaway. And Boracay is the chosen place to spend our short vacation. I was with my two OFW friends who came home excitedly as I have made this booking few months before they arrived.

Finally, after months, weeks, and days of waiting, the day has come to set our feet in the white sands of this beautiful island. We all fell inlove with it. The place is very relaxing. Residents are all nice and friendly. We almost got tempted to rebook our flight back to Clark. A four-day stay isn't just enough.

Enjoy the scenery after a long ATV drive

Tambays are instant tourguide to every visitors. They could do tattoo during their breaks.

 Children gets their baon by building sand castles. They get tip for every picture taking.

Housewives are no longer bound to stay at home, because they've got nails to polish, bodies to massage, hairs to braid, etc. I quote it as a place where no one is unemployed.

 Spare your budget with their must-try's. Jonah's Shake is one.

Shop 'til you drop at D' Talipapa

 Play and dance (you can't sing) with fishes

We kept on praising God for the gift of nature. He is awesome! We could say that it really is a paradise because of the overwhelming beauty of the scenery. Not only that, this place has been a blessing to every residents - everyone gets an opportunity to work. We'd definitely come back here.

To read more about our Boracay itinerary, click

Okay. I'm no expert (it's my first time). But allow me to at least share the details of our journey to Boracay... So here how it happened...

TRANSPORTATION

My friends got their one-way ticket for 750 pesos at Airphil Express. Free-of-charge baggage includes 7kg hand-carry and 10kg checked-in baggage. Terminal fee in Clark is 150 pesos. Airphil Express Flight 2P 773 (Clark to Kalibo) departed 1355H and arrived before 1500H at our destination.

Upon arrival, we proceeded directly at the arrival area to get our checked-in luggages, and from there, you would find agents from differrent transportation services offering you transfers to Boracay. We got ours from KIATA Travel for 250 pesos, an airconditioned van and a ferry transfer to Boracay. This isn't the cheapest, from what I've heard you could ride a tricycle (150 pesos special ride, then divide it to your group) to bus terminal and from there you could find buses or vans which charge from 100-150 pesos that would bring you to Caticlan Jetty Port. Then from Caticlan Jetty Port, you can pay a basic boat ride for 25 pesos only. But we opted the convenient way.

The ride from Kalibo International Airport to Caticlan Jetty Port was almost 2 hours. Tip: use the restroom before getting into the van (do it please, because my bladder suffered for 2 hours). The road is zigzaggy, similar with that of Baguio City. I felt nauseated. Tip: find a row with a leg room, usually not the first row (which we took *facepalm*). So just bring jacket or scarf in case you dont get controls of the van's temperature.

Another Tip: if you're not on a strict budget, please do take Caticlan flight. Unfortunately for us, no small planes currently flies from Clark. So all flights are bound to land in Kalibo instead. But should we come back to Boracay (definitely we will), we'll take Manila - Caticlan flight. SEAIR before uses propeller-type and boasts as they are the fastest means to fly from Clark to Boracay. But I don't know why they stopped their Caticlan flights. I only see their small plane parked in Clark International Airport's hangar.

So anyway, upon reaching Caticlan Jetty port, I vomitted. Joke. But. I was close to it. We proceeded at the terminal fee booth and paid 100 pesos and another 75 pesos for the environmental fee. Then [went to the restroom and peed] we were directed to ride the ferry (Oyster Ferry). Now we know why we paid 250 pesos. It's a convenient ride to Boracay (as compared to motor boats with life jackets hanging above you). The ferry is airconditioned and the seats are comfortable,  it doesn't rock, and has a great view of the island. But I guess, it's not for claustrophobic. I kinda am guilty of that phobia, but I managed to breathe normally. Hello? I work in a closed-compartment jet. Lol. I just made myself familiar with the emergency exits and the floating devices under our seats. It only takes us about 10 minutes or so. Note that in every transfer (van and ferry), you have to wait for other joining passengers for 5 minutes or so.

After the sea transfer, you need to take the last means of transportation - the tricycle. Plane, bus/van, ferry/boat, tricycle... You'll have to try them all! I forgot how much we paid the tricycle ride. We were with other 2 passengers. So just don't be maarte coz special ride is costly. I think we only paid 20 each. We told manong driver that we'll stay at La Carmela at Station 2.

So basically, you'll just have to repeat this on your way home. Tiring right? So take Caticlan flight. Lol.

Coming back, a man standing outside our hotel offered us a complete transfer to Kalibo International Airport for 450 pesos each inclusive of all other fees. Of course we haggled over the price and got it for 400 pesos. Not bad. So we basically repeat everything. Tip: don't forget to empty your bladder. This time we got the motor boat. So-so. I could easily escape from here. Lol. The man was with us in the boat and assisted us till we got the van ride. We took the first row again, but this time it has a wider leg room. The van looks new. We waited for 10 minutes for other passengers. Just atleast allot 2.5 hours from your hotel to Kalibo Int'l Airport. I scewed up with some facts and obviously an accurate time table. Sorrryyy.

Currently, Airphil Express flies to Kalibo every Friday and Sunday only. Since we departed Clark on a Friday noon, it will be bitin if we go back by Sunday. So we booked our flight back at SEAIR airline. We flew SEAIR Flight DG 7403 on Monday afternoon (1720H)

The fare is worth 964 pesos, and I availed their checked-in baggage service of 15kg per passenger worth 150 pesos (they only allow 7kg carry-on luggage for free). Actually, we could have just checked in one baggage and hand-carry the rest; 45kg (3 passenger x 15kg) is too much for light travellers. So all in all we paid 1,114 pesos for our returning flight.

Terminal fee at Kalibo Int'l Airport is only 40 pesos. Well, seeing its facility, it's not surprising why they charge cheaper. We've got plenty of our time so we grabbed a bite upstairs and waited for SEAIR plane. A bit delayed, but very understandable. Parking bays in Kalibo are very limited. It has a very short runway. So aircrafts need to wait for their clearance before they depart from point A. This is something passengers don't understand.

To sum up everything, here's our total transportation expenses:

(CRK - KLO)

750 = Airphil Express

150 = Clark Int'l Airport terminal fee

250 = van and ferry

100 = Caticlan jetty port terminal fee

75 = environmental fee

20 = tricycle to hotel

(KLO - CRK)

400 = package transfer from hotel to Klo Int'l Airport

1,114 = SEAIR (KLO-CRK)

40 = Kalibo Int'l Airport terminal fee

2,899 pesos = TOTAL TRANSPO EXPENSE

You think it's done? No. Can I tell you about our hotel before I end this? Go on. Continue reading...

HOTEL REVIEW  (LA CARMELA DE BORACAY located at Station 2)

Usually, peak season starts mid October, and room price usually doubles during peak season. So if you're not willing to pay the doubled rate, avoid those dates (Oct15-Jan15; March-April). 

I called La Carmela Hotel 5 days before our arrival. But to my dismay, they were already fully booked. I called other beachfront hotel I know, but none accommodated my phone call reservation. Walk-in guests still get the last room. But I didn't want to hassle my two girlfriends. They'll kill me if I say we don't have a place to stay yet, after our long tiring air, sea, and land trip. So I booked through Agoda (same hotel) and paid 2,400 pesos for one night. It's a semi-deluxe room, with two double beds and a breakfast for two. I don't know, but, agoda and la carmela have the same (published) rate. So there's no discounted price at all. Or maybe because I booked a day before our arrival. I'm not sure. But it's a definitely a reliable site.

So there, I brought my booking confirmation and presented it at La Carmela. They asked us to deposit 2,000 pesos which we can refund upon checkout. We told the receptionist that we actually plan to stay for 3 nights, but we only made a booking for one night. We asked them to inform us right away for any vacant room the next day so we wont have to transfer. Told them that standard room is okay with us. I presented my company ID, wishful they'll give us discount (airphil express crews get discount at la carmela hotel).

They gave us a room on the fourth floor, but we didn't like it. We don't wanna use the elevator every now and then, so we politely asked them if they can give us a different room. They transferred us to second floor, and this time it is bigger and has a veranda. We loved it. Staffs are very nice.

The next day after our morning activity, we rushed to get back to the hotel to check out. I asked for our key at the front desk, but the friendly receptionist was very happy to tell us that we can stay for two more nights. Very happy. I asked how much do we need to pay for the two more nights, she said 1,800 pesos only per night. Very very happy. Discount approved! "Okay thank you! What's our new room number?" (thinking we'll have to transfer to a standard room) But the lady replied, "No, ma'am. You can stay in your room." Aren't they the sweetest? :)

Our room has two comfortable double beds, safety deposit box (which is very useful), cable tv,  refrigerator, private bathroom, and a small veranda. We use the veranda to dry up our wet swimsuits and towels :P Each floor has water dispenser. Glad to have it next to our room. 

We also use their swimming pool once for a few minutes. Men. We were chillin'! So I realized, pool is not really necessary when you're in Boracay.

We have free breakfast for 2. If I'm not mistaken, you may add 100 pesos to upgrade your set breakfast to buffet type.

On our first breakfast, we ordered additional meal for 1 since we're 3. We paid additional 145 pesos. But we didn't know they have big servings. So on our 2nd and 3rd breakfast, we just shared with the two set meals.

Wifi in La Carmela is free if you're staying in the restaurant. So we get to use it during breakfast. Wifi in rooms has extra charge.

To wrap it up, our stay in la carmela is a great experience. Getting into the beach in less than a minute? Laying in your comfortable bed after a long walk? Oh. The food! Paying p280 for buffet dinner? Oh!!! I just couldn't put into words. It's, honestly, the best yet dinner I had this year.

La Carmela is one of the best yet affordable hotels in Boracay.