Travel guides › What to book › The Philippines

What to book before you travel to the Philippines?

Most visits can be booked on the spot. A few sell out days ahead. Here they are, stop by stop, with what you can do without booking underneath. Keep the rest of your time free.

Trip length
One weekTen daysTwo weeks

8 activities to book · about €260 per person

El Nido (Palawan)

Days 1-3
Days 1-3Island hopping by bangkaFull dayA day on a traditional outrigger boat between the lagoons, small beaches and limestone islets of Bacuit Bay.€30Book on GetYourGuide →
Days 1-3Kayaking into the lagoonsHalf dayThe Small Lagoon is reached by kayak through a gap in the rock too narrow for the boats.€25Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: The turquoise lagoons under the limestone · Nacpan Beach, four kilometres of sand · Sunset over the Sulu Sea · Snorkelling off the beach

All activities in El Nido (Palawan) on GetYourGuide

Coron

Days 4-5
Days 4-5Diving the Japanese wrecksFull dayA day of dives on the ships sunk in Coron Bay in 1944, several of them at recreational depth.€60Book on GetYourGuide →
Days 4-5Kayangan Lake and the lagoonsFull dayA boat day around Coron, with a climb to Kayangan Lake, whose water is clear enough to see the rock many metres down.€30Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: Kayangan Lake · Mount Tapyas, some 700 steps up for the sunset view · The hot springs · The reefs, within snorkelling reach

All activities in Coron on GetYourGuide

Bohol

Days 6-8
Days 6-8Chocolate Hills and tarsiers, guidedHalf dayThe viewpoint over the hills, then a sanctuary where the tarsiers, among the smallest primates on earth, sleep through the day.€30Book on GetYourGuide →
Days 6-8Loboc River lunch cruiseHalf dayA slow floating restaurant up a green river lined with jungle.€25Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: The Chocolate Hills · The white-sand beaches of Panglao · The tarsiers · The rice fields and the countryside

All activities in Bohol on GetYourGuide

Siargao

Days 9-10
Days 9-10Surf lesson at Cloud 9Half dayBeginners learn on the gentler breaks nearby, with Cloud 9 itself in view for when the swell is right.€30Book on GetYourGuide →
Days 9-10Island hopping: Naked, Daku and GuyamFull dayThree islands in a morning: a bare sandbar, a coconut island with lunch, and a tiny one you can walk around in minutes.€30Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: The surf breaks · Sugba Lagoon · The coconut groves · The Magpupungko rock pools, at low tide

All activities in Siargao on GetYourGuide

Indicative prices per person, checked when written. The button opens the GetYourGuide search for the activity and the town, on the days of the stop once your dates are known. Some links are affiliate links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

Frequently asked questions

How much do the activities to book in the Philippines cost?

€260 per person if you do them all, across 8 bookings. The most expensive is "Diving the Japanese wrecks" at €60, the cheapest "Kayaking into the lagoons" at €25. Prices checked when written: confirm them when you book.

What can you do in the Philippines without booking anything?

16 visits on this itinerary need no ticket or time slot, starting with The turquoise lagoons under the limestone, Nacpan Beach, four kilometres of sand, Sunset over the Sulu Sea, Snorkelling off the beach. They make up most of your days: booking ahead only concerns a handful of sites with limited places.

At which stop should you book earliest?

El Nido (Palawan), with 2 activities to book, against 2 at the quietest stop. That is where slots go first.

How long do these activities take?

From Half day for the shortest to Full day for the longest. Fit them into your days before filling the rest: a guided visit often takes half a day.

The rest of the trip

📒 The free printable Philippines guide: itinerary, map, where to sleep→ 🗓️ Best time to visit the Philippines, month by month→ 🎟️ What to book: all our destinations→