Recommendations and Essential Information
Arrival Dates
If possible, try to avoid stepping off the plane on 27th July and heading straight to the venue. Manila traffic is crazy and it can end up being a 3 hour car ride to the venue from the airport. This is only possible if your flight arrives very early in the morning.
Possible options:
-
Stay in Manila first and book a driver to take you to the beach resort
-
Travel halfway and visit Tagaytay first (which is a popular domestic tourist destination because you will find Taal volcano there)
-
Travel to Lipa City first and then travel to the resort the next day (Elmira's family home is in San Jose, which is nearby Lipa - roughly 20 min by car).
[The Alvarado and Pinat family will be in The Philippines from 15th July to 2nd August]
Manila Airport
Book flights to Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Avoid booking flights to Clark International Airport as this one is too far out for your onward journey to Batangas. Please double check this when booking flights as many airlines are now offering flights to Clark too.
Book a driver
You can book a driver using this website: https://touristdrivermanila.com/
This company also offers return trips from Acuaverde Beach Resort.
International Airlines
Qatar and Emirates are great airlines for traveling to The Philippines. Flights operate from LHR or LGW and you will layover in Doha (Qatar) or Dubai (Emirates) to change planes for the final leg of the journey.
Asian airlines
AirAsia is like Europe's Easyjet/Ryanair. They offer budget flights to other Asian destinations. The catch is that you are likely to layover in Malaysia for a few hours and many AirAsia flights operate from Clark airport, which is really far. We tend to go for national airlines when traveling to other Asian countries just to avoid all the hassle you usually get from budget airlines!
Manila
Manila is just like any other Southeast Asian city (crowded, polluted and full of traffic) so personally I wouldn't recommend to stay there for long (1 -2 days max). Whenever we're in Manila, we tend to visit the city's famous malls for shopping, salons, spas and food!
-
SM Mall of Asia
-
SM Megamall
If you had to visit just one mall, visit SM Mall of Asia.
We haven't tried out the nightlife in Manila before, but have heard Manila has some great bars!
Puerto Galera
Puerto Galera is a town located on Mindoro island which is accessible by taking a ferry from Batangas Port (approx. 1.5 hour drive from Acuaverde Beach Resort). We planned to visit back in 2016, but there was a typhoon at the time. It's known for its diving sites so pay a visit if you wanted to head to a nearby island from Batangas. It has loads of resorts.
Other island destinations
The Philippines have many beautiful islands to explore, popular destinations are:
Palawan
Cebu
Boracay
Bohol
You can find many domestic flights to these islands from Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
We went to Coron, Palawan and highly recommend this visit! Find our Coron - Palawan Itinerary here.
Please check entry requirements before booking flights to other islands.
Explore other Asian countries whilst you're there!
Recommendations for countries that are about a 2/3 hour flight away from The Philippines:
Indonesia
Malaysia
Thailand
Singapore
Vietnam
(Note: some of these countries still haven't yet opened up to foreigners, but hopefully by July they will!)