Just thought I would share some of my experiences from my recent vacation to the Philippines via a 4 night stop over in Jakarta. Firstly a massive thank you to Lotus Eater for meeting me in Jakarta, recommending the Wyndham Hotel and for the long lazy chats over breakfast, where I ate plenty. He also showed me a lovely bar nearby with great food and drinks and it was a lovely relaxing night out. I loved the vibe in Jakarta even though I found sightseeing a little difficult due to the size of the city and heavy traffic. I also have to say a big thank you to him for keeping me updated on the Cat 5 Typhoon that was approaching the Manila area on my day of travel to the Philippines.
I flew from Jakarta to Cebu with Cebu Pacific via a 5 hour layover in Manila overnight and when I arrived at Mactan Cebu Airport around noon the next day, my girlfriend was at the airport to meet me. We stayed for 2 nights at the Sebastian Hotel in Lapu Lapu before heading off for 6 nights at the Paradise Garden Resort in Boracay, which we both loved and while there went Island Hopping and went for half a day to do the ATV, Zip Lining and Kayaking adventure. We also went on the party boat one evening to enjoy a few drinks and to see the sunset. There were lots of nice restaurants there, one in particular called Bistro Des Amis which served a lovely tuna steak and my girlfriend had a couple of friends who worked there.
After Boracay it was back to The Little Rock Resort in Lapu Lapu (a recommendation from Lotus Eater). I have to admit that I was not too impressed on arrival but the place grew on me and the co-owner, a British guy went out of his way to make all guests feel welcome. They had a fantastic breakfast, full English with bacon, eggs, sausages, toast, baked beans from England, Black Pudding, fried tomatoes and coffee. An American, Continental, Hungarian and local breakfast was also available. There was also a big swimming pool there and a small bar with pool table and meals were served for dinner in the restaurant area. The room was nice and clean also.
Following our time here we went to Moalboal where we stayed in the Club Hari Dive Resort for 6 nights. The room was big with a nice shower and 2 double beds but no TV which surprised me. We were told that the triple rooms come with a TV but who books a triple room for 2 people. It was Korean owned, breakfast was ok at best but they did have a good swimming pool and free snorkelling equipment for use. Again my girlfriend had friends in Moalboal - Filipina/Canadian couples and we spent a lot of time with them eating out and visiting some of the local bars and spent a day with her friends at one of their houses having a lovely meal and chatting. There was even a bar aptly named called Fat Bellies.
Then it was back to the Belmont Hotel in Mactan Newtown which is now the Mecure for the last 5 nights where we chilled. Again a nice hotel with a lovely breakfast and we invited my girlfriends mother over on her birthday with other family members for a buffet dinner and we bought a birthday cake at the hotel. The only problem I had was that the Belmont could not accommodate my request for late check out on the day of my return flight (My flight was at 19.25). Because of this I payed for one nights accommodation and paid an extra 400 pesos for early check in at somewhere called Amani suites which was five minutes from the airport. This place had a lovely room with air con, a kitchen area, fully stocked fridge and snacks such as crisps and potts of noodles. It also has a gym, swimming pool and balcony and for anybody needing accommodation near the airport, I would recommend this place.
All in all a great trip and it was interesting for me to see and speak with Filipina/Ex Pat couples who were in long term relationships, one couple had been married for 12 or so years.
I booked my flights from the UK to Jakarta and from Cebu back to Manchester through Qatar Airlines and would highly recommend them although the return leg from Cebu to Doha with a technical stopover in Davao was very tiring. I was quoted roughly £860 to upgrade but declined since that was more than the price of my journey in full had cost.
