“Crystal Clear” Boracay

self / travel 16
June 14, 2009
ointing an Australian in the
direction of the Philippines for
“the best beach in the world” is
rather like directing a German over
the nearest border for the best beer and
sausage. Once you’ve watched the sun set
on the shell-scattered shores of our Ninety
Mile Beach, it’s hard to imagine the best
beach could be anywhere other than here.
Setting aside these parochial prejudices
is, however, part of the job so here I
am sunning myself on White Beach, a
sun-lover’s hotspot and much-touted “best
beach ever”, on the tropical island of
Boracay, 350 kilometres south of Manila.
No awards for guessing why this is
called White Beach. This 3.5-km stretch of
paradise, where lazy coconut palms send
their elongated shadows into crystal clear
water, is more like talcum powder than
sand, the tiny grains better equipped to
massage and soothe than exfoliate.
If I deign to lift my head off the
bamboo sun lounger, the view conjures up
a list of superlatives as long as my beach
towel. Hulls of bamboo reef catamarans
skim across the azure waters, local
children splash each other in the shallows
and out there on the horizon, where the
water meets the bluest of skies, a parasail
floats, silhouetted against a golden sun.
Behind me, the source of an endless
stream of cool drinks, is a beach bar, the
type Bryan Brown might have shaken
a few cocktails in. Beyond that is our
bamboo beach hut surrounded by garden
and complete with bathroom and daily
cleaning service. It takes just 23 seconds to
get from beach hut to sun lounger.
Up and down the beach, local women
FACT FILE
P
Melbourne to
Manila:
• Cathay Pacific,
return flights
until July 3 and from August 3 until
September 30 for $836, including tax.
• Qantas, return flights until November
30 for $886, including tax.
• Philippine Airlines, return flights
from Melbourne to Manila until July 1
and from July 20 to September 21 for
$884, including tax.
• Manila to Caticlan (Boracay):
• Philippines Airlines, flights from
1239 PHP each way, excluding tax.
Boracay’s beaches are waiting to be explored.
PICTURES: PENNY WATSON
Crystal clear
Boracay’s sandy idylls are designed for a quick
escape from our winter cold, says Penny Watson.
lay out their colourful sarongs to give
slow, sleep-inducing massages. Cute kids
sell bags of freshly cut green mangoes
for a few pesos. As the sun goes down,
the whiff of a beach barbecue whets the
appetite, a signal that the restaurants
cluttered along the beach thoroughfare
have set up their icy seafood displays.
The similarities between this patch
of the Philippines and that other great
beach destination, Thailand, are not lost
on me. Like Thailand’s beach resorts,
Boracay has that ideal concoction of sun,
sea and sand fused with the richness of a
different culture. Accommodation caters to
all budgets; food and drink is cheap; and
nightlife there if you want it.
Accessibility is also comparable. Manila
is eight hours’ flying time from Melbourne
(Bangkok is nine) with a two-hour time
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difference (Bangkok is three).
Perhaps the biggest difference is
the Philippines’ status as a relatively
undiscovered destination. Thailand’s
island beaches are well and truly stamped,
whereas the Philippines’ archipelago of
more than 7000 islands is still waiting to
be explored. The numbers might already
be speaking for themselves. In 2008,
121,514 Australians visited the Philippines,
an increase of 8.05 per cent on 2007. To
meet the demand, airlines between the
two countries have increased the current
2500 seats per week to 4000.
Towards the end of our five-day
stay, we sail the length of White Beach
under a canopy of stars; the white sands
luminescent against the inky black water.
If it isn’t the best beach in the world,
it’s certainly in the running.
M
Phone 9875 1411
Good food and
wine matters.
EVERY TUESDAY