Korean Job Discussion Forums

[kkrumrei]

Hi. My wife and I are planning a week long vacation in late February. For various reasons, we've settled on either Malaysia or the Philippines. Beyond that, the choices seem so numerous, we're a little overwhelmed.

We were thinking to book flights through a travel agent and then book three/four day packages somewhere in the country, probably Boracay in the Philippines, or somewhere in Borneo in Malaysia. That way we can fly into the country, explore for a few days, then have the comfort of a previously arranged package deal before heading out.

We're relatively inexperienced travelers, and as it'd be our first time to either country, we probably wouldn't know our way around well enough to wing it. At the same time, a lot of the short packages one can book online seem a little shady. I would consider booking a week long package, but for two things: I'm having trouble finding packages that fit our destinations and time frame; and they seem like a classic way to visit a country without actually getting out and seeing anything.

Does that sound like a decent plan, or could we fly in and take each day as it comes (i.e. wing it)? I should also mention, our budget is around $2000, preferably a bit less.

Any thoughts or comments would be most welcome.
thanks in advance,
kk

[ttompatz]

From Korea, 1 week and 2 people with airfare included is very do-able in the Philippines.

If you want to experience a bit of the country as well as have some beach downtime, catch a flight to Manila on the airline of your choice.

Grab a one-way flight on Asian ( http://www.asianspirit.com/ ) spirit or SEAair ( http://www.flyseair.com/ ) to Caticlan and spend a few days on the beach in Boracay.

Look for your hotels on (http://www.boracay.com ). They have a pretty complete list. Call the hotel directly for your booking.

Then catch a 1-way flight from there to Cebu and then the 2 hour ferry over to Bohol and do Alona Beach and Tagbilaran city. (The resorts in Cebu are either not nice or too expensive). Look for information on Bohol and Tagbilaran city here: http://www.bohol.ph/ .

Catch a 1-way flight back from Tag to Manila ( http://www.philippineairlines.com/ ) to connect with your return trip to Korea.


Book your domestic flights either by internet or inside the Philippines for the best rates.

If you want the best bang for your buch and save yourself the island jumping, do BOHOL (Alona Beach) and save Boracay for another day.
You can fly into Manila and then catch a domestic flight to Tagbilaran OR you can fly into Cebu (evening arrival) and catch the morning fast ferry to Tag.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=76456&highlight=Bohol
http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=63839&highlight=Bohol

The Ferry rates run about 10k won for the fast ferry (2 hours) and 2k for the slow boat (4 hours).

[kkrumrei]

Hey, thanks for the advice. that's perfect. We might just skip Boracay, Bohol seems more like what we're looking for.

Just a couple of quick questions, should you happen to read this and have time to respond:

How easy is it to get a flight in country, let's say from Manilla to Cebu, or Caticlan to Cebu, etc? Should we buy those in advance, or is it fairly easy to catch a one way flight without much notice?

Is safety an issue in the Philippines, any more so than anywhere else? People have recommended other countries to me on the premise that other countries might be safer for traveling. Maybe I just look like an easy target...

thanks again

[ttompatz]