2 Weeks in the Philippines: A Full Guide and Itinerary

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Planning a trip to the Philippines and curious where to go? This Philippines itinerary for 2 weeks shares one of the best ways for first-timers to experience this nation’s beauty.

There are literally thousands of different ways to travel around the Philippines. From the streets of Manila to the shores of many, many islands, (there are 7,000 in the Philippine Archipelago in fact) I mean literally thousands.

But there are a few places that are known to be some of the most beautiful destinations in the country—nay, the world—that should be on your radar when planning a trip to the Philippines.

For those interested in a more beachy excursion surrounded by some of the most stunning natural landscapes the Philippines has to offer, look no further – I’ve got you covered. My itinerary focuses on the incredible beaches, islands, and turquoise waters that belong on anyone’s bucket list.

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, if you click my links and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Learn more on my disclosure page. Thank you for your support!

Philippine’s Itinerary Overview

Here is how I spent, and how I recommend others spend their time visiting the Philippines. I found this pace of travel and this grouping of destinations to be an excellent first impression of the country. From these spots, we were able to take many day trips and relish some of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.

3-4 Days in Cebu Island
1-2 Days in Bohol
3-4 Days Coron
3-4 Days El Nido

Other Worthy Places to Visit in the Philippines

If you’re more of a fast-paced type of  traveler and don’t do well sitting in one place for too long, you can probably fit in one more destination in this 2 week Philippines itinerary.

If that’s the case, other worthwhile places to consider adding your Philippine’s itinerary include: Siargao, Puerto Princesa, Port Barton, Cebu City, Siquijor, Manila, Boracay, etc.

I’ve heard such fabulous things about Siargao that I was honestly a little bummed we didn’t make the time to go and see what all the hype is about. Especially if you’re a surfing fanatic, you’ll definitely want Siargao on your 2 weeks in the Philippines itinerary.

But keep in mind with Siargao, you’ll need to take a flight which will take time away from other destinations.

If you’re already in Palawan visiting El Nido, the southern parts of the island such as Puerto Princesa or Port Barton are about a 6-8 hour bus ride away.

We actually also had an extra day to chill before catching our flight home and decided to chill in Cebu City. While there isn’t a whole lot to do in this city, we had a good time exploring the city streets, visiting the famous mall and making the journey to Tops Lookout to see the city from above.

Best Time to Visit the Philippines

The Philippines is a tropical paradise that can be visited any time of the year, but the best time to go depends on your interests and activities. The dry season, from November to April, is the most popular time for tourists because of the warm weather and clear skies. This is also the ideal time for outdoor activities such as diving, snorkeling, and island hopping. The wet season, from May to October, is less crowded and more affordable, but the weather can be unpredictable with occasional typhoons and heavy rains.

How to Spend 2 Weeks in the Philippines: Island Hopping and Beaches

Without further ado, here’s my recommended itinerary for the Philippines.

Cebu Island: Moalboal or Oslob: 3-4 Days

Many flights arrive directly to Manila, but if you can help it, try to fly directly to Cebu Island to save yourself some valuable time. Some people enjoy taking the time to explore Manila but I wanted to get straight to the beaches and island hopping.

Most travelers choose staying in Moalboal or Oslob when visiting Cebu Island because it’s closer to the island’s top attractions. While you can stay in Cebu City, be warned that it’s hours from places like Kawasan Falls.

Oslob is home to the famous whale sharks and is located at the most southern tip of the island – about a 5-hour bus ride from Cebu City. We chose to set up camp in Moalboal which is about half the distance from the city as well as in decently close proximity to Kawasan Falls. Moalboal is about 3 hours from Cebu City.

Best Things to do on Cebu Island

• See Kawasan Falls: One of the most famous things to do and see in Cebu. You can go canyoneering and swim in Kawasan as well as Cebu’s many waterfalls.
• Cliff jump and explore caverns with Alegria Canyoneering (PHP 1500): Another canyoneering option. Kawasan Falls was actually closed for cleaning while we were visiting so we did this instead. This price included helmet, life vest, water shoes, guide and transportation between the office and the starting point.
• Soak up sunshine at the White Beach (PHP 15): There are restaurants and stands selling snacks and drinks on the beach. The current is strong so be careful when swimming
• Take a trip to Badian Island
• Chase beautiful waterfalls like: Mantayupan Falls, Inambakan Falls, Bugnawan Falls, Tumalog Falls
• Swim with Whale Sharks: In Oslob the thing to do is swim with whale sharks. However, I urge you to consider the environmental ramifications – I don’t think it’s very nice for the animals and we chose to skip this activity.
• Hike to the top of Osmeña Peak: An easy hike with a landscape that’s been compared to the Chocolate Hills of Bohol. You’ll probably need to hire a motorbike to take you there.
• Spend time at Panagsama Beach: This beach actually has mostly washed away by a typhoon years ago. However, it’s famous for snorkeling with large schools of sardines. There are places renting out snorkeling gear along the way.
• Venture to Busay Cave, a scenic spot that’s a bit off the beaten path and best reached via moped.

How to Get to Cebu Island: Moalboal / Oslob

From the Mactan-Cebu Airport, grab a white taxi (they’re cheaper than the yellow ones) to the Cebu South Bus Station. You should pay around PHP 250 – 300 for your ride but make sure the driver turns on the meter. Depending on when you arrive, the traffic in Cebu City can be terrible and could delay your ride.

At the Cebu South Bus Station, there are buses headed to Moalboal or Bato via Barili which will both get you to Moalboal. It takes on average 3-4 hours to get there and we paid PHP 130 for our ride.

I believe the same Bato bus goes onward to Oslob but be sure to ask the driver before departing. The buses leave pretty frequently during the day and about once or twice an hour even in the middle of the night. They leave when they are full.

Once you arrive to your destination, it’s easy to wave down a tricycle to help you get to your accommodation if needed.

Best Places to Stay on Cebu Island: Moalboal, Oslob, Cebu City

Here are some of the best hostels and hotels in Cebu.

Moalboal

• Cebu Seaview Dive Resort: Moalboal ocean resort with a swimming pool steps from Panagsama Beach
• MAAYONG HOSTEL: A stylish Moalboal hostel perfect for backpackers with a bar, a restaurant, and a shared lounge with hammocks and bean bags.
• Pig Dive Hostel Moalboal: Another popular Moalboal hostel with affordable dorms and private rooms.

Oslob

• Pobla Hotel: An exquisitely designed hotel with a pool within walking distance to Quartel Beach.
• Granada Beach Resort: An adults-only resort with an excellent breakfast included and incredible rates well under $100/night.
• Way Shack Hostel: A colorful hostel conveniently located to the whale sharks in Oslob.

Cebu City

• Murals Hostel and Cafe or The Flying Fish Hostel Cebu: two cool hostels in Cebu City
• Quest Hotel & Conference Center Cebu: A 3-star modern hotel with a swimming pool and city views.

Thoughts About Moalboal and Cebu

Overall, I really enjoyed the time we spent in Moalboal. We weren’t able to do everything on our list but what we did accomplish was pretty memorable. I wish we had taken the time to also rent a moped and scoot around here to get more out Moalboal and explore the rural waterfalls, but it is quite a mission.

Bohol: 1-2 Days

To the east of Cebu lies Bohol, the 10th largest island of the Philippine archipelago. You can easily get here via ferry that departs from Cebu ferry terminal (or even from Argao which is in the middle of Cebu Island – but it has fewer departures) a few times every hour.  

Bohol is most famous for its idyllic Chocolate Hills and the tarsier sanctuaries where you can see the cute and sleepy tarsiers. We had the most fun renting a moped for the day and scooting around the entire island. In between the touristy activities, the landscape is truly gorgeous and you can cover a lot of ground in a single day.

In one day we managed to rent a moped, eat breakfast at Shaka Bowl (delish), do the Loboc River Cruise, see the Mahogany Forest, visit the Tarsier Sanctuary, walk to the top of the Chocolate Hills and enjoy a nice dinner by the water. We had a half-day the next day and spent it relaxing at the beach before taking the ferry back to Cebu.

Best Things to Do in Bohol

• Check out the famous Chocolate Hills (PHP 50): A little underwhelming. All the photos online hide the fact that the area is actually pretty built up and it’s really only a single viewing platform with concrete stairs to the top and a parking lot filled with tour buses. Still a pretty site though.
• Witness the beauty of natural landmarks like Dimiao Twin Falls and Hinagdanan Caves
• Cruise through the Mahogany Forest: A Man Made forest that was fun for a quick photo opp. You’ll drive through it on your way to the hills or tarsiers. Watch out for cars!
• Spend the day on Balicasag Island: Famous for snorkeling with turtles
• Hunt for the Secret / Hidden Waterfall: You need to ask a local where it is
• See the Sunset: It’s supposed to be phenomenal north of Alona beach
• Get Lost on Mopeds: We rented ours from the store next to Shaka Bowl. The owner was so kind. We paid PHP 300 + gas (about PHP 100 to fill the tank) for the day.
• Take a relaxing river cruise on Loboc river (PHP 500): This was kind of toursity, but was a short excursion and the river was pretty. It included a buffet lunch and a quick stop at a majorly touristy island with performers.
• Try river Paddle Boarding: For more on River Paddle Boarding, check out this guide from Globo Surf.
• Snap a photo at the Cambuyo Rice Terraces
• Grab a bite to eat at Shaka Bowl: Healthy and delicious breakfast and lunch items. Their smoothie bowls were amazing.
• Swim and tan at Alona Beach: This beach has lots of restaurants lining the entire beach and you can grab a table meters from the water.
• See incredible wildlife at the Tarsier Sanctuary (PHP 60): Visiting the tarsiers only took less than an hour to really do, and I’m not sure how great I felt about it. They sleep during the day and all the visitors were definitely disturbing their lives.

How to Get to Bohol

There are actually a few ways to get to Bohol from Cebu Island. The main way is to take a ferry from Cebu Ferry Terminal to Tagbilaran city in Bohol. You can also take a ferry to the Tubigon port in Bohol but it’s about an hour drive north from the main city.

There are a lot of ferry companies offering different speed options to get to Bohol. Most people opt to take the fast ferry via Ocean Jet which takes about 2 hours and is one of the more expensive options. You can show up the day of and book your tickets directly at the ferry terminal. When you arrive, you’ll also have to pay the ferry port fee which is usually about PHP 20, depending on your exact ferry.

Just be warned – the ferries can be cancelled due to rough sea. I think this is really only an issue during the rainy/stormy season (which was when we were there), and we ended up spending an entire day at the terminal trying to find a ferry that wasn’t cancelled. We eventually made it to Bohol but had to take the slow ferry to Tubigon which wasn’t ideal, but it got us there in the end.

For more information about ferry schedules, check out this website here.

Best Places to Stay in Bohol

Bohol was interesting because there really didn’t seem to be a lot of hostels on the island for meeting other travelers. A lot of the accommodation available was guesthouse style. I recommend staying in Tagbilaran, Loboc or near Alona Beach when visiting Bohol.

• Mad Monkey Panglao: Spacious hostel with a pool, bar and a fun vibe near Danao Beach and Alona Beach.
• Glamping Alona: Cool glamping resort with incredible amenities offering both tents and standard rooms near Alona Beach.
• Fox & The Firefly Cottages: Unique bungalow-style guestshouses on the Loboc River with affordable rates.
• ​​Henann Resort Alona Beach: A beach resort right on the famous Alona Beach. 
• Epic Suites by Bohol Social Club: Luxurious suites each boasting a private pool and ocean views on Panglao Island.

Thoughts About Bohol

In my humble opinion, Bohol was a bit of a disappointment. It was a very touristy place where each of the main attractions on the island didn’t need more than an hour or so to see. If I were to do this trip over again, I honestly would skip the hassle of visiting Bohol and choose to allocate my time to another destination like Siargao or even for another day or two in El Nido.

I include it on this list however, because it is an easy destination to get to from Cebu and is a popular place for travelers to visit. If you’re not interested in more time in Palawan or in adding another flight to your itinerary, Bohol is a nice place to see for a change of pace for 1-2 days. And overall, we did have a nice time spent here.

Coron, Palawan: 3-4 Days

Coron is a small island located to the north of the main island of Palawan. Home to amazing landscapes and many WWII era shipwrecks, it’s famously known as one of the most beautiful islands in the world. This is definitely top of my list of must-see places for anyone spending 2 weeks in the Philippines. While Coron City itself lacks excitement or anything super interesting to do, the surrounding landscape and island hopping tours are top notch.

Best Things to Do in Coron

• Spend a day beach island hopping: Ultimately, you come to Coron to do some major island hopping and most of the below things to do require a boat to get there.
• Witness the famed Twin Lagoon: Just gorgeous. A must do.
• Visit Coron’s their famous landmark, Kayangan Lake: Again, stunning. Nothing beats the cliffs and turquoise waters found here.
• Consider visiting nearby Ditaytayan Island and/or Black Island, for even more paradise.
• Snorkel to the Skeleton Shipwreck: An old Japanese fishing boat shipwreck
• Check out Siete Pecados: Another snorkeling, famous for turtle spotting
• Malcapuya Island, Banana Island, Bulog Dos Island and Banol Beach: Most of these small islands are all apart of various island hopping tours and can be quite far from the shores of Coron.
• Take a hike up Mount Tapyas: A 20 minute hike up steep stairs to get to an awesome view of the city of Coron.
• See how locals shop at Coron Public Market: A teeny tiny public market near the ocean.
• Enjoy a soak at the Maquinit Hot Springs (PHP 300): Coron is a hot place, so these natural hot springs are best enjoyed after a day spent island hopping before sunset.

Restaurants in Coron I Loved

• Lennies: Rooftop seating with awesome views and seriously cheap local eats
• Island Boys Grill: Live music every night and right on the main strip
• Altrove Trattoria: Amaaazing Italian pizza and pasta dishes (and wine!!)

How to Get to Coron

The fastest way to get to Coron is to fly into Busuanga Island Airport. You can find flights from Cebu to Coron for about $90 – $130 roundtrip and the flight time is about an hour. From Busuanga, there are drivers waiting outside to take you to your hostel in Coron. It’s about an hour or so drive.

There are also booked tours you can opt to take, that cover the travel to and from Coron. A company like Tao Expeditions has boat trips that take travelers to the island.

Best Places to Stay in Coron

We stayed in Seahorse Guest House which was in the center of the city and within walking distance of the ports where the tours departed. We wanted budget accommodation that allowed us to easily walk around the city and have access to many restaurants and shops.

Here are some other cool hostels/hotels in Coron to consider:

• Outpost Hostel: A fun and social hostel with a rooftop swimming pool with an unbeatable view of the bay and mountains.
• Cocovana Beach Resort: Oceanfront dorms and private rooms in a quiet and beautiful corner of Coron.
• Corto del Mar Hotel: A reasonably priced four-star hotel with beautiful grounds that include a swimming pool in the heart of Coron Town.

Thoughts About Coron

Coron is a tiny city that acts as a hub for the island hopping excursions in the area. In all honesty, there really isn’t much to do in Coron other than the island hopping. There isn’t even a beach super nearby for people to chill at on a day that maybe they arrived too late to hop on an island hopping tour.

There were definitely some moments in Coron where I was a little bored, so just prepare for a lot of downtime. There also isn’t really a party vibe here either for those travelers looking to mingle.

I do regret not taking a day to rent a moped and exploring Busuanga Island and the rural parts of Coron. The Blessing Bucket has a great 5 day itinerary for Coron that if I’d found earlier, would’ve made my experience in Coron all the better.

El Nido, Palawan: 3-4 Days

El Nido is at the very northern tip of Palawan. Home to white sand beaches, famous lagoons, and great dive sites, this is another of my fave stops during our 2 weeks in the Philippines. Just like Coron, El Nido, and most of Palawan really, is also famously regarded as one of the most beautiful beach destinations in the world.

Best Things to Do in El Nido

• Go on an Island Hopping Tour: Just like Coron, the most popular thing to do in El Nido is an island hopping tour. There are many different tour operators to choose from – we actually just went with our hostel (and loved it).
• Venture to the Big Lagoon and Small Lagoon: You can rent a kayak or take an island hopping tour to get there. Or a private boat even if you’re feeling fancy.
• Spend the day at Nacpan Beach, Hidden Beach, or Lio Beach
• Las Cabanas Beach is another must see spot: Known for the best sunsets and good to do after island hopping.
• See the beauty of Nagkalit-kalit and Kuyawyaw Waterfalls
• Climb Taraw Cliff: Hike to see El Nido town from above
• Rent a Moped: drive around and explore the island.
• Go Scuba Diving or Snorkeling

Island Hopping in El Nido

Island Hopping is the main thing to do in El Nido. You can purchase the tours in person or in advance. The island hopping tours are usually grouped into four types, typically with these stops:

Tour A (Lagoons): Small Lagoon, Big Lagoon, Secret Lagoon, 7 Commando Beach and Shimizu Island.

Tour B (Caves): Snake Island, Pinagbuyutan Island, Cudugnon Cave, Entalula Island and Cathedral Cave.

Tour C (Beaches): Helicopter Island, Matinloc Shrine, Secret Beach, Star Beach & Hidden Beach.

Tour D (Cadlao Islands): Pasandigan Beach, Nat Nat Beach, Bucal Beach, Cadlao Lagoon and Paradise Beach.

However, it’s all dependent on your tour operator and what they offer.

Where to Eat in El Nido

• Big Bad Thai
• Bulalo Plaza
• Outpost Beach Hostel

How to Get to El Nido

You can actually fly into El Nido as well, but we opted for the cheaper option of taking the daily fast ferry from Coron to El Nido. The Coron – El Nido via Montenegro lines departs at noon but you have to be there an hour early. The ferry one-way costs PHP 1,760 / USD $33.

The ferry from El Nido back to Coron leaves at 6 am and is the same price – for those who have a round trip flight from Coron to Cebu as we did.

You can book your ferry ticket in advance – I believe they were the same price as in person, maybe just PHP 100 more – here. When you arrive, you’ll have to pay the ferry port fee which is PHP 20 per person.

Where to Stay in El Nido

Outpost Hostel is hands down the best place we stayed the entire trip. It was truly the most social place, with events and parties scheduled every night. They have an excellent restaurant on site and their staff is goofy and fun. If you’re looking to meet a lot of people and enjoy a party scene, this is the place for you.

They also offer their own island hopping tours which comes complete with two bottles of rum each trip! We had so much fun and met so many people. And better yet, the hostel is right on the beach.

Otherwise, consider these:

• Frendz Hostel El Nido: Another hostel with excellent views from the pool, a restaurant, and a pool.
• Erlittop Garden Eco Lodge: An eco-lodge with guesthouses offering a more authentic stay in the Philippines near a quiet beach.
• The Funny Lion: Modern hotel with beautiful interior design and a swimming pool just minutes from El Nido Beach.
• Nacpan Beach Glamping: Luxury “glamping” in a garden paradise feet from Nacpan Beach with a shuttle that takes you to El Nido town.

Thoughts About El Nido

El Nido was our last stop on the trip so we indulged a little and relaxed majorly, treated ourselves to some good food and drink, and hardly moved. We had such a good time enjoying the social scene of Outpost Hostel and we focused our energies on bonding with fellow travelers. I’d have to say that El Nido was one of my favorite destinations on this entire itinerary.

I do wish however, we’d been a little less lazy and taken the time to see more of the surrounding rural areas of El Nido, but hey – we had a great time regardless. Everyone should take the time to visit El Nido!

This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, if you click my links and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Learn more on my disclosure page. Thank you for your support!

Any questions or comments for your 2 weeks in the Philippines? Share below!