Letting it all go

Boracay is a small island in the Philippines located approximately 315 km south of Manila and 2 km off the northwest tip of Panay Island in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. [Photo provided to China Daily]

White Beach

Boracay has two main beaches－a four-km-long White Beach on the western coast of the island and the surfers' Bulabog Beach on the east. International travel magazine Travel and Leisure in 2012 named it the best island in the world.

White Beach is divided into three portions from the north to the south. The first portion is covered by tropical plants, and there are many bars and restaurants here.

The best bar I visited is called Red Pirate, which is furnished in a mixture of western and local styles. Sipping rum and coke, I had interesting conversations with travelers from a dozen different countries.

The central portion of the beach has fancy hotels, resorts and lodging houses. We found that there were parties going on under a starry sky every night. We watched the most beautiful sunset we have ever seen from this part of the beach. We spent much time here, swimming in the turquoise sea and having cold beers or mango juices.

The third portion is the quietest and is my favorite. I could never get enough of lying on the beach and flipping the pages of a novel.

Boracay is small, and it takes only 20 to 30 minutes to walk down the whole western coast of the island. The western side is sheltered from wind, so visitors can enjoy snorkeling and diving. A frisbee event, called Boracay Open Asian Beach Ultimate Tournament, is held here in March or April every year.

Most tourists stay on the western side. The island was first discovered by German backpackers in the 1970s, and its visitors are mainly from Europe. But tourists from Taiwan and South Korea have been arriving in large numbers recently, so there are many Asian faces on the island.

If you go

Boracay is located 315 km south of Manila, capital of the Philippines. It is also 2 km off the northwest tip of Panay Island, a larger island in the Philippines.

Getting there: Various airlines have flights from Beijing to Manila, which takes four and half hours. In Manila, local airline Cebu Pacific has a flight to Boracay, which takes less than one hour.

When to go: You can only visit in the windy season, which lasts from October or November to April or May.