Best in November

Malapascua, Daanbantayan, North Cebu

Monad Shoal (Thresher Shark Dives)

The underwater plateau off Malapascua where thresher sharks rise at dawn. What the dive is like, who can do it, what it costs, how to pick a shop and what to do if you do not dive.

Sagada, Mountain Province

Sagada

A cool mountain town in the Cordillera, known for the hanging coffins of Echo Valley, Sumaguing Cave, sunrise over a sea of clouds and pine-scented hikes.

Bangui, Ilocos Norte

Bangui Windmills

A row of giant wind turbines along a grey-sand shore at the northern tip of Luzon, plus the classic Ilocos Norte loop: rock formations, a hilltop lighthouse, a UNESCO church and sand dunes.

Malay, Aklan

Boracay

The Philippines' most famous white beach, now cleaner after its 2018 rehabilitation. Sunset sails, calm turquoise water and an easy short flight from Cebu.

Luka, Oslob, South Cebu

Tumalog Falls

A wide curtain of water spilling down a mossy wall into a shallow, turquoise pool, just a few minutes from the whale shark area in Oslob. Cool, gentle and easy to reach.

Olango Island, Lapu-Lapu City

Olango Island

A quiet island a short boat ride from Mactan, home to a protected wetland where thousands of migratory birds rest each year. Come for birdwatching, mangroves and a slow island day.

Cebu City, Cebu

Museo Sugbo

Cebu's provincial museum, set in the coral-stone Carcel de Cebu jail of the 1870s. See the galleries on Cebu's past, reopened in August 2025, in a quiet corner near Fort San Pedro.

Cebu City, Cebu

Magellan's Cross

The small coral-stone pavilion in downtown Cebu City that shelters Magellan's Cross. Its story, the painted ceiling, candle custom, the 2025 closure and how to visit next to the Basilica.

Loboc, Bohol

Loboc River Cruise

Bohol's famous floating buffet lunch: drift along the green Loboc River with live music, then see Busay Falls and Loboc's old stone church, an easy day trip from Cebu.

Cebu City, Cebu

Casa Gorordo Museum

A 19th-century ancestral house in Cebu City's Parian district. Walk its timber halls, carved arches and family chapel, and learn how four generations of the Gorordo family lived.

Panagsama, Basdiot, Moalboal, South Cebu

Panagsama Beach

The dive-and-chill strip of Moalboal. Walk into the sea at dawn to swim with the sardines, watch the sunset over Negros, then eat and sip your way along one lively beach road.

Cebu City, Cebu

Fort San Pedro

The triangular Spanish fort beside Pier 1, where Cebu's story as a city began in 1565. Thick coral-stone walls, three bastions, a quiet garden courtyard and a small museum, for a low entrance fee.