boracay activities

One of the things that excites me about Boracay are the activities that you can enjoy, I’ve read and heard that there are a lot to choose from. Being the sporty me one of the things that I searched when we arrived in Boracay are the activities that I can try, I already noticed the parasails (mukhang mamahalin), speedboats (ekis! Bukod sa mamahalin baka magsuka lang ako) and banana boats (have not tried it yet but with kikay girls chances are 50-50). There are also island hopping tours (pwede pwede), helmet diving (definitely want to try) and ATV (nasa top 3 list to do) to name a few. Several people with laminated pictures approached our group offering tours and activities. 

Considering that we stayed for 3 days, sadly we were not able to do much as it will rain during mornings and sun will come out late in the afternoon. I would have gone out by myself to do the ATV and would want to mountain bike as well and I have no problem doing it by myself but with few of the girls discouraging you to do so, I just decided to stay put so as not to create tension (grrrr… sisiguraduhin kong pagbalik ko ng Boracay yari yang mga activities na yan sakin). That’s also one of the downsides if you’re with an all girl group with most of them not as adventurous as you are.

early morning in boracay

Jayjay and I have been running for some time now and before coming to Boracay I told myself that I would not want to pass the opportunity of running at the Boracay shores. On our second day I woke up at around 5:00AM and did not bother waking some of the girls as they’re not into waking up so early and especially not into running. I was surprised that at that early there were already a lot of people in the beach and mostly was running like me.  On my way back I noticed a guy paddle boarding I mentally noted that I want to try that and will make sure not to go home without doing that.

this is it!

True enough I did not go home without trying the paddle board. I met Kuya Jonathan and asked him how much is the rent for the board, he quoted me P500 an hour, huwaaatttt! No way! I tried haggling and offered him P200 for 30 minutes (ayaw ko din naman syang masyadong baratin para kahit papano kumita din naman sya). He agreed and told me not to tell the other girl who rented his other paddle board because she’s paying him P500 an hour, I shook his hand with that. He gave me brief instructions how to paddle, stand and navigate. I wasn’t able to stand on my first 2 tries, I was able to get the hang of it on my third try, cool! I did not put my money into waste and did not even rest for the whole 30 minutes hehe. It’s not a bad decision to only rent the board for 30 minutes as you will get tired on your 30^th minute (weh sakto lang?!). I let the girls try it but only Bon did. I told Kuya Jonathan that 30 minutes will do, he told me to extend it to an hour as he does not have a customer yet, I told him that I don’t have P300 to add for the rent and he said to just add P100 and again not to tell the other girl, I agreed. I want him to earn as well and the more time I spent on the board the more people on the beach will get curious as to how it would feel to paddle board and even with already aching muscles on my arms and thighs I continued enjoying the paddle boarding, this will be my way of helping him get new customers. A girl and a boy came to me and asked me who to speak with to rent it after my turn. Yes! 2 customers for Kuya Jonathan! I was not able to get his contact number but he told me that he is the only guy who offers paddle boarding, there’s another guy at Station 3 but according to him it was exclusive to the resort visitors.

"ma'am dun po sa malalim tamang tama hindi po
kayo marunong lumangoy!"

On our third day the girls told me that somebody offered them parasailing for P2,000 for all of us. I asked them why it was so cheap they said that it’s the price that was told to them by the guy who offered them. In a minute I was already ready to go. When we met him he told us to follow him and I pointed to him one of the parasails on the horizon and he told me “ay ma’am mahal po iyan mga P2,000 per head po yan”. Nyek! I thought that’s what we’re doing and he pointed the boats with blue sails and told me “Ma’am un po tayo paraw sailing!” Anyeyek! It’s paraw sailing and not parasailing! I told the girls and with the same reaction as mine we all laugh hard. 

approaching helmet dive site

We told the guy what we thought was the parasailing and since we want him to also earn we just told him that we’ll do helmet dive and island hopping instead. He quoted us P300 each for the helmet dive and P1500 for the whole group’s island hopping. He brought us to a station we’re he have us registered and pay. So that’s how they do it here, they have like a centralized group who arranges water activities. That’s good giving everyone fair share of the market and the people offering the along the beaches are getting only commissions for every group or people they brought in. It was already late in the afternoon and we went first to the helmet diving location. They had us sign a waiver, had our picture taken and conducted brief diving rules and instructions. Only 6 of us dived, Cha did not because of her knee injury and Carol who I think is afraid to try it haha! Just a joke because according to her she has already tried it before and does not want to do it again.

oscar kilo!

My sister told me the same thing she was not able to handle the ear pressure underwater and will not do it again. I set my mind that I will surely feel the same and all I need to do is to just follow the instructions on how to release the pressure. I went last and 4 steps below the ladder I can already feel the pressure on my ears, the guy who dived with us was like pulling me away from the ladder and would want to already start the fish feeding frenzy and start taking shots. (Ano ka hilo!) I took my time and did not release my grip to the ladder until the pressure was gone, it took me 3 times before the pressure on my ear pops. Now it’s time to enjoy! The water on the surface seems calm but underneath there was a little current I panicked when I felt I was being pushed by the current away from the group but when I looked around they’re just within arm’s reach (panic lang!). The diver gave us small balls that we need to dissolve with our fingers and moments later lots of fish already swam towards us, we stayed for like 15 minutes underwater with the feeding the fish and smiling for the camera. We had to wait for another 10-15 minutes for the CD of the pictures and video.

approaching puka beach

After the helmet dive off we go to island hop but problem was its not island hopping anymore it will just be island visit. The boatman told us that we can only go to 1 island because it was already around 4:00PM and they do not want to travel at dark, same with us and with unpredictable weather we do not want to do that as well. We agreed and told them to bring us to the most beautiful island. On our way to the island we pass along the Boracay shores, there were a lot of resorts up until station 3, you cannot find any open space in between. We pass along the secluded Shangri-la resort and the one that they say was owned by Manny Pacquiao. Moments later the boatman told us that we’re nearing the island, from afar you can already tell that it was beautiful. There was not even one resort and we were the only people there. The boatman told us that it’s called the Puka Beach. I’ve heard and read good things about Puka Beach, true enough it was beautiful, unspoiled and truly beautiful. The boatman told us that we can only stay for like 15 minutes and we did not waste time, who does not want a pictorial galore at a beautiful beach like this, no one! We all took our own spaces and and it was like we were having the photo shoot of our lives haha!

pictorial galore

One thing that will surely not hurt your budget but relaxing and fun is to just lounge by the beach and frolick in the waters. You can also stroll the long stretch of Boracay shores and do window shopping and sightseeing.  And if you’re a foodie lover there are a lot of restaurants and food joints that you can try and choose from.

There are a lot of things that you can do in Boracay, there will always be the free ones like frolicking in the beach, running, window shopping and exploring the town. And there are also those affordable (coupled with little haggling skills) like paddle boarding, helmet diving and island visit hopping. And there are also those expensive but for sure worth your money and unforgettable experience like parasailing and helicopter ride and if you have the money why not. But even if you don’t have enough money to spend on most of the things to do in Boracay, it’s the things you’ve done and experienced with your friends and loved ones which will always be memorable, fun and most importantly priceless.

thanks girls! :)