Central Visayas, Philippines

1. Chocolate Hills (Carmen, Bohol)

Directions

Quick facts: Knoblike grassy cones rise in orderly clusters across the landscape, with counts typically cited between about 1,260 and 1,776 depending on the survey. Visitors notice the grassy mounds take on a cocoa-brown hue in the dry season, transforming the panorama into a sculpted patchwork visible from the viewing platforms.

Highlights: Golden morning light picks out every ridge and shadow, turning the cones into a honeycombed ocean of mini-volcanoes where the scent of warm grass drifts on the breeze. Local storytellers pass along a legend about a giant named Arogo and his lover Aloya, and guides will often point to a few larger mounds while recounting the tale, adding a human, slightly mischievous note to the landscape.

2. Panglao Island — Alona Beach (Panglao, Bohol)

Directions

Quick facts: Soft, powdery white sand curves around a short crescent of beach, backed by rows of coconut palms and a lively strip of barefoot bars and dive shops. Crystal-clear water often offers visibility over 15 meters, so snorkelers and divers can spot colorful coral gardens and schools of reef fish just a few minutes offshore.

Highlights: A narrow sandbar appears about 50 meters out at low tide, creating shallow waist-deep pools that warm in the sun and glitter like a mirror at sunset. Local dive operators run short night trips of 10 to 15 minutes where neon-colored sea slugs, tiny shrimp and delicate bioluminescent flashes reveal themselves under the beam of a hand-held torch.

3. Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary / Corella Tarsier Conservation Area (Corella, Bohol)

Directions

Official website

Quick facts: Look closely and you'll spot tiny primates clinging to slim tree trunks, their eyes like polished amber that can't move in their sockets so they swivel their necks nearly 180 degrees. Night walks feel intimate and a little thrilling, guides whisper beneath a fern-scented canopy while soft, high-pitched chirps and the rustle of leaves punctuate their lightning-fast leaps for insects.

Highlights: A strict no-flash policy and small viewing groups, often capped at about ten people, create an almost theatrical hush where you can watch one blink slowly as moonlight rims its tiny ears. Guides sometimes name individuals, and a locally famous male called 'Tisoy' has been known to make a five-meter leap between branches, a heart-stopping sight you feel more than hear.

4. Loboc River (Loboc River Cruise, Loboc, Bohol)

Directions

Official website

Quick facts: Shallow wooden boats glide along emerald water beneath limestone cliffs and banana groves, with riverside villagers sometimes waving from bamboo platforms. Live acoustic bands often climb aboard to sing folk songs while a floating buffet serves grilled fish, rice and bright tropical fruits.

Highlights: A typical cruise lasts about 45 minutes, during which a five-piece band can turn the boat into a mini-concert with guitars, percussion and call-and-response singing. At sunset the river mirrors strings of lanterns and the scent of banana blossom and grilled fish, creating a cinematic scene that feels like a private riverside feast.

5. Kawasan Falls (Badian, Cebu)

Directions

Official website

Quick facts: A string of turquoise plunge pools spills down limestone steps into cool, crystal-clear basins, perfect for wading or cliff-side jumps. Adventurers often add a canyoneering route upstream, turning a simple swim into a full-day climb, scramble, and river trek.

Highlights: Sunlight hitting the water at noon makes the pools flash an almost unreal turquoise, so bright you can see white sand and fish below as you float. The lower falls are arranged in three main tiers, so you can hop between cool basins that vary from waist-deep to shoulder-deep, a playful maze of natural swimming holes.

6. Oslob Whale Shark Watching (Tan-awan, Oslob, Cebu)

Quick facts: Local boat crews often bring visitors right up to slow-moving whale sharks, so snorkelers can watch the animals glide just a few meters beneath the surface. Mature individuals often reach about 8 to 10 meters and carry a unique pattern of white spots that lets photographers match the same animal across visits.

Highlights: Morning sunlight slices through glassy water, revealing pale, spotted backs and gentle mouths opening and closing only three to five meters from floating observers. A local practice of offering small anchovies, kept in buckets on boats for over 10 years, concentrates the animals near shore and creates an unforgettable, almost cinematic scene of slow giants feeding beneath the splash of paddles.

7. Basilica Minore del Santo Niño (Cebu City, Cebu)

Directions

Official website

Quick facts: A compact stone basilica shelters a small, dark wooden statue of the Child Jesus that sparked a deep local devotion, drawing pilgrims and curious travelers alike. Daily Masses, colorful votive candles, and the metallic tang of silver reliquaries give the place a steady hum of ritual and human stories.

Highlights: Inside the dim nave, warm beeswax smoke curls around an old wooden Santo Niño statue barely the size of a child's hand, glowing under the polished silver casing. Nearby streets swell to more than a million dancers for the Sinulog festival, and many press rosaries to the glass while leaving tiny shoes or handwritten notes as personal pledges.

8. Osmeña Peak (Dalaguete, Cebu)

Directions

Quick facts: Wind-swept grassy ridges rise into jagged limestone knuckles, offering dramatic silhouettes against the sky.

Highlights: A roughly 15-minute hike from the main trailhead leads to a 360-degree panorama where dawn paints the rolling lawns gold and the air tastes faintly of wet grass. Local farmers sometimes drive small herds of goats along the ridges at sunrise, the bells clinking as clouds slip below the peaks and make the hills look like floating islands.

9. Apo Island (Dauin/Apo Island, Negros Oriental)

Directions

Quick facts: Shallow reefs rise almost to the surface, letting snorkelers float above vivid coral gardens and dense schools of reef fish. Community-run marine sanctuaries and strict no-fishing patrols helped populations rebound, so green and hawksbill turtles are often seen grazing near the shallows.

Highlights: Glass-bottom boat rides and snorkeling reveal orange sea fans and tiny blue chromis that shimmer like confetti whenever someone exhales through a snorkel. Pale turtle tracks appear in the sand at night, each leading to a nest marked with hand-painted bamboo stakes numbered 1 to 12, a local tradition that turns the beach into a quiet conservation watch.

10. Cambugahay Falls (Lazi, Siquijor)

Quick facts: A lush hillside pours into a network of turquoise plunge pools shaped by smooth limestone, where waist-to-shoulder depth spots make cooling off easy for most swimmers. Local vendors and guides cluster by bamboo steps offering fresh coconut and tips on the safest rope-swing spots, so newcomers can relax and follow the locals' lead.

Highlights: Three tiers of falling water stack like a natural stairway, each pool framed by dangling vines and sunlit mist that paints faint rainbows across the surface. A popular rope swing hangs about 3 to 4 meters above the deepest pool, the hollow thud of a belly-flop and the splash echoing off mossy rock creating a playful soundtrack visitors chase all afternoon.