Boracay 2017

I have been to Boracay three times.  The last time was last March 2010.  So when my friend told me that they just booked a Cebu Pacific promo round trip flight to Boracay for only P1,500.00 plus per person and invited me and another friend to come, I did not hesitate to go for the fourth time.  Unfortunately, I did not get the same promo rate as they did.  Mine was a little expensive than theirs's at P3,000.00 plus round trip.  Still not bad :).

So what's new with Boracay?

Caticlan Airport to Boracay
First of all, I was completely clueless of the new way to go to Boracay.  I just know that our route was via Caticlan and this is still the shorter way to go to Boracay (vs via Kalibo).  What I remembered from my previous trips to Boracay was that from Caticlan airport, there's a boat ride from the jetty port and you'll arrive at the Boracay beach front.  That wasn't the case anymore.
Since there's the new Caticlan airport runway, we rode an airport bus going to the old but renovated Caticlan airport.  From there, we paid P450.00 going to Boracay. Included were a short aircon van ride to the jetty port (around 5-10 minutes) boat ride from jetty port (around 15-20 minutes) and lastly, a multicab ride (also around 15-20 minutes) to Boracay beach.   When we stepped out of the multicab, we did not see any signs of the beach nor our hotel.  We had to ask a guard of an establishment where the beach front was. Turns out that we travelled on the main road of Boracay and we had to walk to a narrow path that leads to the beach.

Accomodation 

It's easy to get lost in choosing accomodation in Boracay.  The old rule was Station 1 is for the more expensive accomodation where it is less crowded and nearer to the famous landmark, Willy's rock and grotto; Station 2, for the party people where most establishments like restaurants and shops are located; Station 3 for the less expensive accommodations.  Although, generally, people refer to this as a guide, there are already 5 star hotels in station 3 and budget hotels in station 1.

I checked the reviews and ratings in Tripadvisor and Agoda and found Bluelily Hotel, which is located in Station 1.  It's a good thing that I thought of checking if they have a website and if I could book directly.  Luckily, I got a better rate when I booked directly in their website.  For 3 days and 2 nights, we paid P4,160.00 for 2 persons so that's P2,080.00 per person for 2 nights including breakfast.  It's a good deal considering that it's in station 1 and beach front.  I also think we got our money's worth.  Nothing fancy but the queen size bed was comfortable.  There's an extra bed for massage.  The bathroom is small but it has hot shower, toilet was flushing without any problems, it has enough hooks to hang towel and clothes, towels were replaced daily and no water interruption.

However, don't expect too much on breakfast.  They do no have a dining area except for the outdoor dining with the beach as your view.  It was raining on our first morning so we had our breakfast in our room.  Available breakfast choices were Filipino (silog) and American (toasts, cereals).