Best Beaches in the Philippines

CNN had the Philippines featured last week.  Part of the feature is a list of the 10 Best Beaches in the Philippines.  This is a difficult task to do, given the 7000+ islands in the country and really fantastic sand and  shorelines.

Here is CNN's List:

1) El Nido
2) Boracay
3) Palaui, Tuguegarao
4) Panglao, Bohol
5) Bantayan Islands, Cebu
6) Caramoan, Bicol Region
7) Samal, Davao
8) Siargao, Surigao
9) Great Santa Cruz Island, Zamboanga
10) Pagudpud, Ilocos

More than anything else, a list like this provokes more than inform or validate.  Because there is no way two people would agree on a list of the 10 bests especially pertaining to a beach.  Judging a best beach entails more than sand and water.  The unwritten factor include "when did you go", "who you went with", "who was with you".  Even "where did you stay", and "how much you spent" are valid questions to consider.

Still a good list, only if it helps advertise the Philippines especially the lesser known places.

I had been to 8 of the 10 beaches named here.  Well, 9 if you consider the nearby Zamboanga beach we went to before.

My thoughts about the list:
Without a doubt, El Nido, Boracay, Bantayan are the best Beaches in the Philippines.  Regardless of who you are with or when you went, it is very difficult to make a mistake vacationing in any of these 3 locations.  Powdery sand beaches and water that caters for the very good swimmer and the non-swimmer make these 3 really appealling.

El Nido is a fantastic place particularly for the view.  Boracay for the very long shallow water and the white sand.  Bantayan for the gorgeous water and a unique friendly atmosphere.

this is Bantayan not Boracay.  where sand is also powdery white and water, fantastically turquoise

night time view of the Bantayan shoreline

Not on the List
My first reaction when I saw the list was, where is Batanes?  No top ten list is credible without Batanes.  Until I realized that Batanes really had no "beachy"- beaches.  It is a fantastic place to visit with spectacular breath-taking views, but yes no major beaches.

In my book, Camiguin and Dumaguete will be on the Top 10.  Probably, so will Camotes be.

Panglao is beautiful.  But I really do not like the place. I was surprised that Samal is in the list.  It is not in my Top 20.  There is probably very little chance that I will be at Palaui, Tuguegarao very soon, especially after the narrative about the journey to get there.  But I think the major thing is that there are so many beaches in the Philippines, and identifying the best is almost a personal preference based on many factors.

But isn't that a nice problem to have?  Other countries does not even have 1 beach =).


http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/escape/philippines/philippines-best-beaches-and-islands-632923?page=0,1