We took a bus trip from El Nido to the Underground River. The trip there was a little scary because…read morewe had to switch buses in a small area where there was only a bus stop. We weren't sure that we were in the right place. Once we got on the correct bus, we felt better. The bus ride was bumpy with a lot of turns. My son even got car sick. The town where you get the boats to the Underground River was packed with people. We had to wait in line for quite a while to get tickets. The tour included a lunch which was served in an outdoor tent like area. I even saw a rat! It wasn't very good food. The boat ride to the Underground River we really rough that day. Luckily it wasn't a very long ride. The actual tour of the Underground River was fabulous! My pictures speak for themselves.

When in Palawan, the Underground River is a must! I've toured this river in 2009 (without kids) and…read morein 2018 (with a 1- and 3-year-old) and it was effing amazing both times. It starts at a dock by Sambang Beach where you board a motorized (loud) outrigger boat with about 5 other people. Staff hands out hardhats and life vests. My hubs and I were the only folks who brought kids of any age and while they had childrens' life vests, they were too big for my kids. Yet, we made them work while holding adult hardhats on their heads. We were lucky that child protective services weren't watching. It's about a 20-minute ride to this other spot where you walk a little and switch to a simpler paddle boat you share with about 11 other people. Staff gives you an earpiece to listen to a recorded narration while your tour guide tells you more. It's a short and beautiful ride into a underground/cave part of the river. I don't have good pictures inside the cave because it was too dark, but there are lots of beautiful formations thousands of years old that your tour guide will illuminate with a flashlight within an incredibly peaceful ambiance. This part lasts about 45 minutes. My family really enjoyed it and I super recommend it! TIPS: **Wear rugged clothing (or stuff you don't mind getting f*cked) and waterproof/resistant footwear. **Expect to get your crotch wet. You have to wade at certain parts of the tour. **Try to bring a dry bag (brands like Earth Pak, Marchway, etc. which are also sold at stores along the way there) for your personal belongings. **Your tour guide will offer to take your picture with your own camera/phone. It's a good chance for a full family/group photo. **Life is simple around these parts including the toilet. Bring your own toilet paper for rest stops along the way. Hand sanitizer's also a good idea. **Bring cash to tip your boat crews and tour guide.

One of the best tours I would have to say, having done this twice. The boat ride there is…read morecomfortable, the first time there was a large group of international travelers. On my second trip, there was a large contingent of college students from an all girls school. So folks are coming because they're all eager to learn. Tip - Charge and bring your Nikon, don't make that mistake. There will be plenty of killer shots to take. I came back to learn more and for the other fun things. I do enjoy the mini bus ride and tour guide explanations for everything. You get to leave the bus at certain points so that you can walk among the ruins. Be careful - if you have uncoordinated relatives or small kids, you need to accompany them because there are no guard rails in certain places. This reminded me a little of Chitchen Itza (Yucatan Peninsula). And of course - there is a buffet lunch at the hotel which is nice. Warning - You may feel a little sluggish after this big meal as you continue to tour the island. And by the time you get back to Manila and drive home - it's an all day affair and you'll feel somewhat tired. In summary, if you're into history and can take in large amounts of information and process it accordingly this trip is for you. If you get into WW2 data points, you will really enjoy this. If you don't get into history but like a nice relaxing boat ride and tour with a huge buffet lunch - you'll have a great time nonetheless. The fresh air alone and the views will have you coming back with other touristy visitors.

The first time I heard about Corregidor Island was when I was about to board a boat to go there. I…read morehave to admit, I'm not exactly a history buff. That was the one class that I just couldn't get excited about. Fourth period History class mean Fourth period nappy nap time for Jamie. As I got older though, I developed an appreciation for history. I'm still not well-versed in World War 2 facts, but all the little stories that have Corregidor Island as a back drop make me feel more intrigued. For instance, the famous "I shall return" quote from General MacArthur was made on this island. Also, there was a Japanese cemetery that was found here decades later only after a picture was seen at a garage sale in the US. Interesting stuff. The tour around the island gave insight on the battles here. From seeing Battery Way and all the dilapidated barracks, all of it is quite amazing being there and realizing what happened but just a few years ago. While I wasn't really looking forward to this part of my first trip to the Philippines in ages, I am certainly glad I went. And, when I do go back to the Philippines, I can't wait to make another stop on Corregidor Island.

THE BIG: Located in the Batangas region of The Philippines. Supervolcano that has a concept out of…read morethis world. An island in a lake on an island in a lake on the Philippine island. Mind Blown. THE BLACK AND WHITE: We came here during the christmas vacation and it was packed! Beautiful caldera with Taal volcano slowly erupting in the background. Heard that the 2020 eruption evacuated many people and caused alot of damage. Otherwise it was a nice humid day and the people that make Taal volcano their livelihood shows with the fishing boats and tourists activities nearby. THE FINAL BAMBOO: Overall highly recommend coming here to see the concept in action. A great viewpoint of Taal Volcano and the lake is from Tagaytay.

This review is pre-COVID and pre-Volcanic eruption…read more Taal Volcano is located in Tagatay, it's a great getaway for folks from Manila and Laguna. Tagatay itself, is an awesome place for having a second home, like Wisconsin is for Chicagoland peeps. Upon arriving, you can grab breakfast at any of the fine restaurants looking down at lake Taal. Enjoy the food, coffee, breeze and wonderful views. The volcano sits in the middle of the lake. So we had to negotiate a boat ride to and from the volcano. Once there, for a fee, we were able to ride these really skinny horses up to the top of the crater. Wow, that was scary but we were there for adventure, right!! It was a hot day so bring a water bottle or two. I also noticed some tourists (either from Japan or Korea) hiking up to the top. We would have done the same thing but we had a spry but elderly person with us, so we decided to go with the horses. I hope to come back to see how things have turned out since the eruption. I just love Geology as a whole and the ruggedness of this outing. They just need to build some infrastructure like what we have in Yellowstone or Mount Zion, so even more people can enjoy this.

Amazing boat tour & great day trip from Manila!! Although the island that Taal is on has not…read moreaccepted visitors or hikers since its eruption in early 2020, Precious Boat Station has re-opened for boat tours of the lake and coastline of the volcano island. We were initially disappointed that we couldn't hike the volcano, but it was SOO WORTH IT just to take the boat ride. The staff was also very friendly and are local to the area so they were very knowledgeable and told us about the eruption in 2020. You also get fresh coconut to drink after the boat ride. If you're in Manila, definitely come out to Tagaytay for this boat tour, and get a buko tart in town!

Went in vacation to Palawan Philippines and had them handle all the details. Headache free…read morevacation. Enjoyed it completely. Thank you Jara Travel and Tou

From the owner: We focus on Quality and Relationships We emphasize building…read morelong-term relationships with both corporate clients and individual travelers. Our agency is family-operated, which adds a personal touch, making clients feel cared for rather than just serviced.

We found this tour online when Google foodtour in Manila... When I asked some of my local friends…read moreabout the tour... Apparently, it is a popular tour for tourists as well as locals... Especially after featured on CNN'S Anthony Bourdaine No Reservation, Manila episode! For about $25 USD per person (depending how big is your group, our group is about 15 plus), the tour is including a walking through Manila chinatown, learning about the history, the culture and food tasting at 5 places. We met at the Binondo church. Our tour guide was Ivan Van Dy who was the guide for Anthony Bourdain. Ivan is very knowledgeable about the history and food and very funny... Everyone in our tour is local! 1. First stop was the new Po-Hung lumpia house. We had the fresh or unfried veggie lumpia. It is very different from the usual lumpia. This lupmia is eaten with dipping in cripy rice, hot chilly sauce, soy sauce and other types of sauce. It is savory, crunchy, salty and spicy! 2. Second stop was Quick snac or Amah's kitchen. Here, we had empanadas with chives, Pilar tofu, punsir satemi dado. Empanadas are fresh. Pilar tofu is fried tofu served with special sauce, cilandro, chives and sriracha hot sauce. It is perfectly fried outside and melted in your mouth. Punsir satemi dado is egg noodles sate with beef and kngkong. It is also very spicy! 3. Third stop was Dong-bei dumpling house. We had chive dumplings and brown pork dumplings. These are very fresh and tasty! At the entrance, we watched a lady making fresh dumplings! 4. Fourth stop was President tea house. Here, we tried their salted duck egg custard dumplings and mango soup! Probably this is my favorite stop of the tour... Not only it is different but also very light and delicious desert! The duck Egg custard dumplings were served hot and the filling melted in your mouth, savory, cheesy but light! The mango soup is very refreshing after having other salty and spicy dishes! 5. Last stop was the Chinese Holand Hopia and Bakery. I never had hopia before... So, I don't have any frame of reference... It is a pastry type desert with different fillings like mung bean paste, jack fruit, duran, etc. We also stopped by market and tried out different dried foods. Ivan also took us to one of the Chinese associated house. We enjoyed our tour very much and met some very cool people on the tour! I definitely would recommend this tour!

The tour itself was okay. Nothing great, but okay. The big issue was the lack of communication that…read morethe Binondo food tour was going to start early. The original confirmation email stated that the tour would start at 9:30am and to arrive several minutes early. We received an email at 9:06 on the morning of the tour telling us they decided to start early at 9:05, so we literally had a -1 minute heads up. This started a game of cat and mouse. It took several text messages, a phone call, wandering aimlessly around Binondo, and finally arriving 45 minutes after the tour started. We missed a decent portion of the tour and no apology was made or any effort to rectify the situation. For 2000 pesos, spend your money elsewhere.

The Jeepney is one of the Philippines' most popular cultural icons. Originally left here by the…read moreAmericans after the war, it formed a big role in public transportation in big cities as well as in the provinces. Most tourists find that they can't leave the country without giving it a try. Well how about you try a Jeepney Tour, you get the jeepney experience, a tour around the city and to top it off, some karaoke while you're at it! Jeepney Tours offer charted tours in their fully air conditioned Jeepney and comes with a karaoke television on board. It's practically like squeezing in some of the Philippines' best experiences in one activity! It's fun, different and worth the ride!

I joined Dustin's God, Gold and Glory (3G) tour together with the rest of the international…read moredelegates from a research convention and peace dialogue that was put together by the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. I was blown away by how informative the tour was, and it wasn't even that strenuous because it only focused on three main attractions in Intramuros. We first went to San Agustin Church for some really interesting trivia on the religious artwork, the construction of the church and the history of the Spanish conquest in the country. Then we went to other different parts of the nearby streets to learn more about the identity and the psyche of the Filipinos. Considering that most of the people on the tour were foreigners who are new to the country, I think the 3G tour is an excellent way to introduce the uninitiated to the values, the quirks and the psychology of the Filipinos. I highly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to stay in the country for a while, but wants to speed up the adjustment process. Dustin's intelligent insight on the way of life of the Filipinos will bring a certain level of understanding as to how we act, think and behave the way we do, and even as a Filipino, I learned a lot about our culture and history that I didn't learn from textbooks. It is such a refreshing take on our crazy Filipino complex of dealing with things. The rest of the delegates enjoyed the tour tremendously, and had a lot of wonderful things to say about the clever guide, the depth of the tour program and the way everything was set up. The logistics were smooth despite the rain, and the tour ended on time as Dustin was very timely in his delivery. Well done!

My colleagues and I had the pleasure of experiencing Dustin's 3G (God, Gold and Glory) tour of old…read moreManila two weeks ago. Our group was a mix of backgrounds (Chinese who grew up in Canada and Indonesia, Australian) so they came with a genuine interest in learning more about Philippine history and culture. Dustin did not disappoint. He is not only extremely knowledgable about Philippine history, he uses it to contextualize the country's present culture and values. Even if I grew up in the Philippines, I learned so much from Dustin on this tour. He is an engaging and dynamic storyteller with a special talent for connecting the past and the present seamlessly, and has fun while doing so. All in all I would say this was an unforgettable experience and I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to understand and appreciate Manila more.

I would recommend this service hands down. I coordinated with Erwin weeks before our Manila trip…read more He was responsive and very transparent with their rate. Kuya Alfred, our driver, took very good care of us and our family. He was very safe in navigating around tricky Manila roads and can be counted with insider knowledge on where to go when we went to tagaytay. A true stress free way to see the beautiful country of the Philippines. Thank you Kuya Erwin and Kuya Alfred. Till next time!

I just wanted to take a moment to express my appreciation for such a wonderful trip. The planning…read moreand phone calls with Erwin in the beginning made the trip an easy decision, the guidance leading up to the trip from him was very reassuring and nerve settling and Alfredo, our driver guide was absolutely amazing!! I traveled alone and was very anxious about the trip. I couldn't have picked a better tour company to tour Luzon with. I felt very safe being in the hands of Alfredo. I travel often and have left my country a handful of times and this was behind the best trip of my life and I have Alfredo and Erwin to thank for that. To see the sites beyond the itinerary and gather as much of north and south of Luzon as possible in 12 days was truly amazing. Alfredo made this trip enjoyable and the whole team is so well organized with each day thoroughly planned out. Thank you so much!