Family Concerns

Taking a Holiday to the Philippines is an exciting experience and for some the reason to travel there is to enjoy a beach vacation and one of the places to see is Guimaras. Located in the southern part of the Philippines, the island paradise of Guimaras previously known as Himal-us is famous for its excellent beaches with clear blue waters, clean white sand and magnificent marine life rivalling the other more popular spots in the Philippines. Guimaras was once a province of Iloilo but is now an independent island and just a 15 minute ferry ride away.

Getting There

Like pretty much the rest of the country, Guimaras is an island and getting there is mostly done over the water. The island is accessible by both air and sea from Manila, or otherwise by boat from Bacolod city, with a easy 15 minute ferry trip from Iloilo city. On the island moving around is through any of the various forms of public transportation, trucks, tour drivers or motorbikes.

Iloilo being the nearest main city, there are ferry options that you would choose from which are offered by the local ferry companies including FF Cruz RORO Service, Pump boats from Ortiz Wharf or Parola Wharf which travels every 30 minutes, and Fel-am Transport Ferry Service. Then there is also the roll on roll off ferry which plies its route to the island around five times each day. You can perhaps hire a chartered boat and travel there or if you have your own then you would be most welcome to do so.

Places to Go

Guimaras island has some of the best beaches in the 7107 islands of Paradise Philippines with a variety of accommodations on each of its beautiful white sand beaches. Some of the more visited beaches on the island include Puerto del Mar, Alubihod, and Roca Encantada, with more equally as wonderful beaches also available. From anywhere between $8 to $50 a night, depending on the quantity of guests and the type of room you want, you can check-in to any of the local resorts which offer different amenities but the main draw is indeed the great beaches that are right on the doorstep.

The beaches are obviously the first place that the tourist would want to see but other spots that are of interest might include visiting one or more of the dozen or so mango plantations. There are over 50,000 mango trees on the island and a visit to any of these plantations is a unique experience on its own. The only reason anyone would want to pass up a chance to see the mango plantations is perhaps a dislike for the mango.

There are three major plantations on the island which are some of the biggest in the country, they include Southern Orchard in Jordan, Oro Verde and Guimaras Tree Farm in Buenavista. In general they are open for public tours and you would be welcome to visit any of them with open arms although they don’t often have too many visitors. If you do decide to visit any of the mango plantations then don’t forget to leave without taking with you a box of Guimaras Super Mangoes as they are called, which to many are perhaps the sweetest mangoes anywhere in the world.