FarSerene — Top 5 Places to Visit in the Philippines

The top places to visit in the Philippines are Palawan, Boracay, the Banaue Rice Terraces, Vigan, and Bohol. The Philippines recorded about 5.95 million international visitor arrivals in 2024, a 9.2% increase over 2023, according to the Department of Tourism. These five span the country’s best-ranked islands, a 2,000-year-old mountain landscape, a preserved Spanish colonial town, and a karst-hill natural landmark.

Palawan — Home to the Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River, an 8.2-kilometre navigable underground river UNESCO-listed in 1999 and named a New7Wonders of Nature in 2012; the province placed fifth in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2025 Readers’ Choice Awards for Asia’s best islands.
Boracay — A 4-kilometre white-sand beach that underwent a government-ordered six-month environmental rehabilitation closure in 2018; ranked Asia’s #1 island by Condé Nast Traveler in 2022.
Banaue Rice Terraces — Hand-carved mountainside terraces in the Ifugao highlands, built above 1,000 metres elevation and UNESCO-listed in 1995 as the first-ever cultural landscape inscription.
Vigan — A Spanish colonial town founded in 1572, UNESCO-listed in 1999, with 233 historic buildings preserved along Calle Crisologo.
Bohol — Home to the Chocolate Hills, at least 1,260 grass-covered limestone mounds spread over 50 square kilometres, declared a national geological monument in 1988.

Planning note: Palawan and Boracay sit in different island groups with no direct connection between them, so most itineraries pick one; Banaue and Vigan pair as a northern Luzon loop, while Bohol is reached separately via Cebu. Covering all five in one trip needs at least two weeks given the inter-island flights involved.

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See the Top 10 Countries to Visit in 2026 roundup for how the Philippines compares globally.