For a fun, and more interesting, meal out head to the fish market and choose your own food. The stallholders sell the catch of the day and it can range from tuna steaks to shrimp, to white bait and rainbow fish. Simply choose your fish, your cut and tell the stallholder how much you want.

By Phillippa Stewart

A good tip is to ask a local to buy it for you so you aren’t subject to inflated tourist prices.

The restaurants surrounding the market are basic but are set up to cook fish brought from the market. They charge by weight (to the nearest kilo – so it’s worth asking for a round number when you order your fish). The restaurants will cook it to order be it grilled, fried, or covered in garlic or chili. Ask the chef what he suggests will work best as they often come up with combinations you wouldn’t have thought of. Most fish is served with rice.

While you can bring in your own seafood you can’t bring in your own drinks so be prepared to spend money if you want to drink.

By Phillippa Stewart

There are also lots of street vendors selling the usual tourist paraphernalia so you can always indulge in a bit of shopping after eating.

The fish market may not be for the faint hearted – but don’t be put off by the smell, fish eyes, or the flies that the locals keep fanning away. It is great fun and you’ll end up with a meal you wont forget in a hurry. A truly Filipino dining experience.

How to get there: D’Talipapa is situated near station 2, and it is well signposted.

By Phillippa Stewart

If you’re short on time in Boracay here are some suggestions to make the most of the night.

Start the night by hiring a local sailing boat and aim to be out on the water for sunset. There is nothing more relaxing than watching the sunset and then lying back on the boat and watching the stars as you sail home. A good tip is to buy a few drinks and nibbles in advance so you can have a mini picnic out on the water.

Most of the sailing beaches pick you up and drop you off at White beach – which is handy as this is where Boracay’s nightlife is centered. Why not grab a pre dinner tipple and make the most of the numerous beach bars offering happy “hour”? Luckily happy hour can stretch from 4pm to around 9pm in some bars.

If you get a bit peckish walk down White Beach and you will find the whole strip dominated by restaurants. Many offer all you can eat buffets but do check how long the fish has been outside for before you tuck in. The Mongolian BBQ is particularly tasty and is cooked to order.

Head to Hey Jude or Juice Bar if you fancy a lively night (Station Two), or if you fancy a more relaxed atmosphere try the bars around Station Three. The Red Pirate is a great little chill out beach bar in the area. The bar plays a lot of reggae and tribal music and has a great atmosphere.

A perfect end to the evening is to take a stroll (or paddle) along the beach. It is a great way to soak up the atmosphere and to do a bit of people watching. Fire poi can often be seen on the beach especially outside the Bamboo Lounge – this can make for some really fantastic pictures.

For hardcore party animals watch the sunrise and see the new day dawn – Boracay style.

One Boracay’s hidden gems is Reef Retreat

Matt and Clare the owners are really friendly and are happy to take the time to point you in the right direction for things to do in the area. There is a lovely communal garden, and my ultimate favourite – a tree house. It’s is an ideal place to have a few drinks and nibbles while watching the kitesurfers on the beach (as well as feeling like a big kid again).

The rooms all have private balconies or verandas, and the design is warm and draws its inspiration from the island’s materials and landscapes. Rooms are all equipped with cable TV, air-con, a mini-bar, wi-fi, a king-sized bed and en-suite bathroom.

During the high and peak seasons (November to April) breakfast is served next door at the windsurfing centre. It is an ideal place to meet new people and (if you’re really keen on watersports) discuss wind conditions with the windsurfing instructors. If wind chat is not your cup of tea at least you can tuck into a full English breakfast – perfect before a day of sightseeing.

Rooms cost from US$70 in low season (May to October) and from US$85 in high seasons. During peak times such as Christmas, New Year, Chinese New Year and Holy week however prices start from US$100.

Address:  Reef Retreat Resort, Bulabog Beach, Boracay, Malay, Aklan, Philippines.

Email: reef.retreat@hotmail.com

Telephone: +63 9173 493 060

Website: http://www.reefretreatboracay.com/

By Phillippa Stewart

Dangling at the end of a kite, on a windy day, and with a board strapped to your feet might not be everyone’s idea of fun. However, if this does appeal then Boracay is considered to be one of the best places in the world to kitesurf.

The warm, shallow waters and reliable wind makes it a great place to learn. The popular kitesurfing website kitesurfing101.com rates it as one of the top five destinations in the world. In 2007 Yahoo! Travel rated the beaches in Boracay among the world’s top ten – perfect if you decide the kitesurfing isn’t quite working out!

Glen Parsons has owned Ocean Republic, a kitesurfing school in Boracay, since 2003.

“The more exposure it gets the faster it grows. It looks like an easy sport to do, but it’s not as easy as it looks. Its colorful – colorful kites and colorful boards. It has all the essence of something that looks like fun to do, which it is. Now it is becoming more mainstream and there is more money in the sport. People are now producing good safe gear. It’s easier now” he said.

Kites gliding serenely across the sky may look beautiful but beginners should still bare in mind the dangers.

“When I started only freaks took up kitesurfing – the extreme sports idiots. Back then there was hardly any safety. People were just strapping power kites to themselves with no real means of being able to successfully release themselves if it went wrong. But now the dangers of the sport are no longer in the forefront. Before it was a wolf in wolf’s clothing but now it is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Now that’s the danger as people forget how dangerous it can be,” said Parsons.

Matt Thomas, an instructor at Ocean Republic has been kitesurfing for five years. He says the great thing about kiting is it really is a sport suitable for everyone.

“The great thing about kitesurfing is it doesn’t section out anyone regardless of gender, size, age. You can be ten years old, sixty years old, any size, shape, anyone can learn it. It’s partly down to the way the kit is so adaptable. There isn’t just one kite, there’re lots of kites for different things,” he said.

Both Thomas and Parsons recommend that beginners get professional training if they want to take up the sport.

“Give it a good go. See if it’s for you. It always looks good but until you try it you can’t tell if it’s for you. There’s a lot more to it than what you see from the beach. Be patient and it will come. Once its there it never goes, it is like riding a bike,” said Thomas.

“You really do need instruction. You need to know about the tides, wind effects, compressions. Go to a school where they seem professional. Recommendation is better than anything and be careful of cowboys,” said Parsons.

For more information on kitesurfing in Boracay visit kitesurfingschool.org – a great resource for finding kitesurfing schools across the world.

By Phillippa Stewart

How to get there:
Boracay is a fifteen-minute boat ride away from Caticlan airport.

Equipment:

To do the sport you need: a kiteboard (these can come with or without foot straps and are similar to a wakeboard); a waist or seat harness; a power kite and, (especially for learners), a strong sense of perseverance and ability to laugh at yourself. Beginners will spent a lot of time being dragged through the water! It is also advisable to get a pair of booties for the water as there is a lot of coral on the sea floor on the main kitesurfing beach – Bulabog.

Most kitesurfing schools along the beach rent you equipment as part of their courses.