Boracay

Yixing is a Chinese-speaking travel agency in Manila and a Philippine ground operator. Boracay is not sold here as a fixed package: we build and price each trip around your dates, your group and where you want to stay. The genuinely awkward part of Boracay is getting on to the island - airport, road transfer, pier registration and payment, then the crossing, each link depending on the one before - and that is exactly what we take on. Below is what we handle, and for each item, where our work ends and yours begins.

1｜Airport transfers (Caticlan or Kalibo)

• We do: both airports. We track your actual landing time from the flight number, meet you with a name board, help with luggage and take you to Caticlan Jetty Port. From Kalibo it is a long road transfer, so we budget at least 2 hours, more in peak season or rain - the time is planned for in advance, not discovered at the pier.
• You do: give us the exact flight number and landing time. If you land too late for the regular sailings we will suggest a night on the Caticlan side and an early crossing the next morning - whether to do that is your call.

2｜Pier formalities and official payments

• We do: walk you through the three steps at the pier - tourist registration counter, payment counter, boarding. We help fill in the registration form, take you to the correct official counter, make sure you receive itemised receipts, and see you onto the boat.
• You do: have valid travel documents ready for everyone in the party (foreign visitors use a passport). The environmental fee, terminal fee and boat ticket are official charges - pay them only at official counters with posted rates and receipts. Ignore anyone by the roadside or in a vehicle offering to "pay on your behalf" without proper documentation.

3｜Accommodation booking

• We do: recommend which stretch of the beach or the east side suits you, based on whether you want quiet or lively and on your budget, book it and send the confirmation. We cross-check against the accredited accommodation list published by the province before booking.
• You do: give us each guest's name exactly as spelled in their travel document. Changes and cancellations follow the property's own rules; we apply on your behalf but cannot guarantee the outcome.

4｜Transport on the island

• We do: arrange the transfer from the pier to your accommodation and movement around the island; a vehicle by the day where you want one, and for short local rides we explain in advance where you are going and how the fare works.
• You do: if you flag down a ride yourself, settle three things before getting in - where you are going, whether the fare is per person or for the vehicle, and the total. Small payments on the island rely on cash, so carry small notes.

5｜Boat trips and water activities

• We do: select the operator, book the slot and arrange transfers. We place weather-dependent items such as island hopping and the sunset sail mid-itinerary rather than on your arrival day or the day before you leave, so there is room to redo them. Before boarding we check life vests, including children's sizes, and whether trips are running that day.
• You do: activities are run by licensed local operators and their on-site safety briefing governs. Tell us at booking if anyone cannot swim or has a health condition.

6｜Chinese-speaking companion

• We do: a companion by the day to interpret, deal with vendors and operators, and be the first responder if something goes wrong before looping in your advisor.
• You do: tell us whether you want this throughout or only certain days. The island is small and walkable, so many guests only want a companion on arrival day and on the day they go out to sea. It is priced per day and optional.

7｜Departure timing and the ride to the airport

• We do: work backwards leg by leg - island vehicle, Cagban Jetty Port, the crossing, Caticlan Jetty Port, the airport - with queues and schedule changes allowed for, plus an extra margin if you connect to an international flight, and arrange the vehicle and companion for that day.
• You do: you leave from Cagban Jetty Port on the island, where a terminal fee applies separately and is paid on site. Tell us your return flight time as soon as it is set so we can pull the day forward.

8｜Emergency coordination during the trip

• We do: before you travel you get a named Chinese-speaking contact and a number staffed on the day. For suspended sailings, cancelled flights, illness or lost documents, come to us first and we coordinate the re-booking, vehicles, accommodation and where to seek care.
• You do: contact us first. Medical treatment and claims follow your own policy, so insure yourself before travelling and check whether water activities are covered.

Want to read up on Boracay itself - what to do, how many days, where to stay? That is in our guides, not repeated here: Boracay White Beach: how Stations 1, 2 and 3 differ and where to stay ｜ How many days in Boracay: 3, 5 or 7 ｜ Which Boracay airport: Caticlan or Kalibo. Then send your dates and group size to an advisor and we will build the plan around them.

How to book: five steps

• Step 1 - tell us what you need: dates, group size, inbound and outbound flights (Caticlan or Kalibo) and which stretch of beach you want. WeChat, WhatsApp, Telegram, LINE or any of the contacts at the bottom of this page.
• Step 2 - we send a plan: a day-by-day draft built around your landing times, stating the transfers, how the island crossing is handled, where you stay, which day goes out to sea, and the price.
• Step 3 - revise until it fits: before you confirm, change the beach stretch, add or drop activities, adjust the vehicles; the price is recalculated.
• Step 4 - confirm and book: we make the actual bookings (accommodation, transfers, boats, activity slots) and send you the confirmations.
• Step 5 - travel: before departure you receive your contact person and driver details for the day.

What we need from you

• Group size, and whether anyone is elderly, a child, pregnant or has limited mobility;
• Inbound and outbound flight numbers and dates - your landing time decides whether arrival day runs smoothly;
• Accommodation preference: quiet or lively, room type and rough level;
• Any boat trips or water activities you want, plus dietary and other needs;
• Each traveller's name exactly as spelled in their travel document - accommodation, boat tickets and pier registration all follow it.

How far ahead to book

There is no hard cut-off, but accommodation and sailings tighten noticeably in peak periods (Christmas and New Year, Lunar New Year, Holy Week, the Labour Day long weekend in early May). Tell us as soon as your dates are fixed - the earlier, the more choice. Last-minute requests are accepted, with fewer options.

Changes and cancellations: the general principle

• Before you confirm the plan: change freely, at no cost.
• After confirmation, for anything not yet actually booked: still adjustable.
• For accommodation, flights, boats and activity slots already booked on your behalf: each operator's own rules apply. We apply for you and report the outcome honestly, but we cannot promise a change or a refund.
• How this works for your specific booking is set out when you confirm the plan.

Weather, flights and other events beyond anyone's control

• Crossings and boat trips run on safety first: sailings are adjusted or suspended in rough seas and trips do get cancelled. We reorder the itinerary and recover what can be recovered.
• We suggest keeping one spare day, and we never put a pre-paid or pre-booked activity on your arrival day.
• If a typhoon closes the port or grounds flights, changes and refunds follow the current rules of each airline, property and shipping operator. We recommend travel insurance covering delay and cancellation.

How to reach us on the day

Before you travel you get a named Chinese-speaking contact plus the number staffed that day (WeChat / WhatsApp / Telegram / LINE, whichever you use), along with your driver and companion details. If nobody is at arrivals, if something at the pier is unclear, or if sailings are suspended or someone falls ill, contact us first.

Yixing is a private travel and consulting services company registered in the Philippines, with no affiliation with CAAP, the Aklan provincial government, the Malay municipal government or the Bureau of Immigration. Entry rules, on-site fees and clearance are decided by the authorities.

Why there is no fixed package price on this page

A Boracay quote moves with several things at once: group size, season (rates move sharply in peak periods), which stretch of beach and what level of accommodation, which airport you use (Kalibo adds a long road transfer), how many days of vehicle and companion, and how many times you go out to sea. Change any one and the total changes, so a single posted figure would only mislead. We price each trip individually.

A quote usually includes

• Airport and pier transfers and island transport as planned;
• Assistance through the pier formalities;
• Itinerary planning and booking assistance;
• Booking of accommodation and activity slots;
• Chinese-speaking companion (only if you choose it).

A quote usually excludes

• International and domestic flights;
• Personal spending and anything added outside the plan;
• Single-room supplement;
• Travel insurance;
• Visas and related applications (assistance available separately).

Official fees: who pays them and when

The environmental fee, pier terminal fee and boat ticket on the way in, and the separate terminal fee at Cagban Jetty Port on the way out, are official charges set by the local government and port authority. They are revised from time to time and the notices posted at the pier govern. They are paid at the official counters: if you bought a package with these prepaid, you show the proof of payment at the payment counter; otherwise your companion takes you to the right counter to pay on site. Either way, always take itemised receipts - where someone bundles it into an "all-in" payment without proper documentation, the margin is hidden in there.

Payment and documentation

Payment methods, currency and the type of documentation available vary with where you are and what you need it for. Your advisor explains this when you confirm the plan and it goes into the confirmation.

Want to know how your trip prices out? Send your dates, group size and preferred stretch of beach to a Yixing advisor and we will cost it line by line.