Boracay, Philippines

About Boracay

Boracay is narrow enough to cross on foot in a quarter of an hour, and it has two coasts of entirely different character. White Beach on the west is the one on the postcards — sand like flour, and the full apparatus of a tropical resort island. Bulabog, on the windward east, is where the wind lands.

The Amihan, the north-east monsoon, runs from late October to the end of March and occasionally into April, blowing side-onshore at 15 to 25 knots and sometimes above thirty. Inside the reef the bay is mostly flat and turns choppier as the tide comes up; on the reef itself there are waves. Mornings are the stronger sessions. From May to September the Habagat replaces it from the south-west, conditions become unreliable, and the island turns to diving and everything else it does well.

The practical charm is that fifteen-minute walk: the wind in the morning on one side of the island, the sunset on the other. In season Bulabog is busy, and busiest around Christmas, Chinese New Year and Easter.

When to go

Best months: January, February, March, October, November, December.

Kite areas

1 distinct riding area documented within this destination.

• Bulabog Beach

  Best months: October, November, December, January, February, March.

Curated places to stay

• Aqua Boracay

  For the non-kiting partner, resort comfort and access to the wider island offer balance beyond the windward beach.