Boracay still world’s best island — survey

MANILA, Philippines — Boracay remained the best island in the world, according to the latest survey conducted by international travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler.

“This itty-bitty island (just under four square miles) in the Western Philippines is as close to a tropical idyll as you’ll find in Southeast Asia, with gentle coastlines and transportative sunsets. Fold in a thriving nightlife scene, and you have one of the top tourist spots in the region,” the publication said.

More than 300,000 travelers took part in the magazine’s 2017 Readers’ Choice Award.

Landing in second and third were Cebu and the Visayan islands, and Palawan, respectively.

“Not as wild as Phuket in Thailand, Cebu City is more personal, with plenty of up-and-coming restaurants and shopping,” Condé Nast Traveler said.

“This small island – one of the Philippines’s 7,107 – is home to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, one of the newly crowned seven natural wonders of the world,” it said about Palawan.

In 2016, Boracay also topped Condé Nast’s Top 20 Best Islands in the World. Palawan and Cebu were ranked second and fifth, respectively.

Completing the Top 10 best islands in the world for 2017 are Mallorca, Spain; Mykonos, Greece; Bermuda, a British island territory; St. Barts; Turks and Caicos; Bali, Indonesia; and Cayman Islands.

Visitors from South Korea and China are the top source markets of Boracay Island for the first six months of 2017, according to the Malay Municipal Tourism Office and Department of Tourism-Boracay office.

South Korea topped the tourist-generating markets with 175,470 arrivals, followed closely by China with 174,064 and Taiwan with 25,067.