Lonely Planet India – August 2019

BEST IN ASIA PACIFIC

8

PALAWAN,

THEPHILIPPINES

Longknownas thePhilippines’last

frontier,Palawanhasriddena slew

of mediaaccoladesto thecuspof

internationalsuperstardom.

Fortunately,it’s notthereyet.Thesearetheheadydays

whennewair routesandupgradedroadsmakeit easier

thaneverto explorethedramaticseascapesandwildlife-

ladenjunglesof theslender400km-longmainisland

(alsocalledPalawan)beforeit inevitablybecomes

moredeveloped.

Thecrownjewelis El Nido,whereskyscraping

karstformationsriseoutof bluewaterin BacuitBay.

Newrulesrestrictvisitornumbersat signaturesightslike

BigLagoonon MinilocIsland,whilea banon single-use

plasticbottleson tourboatsis helpingto tacklemarine

pollution.El Nidotoobusyfor you?Headsouthto

backpackerhavenPortBartonor up-and-coming

SanVicente,whichhasa brand-newairport.

7

FIJI

Vibrantjunglesconcealingsecretwaterfalls,a fantasiaof fishflutteringalongcoralhighways,

dazzlingbeacheswithouta footprintonthem,andlocalsofferingyoua cupof calming

kava– thesearethethingsaboutFijieveryonehopeswillneverchange.

Thereis realconcern,however,aboutwhetherthisnationwillbeableto retainits assets

throughclimatechange.Sustainabilityhasbecomea priority.Fromsolar-poweredresortsthat

servelocally-harvestedfoodto coralreefrestorationprojectsandlimitedplasticusage,thisvulnerableislandnation

hasmovedheadlongintoeco-tourism.October10,2020,willmarktheislandnation’s50thyearof

independence,called‘FijiDay’.Expectat leastoneweekof festivitiesincludinglovo(traditionalpit ovens),meke

(firedancing),andukulelemusic.

Central Vietnam boast many
unforgettable experiences,
but few compete with a trip
to Hang Son Doong,
the world’s biggest cave

The sun sets on another day

in paradise... aka the Bacuit

Archipelago, Palawan

Fiji is ravishing from

any angle, but this one

takes some beating

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