Manila, Cebu & Bohol: Philippine Heritage & Island Discovery

Arrive at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Private transfer to The Henry Hotel in Pasay. Jerome meets you at the hotel for a welcome dinner at the hotel's restaurant — an introduction to Manila and to the history ahead.

The centrepiece of Manila heritage: Intramuros, the Spanish walled city built from 1571. Jerome's walking tour covers Fort Santiago (the 16th-century fortification where José Rizal was imprisoned before his execution), San Agustin Church (the oldest stone church in the Philippines, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with extraordinary Baroque interior), Casa Manila (a reconstructed 19th-century colonial mansion, beautifully presented), and the walls themselves — 4.5 kilometres of basalt stone, largely intact. A heritage lunch at Barbara's restaurant inside Intramuros.

Morning at Rizal Park — the green centrepiece of Manila, where José Rizal was executed and where Philippine independence was declared. The National Museum of the Philippines: the colonial-era Legislative Building converted into the country's finest collection of pre-colonial and colonial artefacts, including Juan Luna's Spoliarium (one of the great paintings of 19th-century Asia). Afternoon optional visit to Bonifacio Global City (BGC) — Manila's most dynamic modern district, a fascinating contrast to Intramuros.

Morning domestic flight Manila–Cebu (1 hour 10 minutes). Rosa meets you at the airport. Transfer to the Crimson Resort & Spa Mactan. Afternoon at leisure on the resort beach. Evening: Rosa's introductory dinner and briefing on the Visayas days ahead.

Rosa's definitive Cebu City heritage tour: Magellan's Cross (1521), the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño, Fort San Pedro, the Carbon Market (the Philippines' oldest and busiest market), and the Heritage of Cebu Monument in the Parian district. A lunch of authentic Cebu lechon (the Philippines' finest roast pork, cooked over charcoal for six hours) at a local restaurant Rosa has used for years.

Morning visit to the Mactan Shrine — the site of Magellan's death on 27 April 1521, where Lapu-Lapu's warriors repelled the Spanish force. Rosa's account of the Battle of Mactan is one of the tour's defining moments. Adjacent Lapu-Lapu monument and small heritage museum. Afternoon free at the Crimson Resort — swimming, spa or beach.

Fast ferry Cebu to Tagbilaran, Bohol (2 hours). Drive to the Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary at Corella — the ethical conservation site for the world's smallest primate. Rosa's knowledge of tarsier biology is extraordinary: the eyes (as large as the entire brain, impossible to move in their sockets), the ultrasonic call, the 45-million-year evolutionary lineage. Loboc River lunch cruise. Check in to Amorita Resort Bohol on Panglao Island.

The 1,268 perfectly conical Chocolate Hills — Bohol's geological centrepiece and one of the most extraordinary natural landscapes in Asia. Rosa's explanation of the marine karst geology and the local mythology gives the hills context beyond their visual impact. Continue to Baclayon Church — the oldest stone church in Bohol (1596), partially damaged by the 2013 Bohol earthquake but substantially restored, with a remarkable heritage museum in the convento. Afternoon free at Amorita Resort.

Morning boat to Balicasag Island marine sanctuary — turtle cleaning stations, wall coral, vast schools of jacks and snapper. Afternoon entirely free at Amorita Resort or Alona Beach. Farewell dinner at the resort restaurant with fresh-caught fish and Rosa's final stories from Visayas history.

Morning ferry back to Cebu. Private transfer to Mactan–Cebu International Airport for your international departure. Rosa sees you off.