CEBU 8TH BEST ISLAND DESTINATION IN ASIA

After being excluded last year, Cebu island bounces back at number 8.

An international magazine that specializes in luxury travel has ranked Cebu as the 8th best island destination in Asia for 2011.

The Condé Nast Traveler survey also recognized Shangri-La’s Mactan Resort and Spa in Mactan Island, Cebu, in the category of Top Resorts in Asia.
It was the resort’s second time to make the list.

In a field of 20 in Asia, the high-end Mactan resort ranked number 14 with 84.8, a notch higher than last year’s 83.2 points. Another Shangri-La property, the Shangri-La’s Boracay Resort and Spa, was ranked no. 17 with 83.8 points.
The world’s best resort is the Ritz-Carlton Shanghai in Pudong with a score of 99.2 points, while the Best Resort in Asia is the Ayana Resort and Spa in Bali (95.7 points).

The results, released last week, are from Condé Nast’s 24th Annual Readers’ Choice Awards, a listing of the best cities, islands, hotels, transportation and resorts worldwide for 2011.

There are 1,285 top scorers all over the world.

“The demand for excellence in travel has never been higher, and the results of the 2011 Readers’ Choice Awards reflect the most exacting standards by the world’s most discerning travelers—the readers of Condé Nast Traveler,” said editor in chief Klara Glowczewska.

Cebu bounced back this year at number 8 (77.2 points) after being shut out and dislodged by Luzon island last year.

Still, it failed to surpass Luzon ranking this year at no. 6 (77.9 points) on the list of Top Island Destinations. Luzon was ranked at no. 7 last year (75.1 points).
Cebu is a small island in the Visayas with a population of 3 million compared with Luzon’s 48 million. Luzon includes Metro Manila and regions of Ilocos, Bicol, Central Luzon, Cagayan and the Cordilleras.

Cebu has occupied the 7th place four times in the magazine’s annual survey: 72.6 in 2009, 70.9 in 2008, 72.3 in 2007 and 72.8 in 2004. Twice, it has been ranked 8th best island destination by the same survey: in 2006 with 71.0 points and in 2005, with 69.5 points.

In the category of Asia, the top ten best islands destinations are the following: Maldives (87.5), Bali (84.30), Phuket (80.0), Seychelles (79.9), Malaysian Borneo (79.2), Mauritius (77.4), Langkawi (76.1) and Koh Samui (73.7). Maldives, Bali and Phuket have maintained their last year’s ranking.

Kyoto claims the Best Asian City for the first time after beating Bangkok, a consistent winner since the ranking started.

In the same survey, two Manila-based hotels made it to the Top Hotels in Asia.
Edsa Shangri-La, Manila was ranked at 54th with a score of 89.3 (ranked at 100th with a score of 83.9 points last year). The Peninsula Manila is at 111th with a rating of 83.7 points.

Every year since 1988, a select sample of Condé Nast Traveler readers have taken the Readers’ Choice Survey. The questionnaire is available to all readers through a secure website. This year, there were 28,876 responses from readers with combined eight million votes. They were tabulated by Global Market Insite Inc., of Boston.

The annual Readers’ Choice Awards is derived from the Readers’ Choice Survey, the largest independent poll of consumers’ preferences in the U.S.
Each candidate was rated, criterion by criterion, on a five-point scale: excellent, very good, good, fair and poor. Criterion scores, which represent the percentage of respondents rating a candidate excellent or very good, were averaged to determine the final scores.

Questionnaires contained lists of candidates (individual cities, hotels, etc.) and write-ins were allowed. Only candidates that received a required minimum number of responses were deemed eligible for an award.
Resorts were rated on activities/facilities, food/dining, location, overall design, rooms and service.

Hotels were rated on food/dining, location, overall design, rooms and service.
Island destinations were rated on activities, atmosphere/ambience, beaches, friendliness, lodging, restaurants and scenery.

The resorts and islands were grouped into the United States, Canada, Mexico, Carribean/Atlantic, Oceania, Central and South America; Asia, Africa and the Middle East; and Europe.

A separate list, The Global Top 100, ranks hotels, resorts and cruise lines that achieved near perfection, with no score below 94.3.

The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai in Pudong clinched the top spot this year with near perfect score of 99.2.

No Philippine-based company made it to this year’s list.

Another publication, the New York-based Travel + Leisure magazine, named Cebu among the “best islands in Asia” twice (last year at number 3 and in 2009 at number 4) in the release of its World’s Best Awards, evaluating hotels, airlines, cruises islands and cities all over the world.

Condé Nast Traveler is an American magazine published by Condé Nast Publications, which specializes in luxury travel and reviews of high-priced hotels, products and services. In 2008, it was named one of the top 10 magazines in the U.S. by both Adweek and Advertising Age.

A UK edition, Condé Nast Traveller, uses the British spelling for the title. The format and content are very similar to the U.S. edition.

Source: Cebu Daily News

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Enchanted River: Amazing Paradise in Surigao, Philippines.

Enchanted River is mostly visited because of its tranquility and majestic ambiance that any tourists would feel when they are around the place. Far from the overcrowded place in the beaches, here you will really feel that you are indeed in a vacation. As you approach this magical river, you would definitely feel the ambiance that there is a mystery behind.It’s like you’re standing and lurking around in another dimension. Enchanting, indeed! 

Photo by Tago Lilong

This river is near to the Philippine Deep. In fact, it is a mixture of a saltwater and a freshwater that is why this river may be quite salty but not too much. As you will see, there are parts of the river where it is shallow (where you can be sure that you won’t be drowned), and the part where it is deep (blue water part, of course).

The river is 80 meters deep. There are only certain areas in the river that tourists are allowed to swim.Nevertheless, you shouldn’t be too complacent. Mystery tells that there are only certain people that are allowed to swim in the area that means there are instances when someone will be drowned. There are also beliefs that nobody dared to swim in the river after dark because of the spirits guarding the place.

There were risky divers who tried to explore the cave below but they stopped at 200 feet because of the over powering of the current.

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Reminder: Protect Your Family from the Sun

Protect them from UVB that causes sunburn and UVA that causes long-term skin damages. MORE INFO

You can now have fun in the Sun!

How Does the Sun Cause Skin Cancer?

Basal Cell Carcinoma

Basal cell carcinoma is the most common form of skin cancer. This type of cancer usually develops on the head and neck in the skin's basal cells, which are just below its surface. Basal cell carcinoma forms when excessive sunlight damages the skin's DNA, which is called thymine dimers. As the DNA damage multiplies, mutations occur. This, combined with the immune system suppression that occurs naturally from sunlight, allows tumor cells to form and eventually take over certain areas of the skin.

Squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma skin cancer occurs most frequently on the lips, mouth, tongue and nose. Though two-thirds of basal cell carcinomas are attributed to excessive sun exposure, with no UVA or UVB protection, nearly all squamous cell carcinoma cases are attributed to the sun. This is why this type of skin cancer is almost always found on areas of the skin that gets the most sun exposure, whether that be your face, arms, legs or back. Many people also develop squamous cell carcinoma on hard-to-see areas of the skin, including behind the ears or between the toes. This is why it is especially important to get your yearly skin check by your dermatologist. Like basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma also develops when the skin undergoes mutations in the squamous skin layer, which, combined with immune suppression from the sun, can lead to skin cancer.

Melanoma

Caucasians, particularly those with very light skin, freckles or blond or red hair, are at a higher risk for developing this type of skin cancer than other ethnicities. Though there are plenty of instances of melanoma that occur despite one's level of sun exposure, there are also plenty of cases that have directly been linked to the sun damaged caused by sunburns. According to Cancer Research UK, individuals who develop melanoma are twice as likely as others to have developed at least one very bad sunburn in their lifetimes. As the amount of sunburns increase, so does the risk of melanoma.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY FROM THE SUN?

Read more: How Does the Sun Cause Skin Cancer? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5003290_sun-cause-skin-cancer.html#ixzz1ucbWThF4

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Sleep like astronauts in new Xi'an hotel

XI'AN, May 7 (PNA/Xinhua) -- Ordinary people in China wanting to experience what life is like in space can now stay in new budget hotel rooms modeled on an astronaut's living quarters.

A "capsule" hotel -- featuring science-fiction design and bedrooms just long enough for most people to lie down in, in Xi'an, capital of central China's Shaanxi province -- has been doing good trade since opening two weeks ago.

Manager Xu Meijang was inspired to open the unusual business, thought to be the first licensed capsule hotel in China, by such accommodation's popularity in Japan and by the number of generally young, adventurous travelers requiring an affordable night's stay in the area.

Occupancy rates at the hotel, in Xi'an's Minleyuan Wanda Plaza, have been over 60 percent so far, and it was full over the Labor Day holiday.

2012: A SPACE ODDITY

Capsule hotels' lack of services compared to conventional hotels is compensated for by the novel experience and their good value.

Each bedroom is a modular fiberglass block roughly two meters long, one meter wide and 1.2 meters in height. The hotel charges 59-65 yuan (about 9.4-10.3 U.S. dollars) per person per night.

The 480-square-meter building consists of 86 capsules in nine rooms named after star signs to reflect the space theme.

The capsules are stacked side by side and two units top to bottom, with steps providing access to the upper rooms. Privacy is ensured by a bamboo curtain.

Upon checking in, guests are given a basket filled with a cup, a card for electricity, locker keys, a TV remote control and a set of wireless headphones for watching TV. Wireless Internet is also provided.

Each capsule is furnished with a light, a ventilation device, plug sockets, a foldable flat-screen TV and desk, coat hooks, a blanket and a pillow.

Luggage and shoes can be put in lockers outside the sleeping zone, and there are separate lavatories, showers and a shared lounge.

IN SPACE, NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU SNORE

Safety and privacy are the two issues guests are most concerned about, says Xu.

It has been reported that Shanghai hoteliers in 2011 applied to have their business passed as China's first licensed capsule hotel. But authorities denied certification due to fire and personal safety worries.

According to Xu, the materials used in this case for the capsules and indoor decorations are nonflammable. Each capsule has a fire extinguisher and smoke detector, and security cameras are installed in the hallways.

Though all guests are asked to turn their cell phones to silent and there are even more isolated rooms for those who snore, "it is still a place where deep sleep is rare," says He Ni, a regular backpacker from Shanxi province.

But she believes it is still cost-effective to stay here, considering its low prices and comprehensive service guaranteeing clean bathrooms, lavatories and self-help washing machines.

TOTAL RECALL

Mixed views on capsule accommodation are accurately reflected by the new hotel's guests.

Xu, 35, says most of them are young backpackers from Japan, the Republic of Korea and Thailand, although some are from further afield, and that they have generally found their way here through the Internet.

Colombian architect Tavo gives two thumbs up, with the praise, "The hostel is amazing, nice, so nice. It also feels cozy inside."

When Luo Fanshao, a 20-year-old student at Lanzhou City University, came across Xi'an's capsules online, he canceled his stay in express hotels in the city. Besides the fair price, Luo favors the atmosphere in his new choice.

"I like travelling on my own, so instead of being in a single hotel room, staying in this kind of hostel provides me with the opportunity to exchange what I saw and thought during the daytime with other travelers," explains Luo.

But the idea of staying in such a compact space is not appealing to everyone.

"Staying in the capsule is like lying down in a coffin," complains Liang Hua, a college student from Xi'an. "And the price is almost as much as a bed in a youth hostel." (PNA/Xinhua)
DCT/ebp

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ROUTE STOP

Welcome.

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