The Island of Philippines

The Philippine archipelago consist of 7,107. Philipines islands is divided into three (3) main Geographical areas Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Luzon is the largest islands, it is where the capital city of Manila is located, Visayas is a groupof islands between Luzon and Mindanao, Mindanao is the second largest islands.

Three (3) main Geographical Areas of the Philippines:

Luzon islands
- include Luzon itself, Mindoro, Palawan, Masbate, and other smaller islands.

Visayas
- is a group of several small islands, the largest of which are: Panay, Bohol, Negros, Cebu, Leyte, and Samar.

Mindanao
- island includes Mindanao island itself and the Sulu Archipelago, composed of Tawi-Tawi, Basilan and Sulu.

The islands of the Philippine archipelago are volcanic in origin and are mountainous. Mt. Apo in Mindanao is the highest peak, while the second highest peak is Mt. Pulog in Luzon. The Philippines have numerous rivers, volcanoes, streams, narrow coastal plains and beautiful sandy beaches which foreign and local tourist enjoy.

The official languages in the Philippines are Filipino and English. Filipino which is based on the Tagalog dialect, it is the national language. English is also widely used and is the medium of instruction in higher education in the Philippines. There are also 76 major local languages and more than 500 different minor dialects throughout the nations. The major groups are the majority Christian Filipinos, Muslim Filipinos who live mainly on Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago in the south, and indigenous peoples in mountainous regions.

Travel within the Philippines not difficult, there are all kinds of transportation available to tourist and locals: Airplanes and ferries for inter-island transfers, buses & taxis travels in major cities all over the Philippines and the ubiquitous jeepney can be found everywhere. In Metro Manila, modern light rail transit is available on main roads. In tertiary roads & small rural towns the tricycle is the transport of choice.

Total Land Area: 115,600 sq. miles / 299,404 sq. kms.
Total no. of Islands: 7,107 Isalands approximately
Climate: Hot, Humid, and Tropical average yearly temperature is around 26.5° Celsius
Capital: Manila