Letters: Memories of Bora Bora, Boracay Island

Thank you for your honesty about some overhyped resort areas [“So Into It,” by An Amlotte, and “The Best Island in the World? Hardly,” by Catharine Hamm] in your May 26 Travel section.

I am tired of paying top dollar for what is promised to be an unforgettable travel experience only to find that it is unforgettable because I paid a fortune to experience the same choking traffic and rude crowds in a foreign paradise as I experience here at home in the beachside paradise of OC.

It helps to use a travel agent who has made the trips him or herself and can recommend a specific itinerary.

I know you will take some heat for your honesty, but we travelers appreciate it.

Christopher Knippers

Huntington Beach

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In her article about Bora Bora, Amlotte said she felt sorry for the cruise passengers. I was one of those passengers recently and found the island disappointing. It reminded me of the first time I visited Mexico in the 1980s where the area surrounding Mazatlán was so destitute and the resorts were small oases in the midst of this poverty.

I prefer visiting Maui, where not only are accommodations not in excess of $1,000 a night, but also the temperature and humidity more tolerable — to say nothing of the in-your-face poverty being absent. Thirty percent unemployment, shuttered resorts, a corrupt, newly elected president age 81 and lush resorts? I’ll pass.

Igor Fedoroff

Cambria

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Amlotte’s wonderful article about Bora Bora brought fond memories back to us. Sorry, it was us in the majestic cruise ship that woke you up. We stopped for a day and docked at Vaitape; we were on a 30-day cruise to the South Pacific on the tracks of Roggeveen, Cook and Bougainville.

Please do not feel sorry for us; we felt fortunate and blessed to finally make the honeymoon trip we dreamed about 55 years ago, when such journeys were meant for the rich and famous.

Amlotte is absolutely correct: One day in the paradise of Bora Bora is far too short, but thanks to our memories, the pictures and the sounds of the islands have richly rewarded us.

Merci beaucoup and mauruuru for her beautiful story from paradise.

Werner Ruckelshausen

San Pedro

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Hamm didn’t enjoy her trip to Boracay, it seems, because she discovered that the Philippines is a third-world country with poverty surrounding pockets of wealth used to beckon tourists. This is pretty common in any third-world country. Hamm could have driven just a couple of hours and crossed the Mexican border into Tijuana and discovered the same things. She also spent very little time in Boracay and thereby missed out on all of the water sports or touring possibilities. So she jumped over to Crystal Cove Island and didn’t like it either. In fact, she didn’t like anything and even discovered that if you eat the same fish on two different days it will likely taste similar.

I’ve been to the Philippines and spent three nights in Boracay at the Regency in Station 2. The room was delightful; you could dive off your patio into the pool, which had a cool waterfall for kids. The staff were numerous and friendly.

Hamm’s observations of the folks lining the beach walkway hawking items and even begging is accurate but not very different from many other places I have visited, including Venice Beach.

All told, I think Hamm’s report is useless. She is way too personal in her opinions, which are not criteria-based.

Mike O’Connell

Burbank

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I agree, Boracay Island is not the best island in the world. The island is small and overdeveloped, and while the beach is beautiful, so are other beaches I’ve been to. Having said this, I enjoyed my visit there a couple of years ago.

The rest of Hamm’s article was the typical whining you hear from some Americans who shouldn’t travel overseas. If you have issues with heat and humidity, why would you travel to the Philippines? Helpful hint: Travel to the Philippines in January or February, when the weather is cooler and drier.

I’m sure had Hamm gotten a henna tattoo and gotten it all over the linen sheets, and was charged by the hotel, she would have complained about not being warned about it.

And yes, there are poor people on Boracay; children will ask for money. I too have also been asked for money in the Philippines, as I have in Paris, London and, yes, in America. Maybe Hamm should stick to Disney World. Oops, I forgot it’s hot and humid in Florida.

Douglas Bohlmann

La Habra

I agree with Hamm’s observations regarding Boracay. It certainly has gone downhill with overdevelopment. It was pretty in the early ‘80s. Even Coron has started to become like Boracay.

R. Carpio

Northridge

I really enjoyed the Boracay article. Not only was it amusing, but more significantly, it is refreshing to read a genuine, first-person account that rings so true.

Writing about the discrepancy between her experiences and the glowing descriptions from trusted sources punches through the clichéd fog sadly typical of travel writing, giving us an account that sounds just like what real-life people say when you chat on an airplane or at a party.

Randall Gellens

San Diego

The Travel section ran a letter in the March 5 On the Spot that begins, “In February, a friend of mine told his boss he was going to take off March 24-29.”

If that employee had asked his boss, rather than told his boss, this power struggle might never have occurred.

Paul Grein

Studio City