Chocolate Hills On Bohol Island: Complete Guide

Chocolate Hills is a 1-2 hour drive from Alona Beach, the popular tourist region of Bohol, Philippines. Hundreds of brown hills create an interesting landscape from atop the Chocolate Hills lookout.

BOOK A TOUR

One of the best ways to visit Chocolate Hills is with a Bohol Countryside Tour. This tour is great because you get to do a lot just in one day for under $30! In just one day your countryside tour will take you to the following places.

• Visit the historical Blood Compact Shrine, and learn about the story behind its name
• Marvel at the Neoclassical architecture of the Baclayon Church, which was completed in 1727
• See the world-famous Chocolate Hills with its 1,268 cone-shaped hills that turn brown in the summer
• Stroll through the beautiful Bilar Manmade Forest, a mahogany forest stretching in 2 kilometers long
• Enjoy a delicious local buffet lunch on a floating restaurant that cruises through the Loboc River
• Meet the tarsiers at the Philippine Tarsier Sanctuary, which was built to protect the world’s smallest primates

To book your countryside tour, (I think it is the best value tour you will find on Bohol!) you can Click Here to book online.

CHOCOLATE HILLS ON BOHOL ISLAND

From Alona Beach, we hired a moped for 250 pesos per day or $5 USD (A good deal we were promised). The drive is not for the faint-hearted or inexperienced as the traffic can get a little crazy sometimes. Taking a moped gives you the ability to stop along the way and check out rice fields, local villages, markets, and the countryside.

Along the way, we found a rope swing in the river, the best-fried banana for 20 pesos or 30 cents USD and some amazing rice fields. We also stopped at the man-made forest and tried to find Busay Waterfall unsuccessfully. Aside from standout attractions like these, being able to cruise through and take in the sights, smells and sounds give you a better understanding of the island.

Chocolate Hills is easy to find, well-signed and available for search on Google maps. The Chocolate Hills entrance fee was 50 pesos or $1 USD. The famous mounds pop up throughout the landscape in all directions.

I’m told that they are chocolate (or not green) because of the soil. Apparently, trees just don’t grow on the Chocolate Hills of Bohol for some reason. There are a few similar looking hills in Coron that also have no trees.

I think the best time to visit would be during the summer so that the hills are really brown. In our case, as you can see below, the hills are quite green and covered in grass. This meant they didn’t quite contrast as much agains the green trees below.

It wasn’t quite as impressive as I had imagined and we were a little underwhelmed after such a long day of driving but it was still an interesting landscape. I am not sure what I was expecting and it was a nice view but it was a little bit of an anti-climax to our long day of driving. The sunset wasn’t prolific, but that’s the luck of the draw. The drive home in the dark was a crazy experience, which I also don’t suggest if you aren’t up for a challenge.

If you are in the area I suggest checking out Chocolate Hills but if you are looking for something amazing this isn’t in my top things to do on Bohol.

Chocolate Hills Map

WHERE TO STAY ON BOHOL

Save money in Bohol by staying at an Airbnb! Get a FREE $40 Airbnb Coupon by using my code when you book! I use Airbnb on about half of my travels and find you always get more value than a hotel.

Read my full blog post: BEST AREA TO STAY IN BOHOL

Bohol Beach Club – Luxury: It’s everything you would expect from a luxury resort in a tropical location. It’s beachside with amazing pools, bars, and chill-out areas. Right near the restaurants, bars, and action of Alona Beach but hidden away so that you can relax after a day of island-hopping or adventures.

Venezia Suites – Value: The Venezia Suits present the best value on Bohol. If you are looking for luxury but only want to spend mid-range often you need to get lucky. Venezia will hook you up with a beautiful suite that comes with a pool and living space. It’s a damn good deal and located right near all the action of Panglao so you are in a good spot.

HM & B Backpackers Inn: As a backpacker generally you check the price, location, and cleanliness. HM & B ticks all those boxes as one of the cheapest hostels near Alona Beach but also maintains good reviews, cleanliness and is pretty cheap compared to everything else near Alona Beach.

If you want to have a look for yourself you can click here to jump over to Booking.com to check out all of the accommodation options for Bohol.

ARE YOU KEEPING UP WITH MY BOHOL SERIES

I’ve been to Bohol twice and both times I explored extensively on my motorbike to the popular tourist spots and to locations many people have never heard of. I document it all in my BOHOL TRAVEL GUIDE: 27 Awesome Things To Do

Are you a waterfall chaser? I’ve put together a list of My Favorite Waterfalls and Cave Pools on Bohol with detailed directions and photos.

Maybe you are an adrenaline junkie like me and want to find out the Best Cliff Jumping spots on Bohol.

The popular tourist area where most people stay is Panglao Island. I’ve put together a blog post guide about the Best Things to do on Panglao Island

If you aren’t quite sure whether you want to stay on Panglao Island or venture north to Anda, I’ve written a blog post about the Best Places to Stay on Bohol, which helps you decide what region is best for you depending on your preferences.

One of the best activities on Bohol is the island-hopping to Balicasag and Virgin Island. I’ve put together a guide with everything you need to know about the adventure here: Virgin Island and Balicasag Island Hopping Tour Review