Negros is the Philippines' sugar island, the fourth largest in the archipelago, split down the middle by a volcanic mountain range into two provinces: Negros Occidental on the west and Negros Oriental on the east. The sugar barons of the 19th century left behind grand ancestral homes and a culture of celebration that survives in some of the country's most exuberant festivals. The landscape ranges from flat cane fields and mangrove coasts to the dramatic cone of Mt. Kanlaon, an active volcano rising to 2,435 metres.
Bacolod, the island's largest city and capital of Negros Occidental, is known for its food scene and the riotous MassKara Festival every October, when the streets fill with dancers in smiling masks. It is a relaxed, friendly city and a natural base for exploring the western side of the island. Nearby Silay preserves a row of sugar-era heritage houses and has been called the Paris of Negros, though it wears that title lightly.
The southwest coast around Sipalay is where you go for beaches and diving. Sugar Beach lives up to its name with fine white sand, and the dive sites at Punta Ballo and Campomanes Bay draw divers with clear water, healthy reefs, and World War II wrecks. On the eastern side, Dumaguete is a university town with a pleasant waterfront promenade and easy access to Apo Island, one of the best dive spots in the Visayas. Between the coasts, Mt. Kanlaon National Park offers serious trekking through dense forest, with a chance to spot the Philippine spotted deer and the bleeding-heart pigeon.
Getting to Negros is straightforward. Flights from Manila and Cebu land at Bacolod-Silay Airport, and fast ferries connect Bacolod to Iloilo in about an hour. From Cebu, you can reach Dumaguete by ferry or cross overland via San Carlos. Once on the island, buses and jeepneys link the main towns, and the drive from Bacolod to Dumaguete takes five to six hours through mountain scenery.
