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Boracay Entry Requirements: What Official Sources Say You Are Asked for at the Jetty Port

Arriving · checked October 2026

In brief

The official Boracay iPass site says that at the Caticlan port terminal gates you show a QR code and pay the terminal fee, environmental fee and boat fare. No official page lists a wider set of entry documents, so what follows is what the official pages, the official eTravel site and dated news reports state.

  • Registration on iPass asks for name, birthdate, gender, nationality, address, contact details, travel dates, purpose, mode of travel, Caticlan or Kalibo, and hotel accommodation details1.
  • Children aged 5 and below are exempt on iPass with proof; bookings cannot be refunded but can be transferred until the QR code is scanned1.
  • International arrivals and departing Filipinos register on eTravel, which is free, within 72 hours of the flight5.
  • The accredited-hotel rule dates from 2018, when establishments had to be accredited by the Department of Tourism to accept bookings3.
  • The island’s 19,215-person limit was reported breached during Holy Week 2026 and “no longer being enforced”89.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a hotel booking to enter Boracay?

The iPass form asks for hotel accommodation details1, and the 2018 rule requires hotels to be Department of Tourism accredited to accept bookings3. No official page used here says whether the gate refuses visitors without a booking.

Is iPass registration compulsory?

No official page says it is the only route or that manual windows have closed. The port also runs LezzGo, and manual windows were still described in August 20256. See the comparison.

Do I need eTravel to go to Boracay?

Only if you are arriving from abroad, or are a Filipino departing the country; the FAQ does not list domestic travellers5. It is free4.

Do children need to register?

iPass exempts children aged 5 and below from the fees with proof1. Registration for a child is not described separately on the pages used here.

Can I be turned away because the island is full?

The 19,215 limit was reported as breached and no longer enforced in April 20269. No source reports arrivals being refused.

What do I need to show at the port terminal gates?

The iPass QR code1. Prepaid or not, the terminal fee, environmental fee and boat fare are paid there or beforehand1.

The detail

This page lists what a visitor is asked for on the way to Boracay, step by step, and marks where no official page says more. Boracay has no visa or permit of its own: the steps are registration, payment and a QR code, plus eTravel for those arriving from abroad. The full journey is in Getting to Boracay; the amounts are in Boracay fees.

The short answer
If you are… Do this
Flying in from abroad, or a Filipino leaving the country Complete eTravel within 72 hours of arrival or departure5
Booking a stay Hold a confirmed booking with an accredited hotel; the iPass form asks for the accommodation details13
Travelling with a child aged 5 or below Carry proof of age; the child is exempt on iPass1
Travelling as a large group iPass offers batch registration1
Arriving by cruise ship or chartered flight iPass registration for these is “currently unavailable”1
Arriving without having registered LezzGo kiosks at the port scan an ID and take the three charges in one transaction6; see the three systems compared

What happens at the jetty port

The sequence below is the one printed on the official iPass site1.

  1. Arrive at Caticlan (Boracay Airport) or Kalibo. The two airports are compared in Caticlan or Kalibo.
  2. Find the iPass land-transport booth outside the terminal. It sells the ride to the port.
  3. Ride a public tricycle or an air-conditioned shuttle to Caticlan Seaport. The site gives 5-10 minutes from Caticlan airport and 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes from Kalibo.
  4. Show your QR code at the Port Terminal Gates. Terminal fee, environmental fee and boat fare are paid here if you have not prepaid.
  5. Board a public ferry or a speedboat to Cagban Seaport. The site gives 10-15 minutes for the ferry and “3 to 5 minutes” for the speedboat.
  6. At Cagban, use the land-transport booth. The Hop-on, Hop-off bus or air-conditioned shuttle goes to the hotel or the nearest bus stop, 5-10 minutes according to the site.

Sources disagree Shangri-La Boracay‘s directions page puts the speedboat at about 15 minutes, and a five-minute drive from the airport to the jetty7. The iPass site’s “3 to 5 minutes” is as printed there1. Plan for the longer figure if you are catching a connection.

What you register, and what you carry

On iPass the registration collects the fields listed in the summary, and the Aklan provincial guide describes the same flow: one-time password, choose services, guest details, review, pay2. A QR code is valid until 31 December of the arrival year you declared1.

At a LezzGo kiosk the ID is scanned and the passenger is added to the Coast Guard manifest automatically, as the system was described at its August 2025 presentation6. Which ID the port accepts is not stated on any official page used here, so carry the one you used to book.

The hotel-booking rule

The accredited-hotel requirement dates from 2018. GMA reported on 26 November 2018 that establishments had to comply with the requirements of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and be accredited by the Department of Tourism, to accept bookings; its list then held 243 hotels and resorts with 9,248 rooms3.

What you may have heard That the gate checks your hotel voucher and turns away anyone without one. The iPass form does ask for hotel accommodation details1, and the 2018 rule applies to the hotels, not the visitor3. No official page used here says what is checked at the gate, whether walk-ins or day-trippers are admitted in 2026, or which law the visitor-side check rests on. Carry the booking confirmation and treat an unaccredited booking as a risk.

eTravel for international arrivals

The official eTravel site states that eTravel is free, and warns of fake and fraudulent sites45. Its FAQ says registration is web-based, required for arriving Filipino and foreign passengers and crew and for departing Filipino passengers, with exceptions for foreign diplomats, dignitaries, 9(e) visa holders and diplomatic or official passport holders5. You register within 72 hours before arrival or departure and show proof before boarding. A green QR code means the data is proper and complete; a red one means incomplete or incorrect data, or illness or exposure in the past 30 days, and a Bureau of Quarantine check comes first5.

The FAQ does not mention domestic flights such as Manila to Caticlan. Passport validity and visa-free stay lengths are not covered by any source used here; check them with the Bureau of Immigration or your airline.

The visitor limit

The island’s limit is 19,215 tourists at one time, tied to a daily arrivals cap of about 6,400 (GMA reported 6,405 in 2018)38. In April 2022 a DILG undersecretary said the limit was subject to review every three to five years, urged 6,000-7,000 arrivals a day and said a show-cause order would follow breaches8.

As reported on 9 April 2026, Holy Week (29 March to 7 April) brought 56,590 visitors, the limit was breached from 1 April, with a peak of 32,780 on 3 April, and it was “no longer being enforced” by the three agencies9. No source used here reports visitors being refused at the port because of the limit. Dates to expect crowds are in Boracay peak dates.

Sources (9)
  1. Boracay iPass — Provincial Government of Aklan. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  2. Boracay iPass guide — Provincial Government of Aklan. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  3. Accredited Boracay hotels and resorts — GMA News, 26 November 2018. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  4. eTravel — Philippine government. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  5. eTravel frequently asked questions — Philippine government. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  6. Boracay’s new port ticketing system — Esquire Philippines, 11 August 2025. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  7. Map and directions — Shangri-La Boracay. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  8. No increase in Boracay’s carrying capacity, says DILG — Inquirer, 20 April 2022. Accessed 2026-10-03.
  9. Tourist numbers dip but Boracay still packs beyond its limits — BusinessMirror, 9 April 2026. Accessed 2026-10-03.