What should you know about healthcare and emergencies in Boracay?
Emergency number
911
Updated July 2026 · Sources cited: info.myboracayguide.com, philippinesinsider.com
Good to know
Good to Know
- Dial 911 first in any emergency in Boracay — it's the current nationwide 24/7 number covering police, fire, and medical dispatch, and calls are automatically routed to the correct regional center.
- Older Boracay-specific hotline numbers (like the ones for the local police station, fire department, or lifeguard command center) circulate on tourism directory sites but may be outdated — treat 911 as your primary and reliable option.
- If you're in the water and need the Coast Guard or lifeguards, mentioning your specific beach station (e.g., Station 1/2/3) to responders can speed things up, since Boracay's coastline is long.
- Boracay has only one true hospital — Ciriaco S. Tirol Hospital (CSTH) — and it is a basic-tier public facility; for anything beyond a straightforward emergency, expect to be referred off-island.
- A new emergency/trauma wing at CSTH opened in March 2026, but older reporting indicates the island's only hospital has historically lacked an ICU and blood bank, so serious trauma, heart attacks, or complicated cases are typically transferred to Kalibo or Iloilo, which can take a couple of hours or more by boat and road/air.
- Given the limited on-island critical care capacity, comprehensive travel/health insurance that covers medical evacuation is strongly recommended for anyone staying in Boracay.
- Private clinics (St. Gabriel Medical Center, Island Clinic Boracay, MedExpress) are useful for urgent but non-critical issues (cuts, fevers, minor injuries, dehydration) and some operate 24 hours, but none are equipped as full trauma hospitals.
Boracay Local Hotlines
- Note
- These are older, island-specific numbers published by local Boracay business/tourism directories (dating to roughly 2010-2011). They may or may not still be staffed — dial 911 first as the reliable current option, and treat these as backups.
Numbers
Boracay Police Station (24-hour)
Numbers
- 135
- 166
- +63 36 288 3036
Fire Department (24-hour)
Numbers
- 194
- 198
Boracay Fire Rescue Ambulance Volunteers
Numbers
- 888
- +63 36 288 2338
Emergency Hospital (24-hour)
Numbers
- 141
- +63 36 288 3041
Lifeguard Command Center
Numbers
- 609
- +63 36 288 3609
Philippine Coast Guard – Boracay Detachment
Numbers
- +63 36 288 6150
PCGA (Coast Guard Auxiliary) Rescue
Numbers
- +63 36 288 3846
Red Cross – Boracay/Malay Chapter
Numbers
- 199
- +63 36 288 2068
National Alternative Numbers
Philippine National Police (PNP) Emergency Hotline
- Number
- 117
- Note
- Still listed as an active PNP hotline alongside 911; older local directories for Boracay also reference 117 as a fallback.
Philippine Red Cross National Hotline
- Number
- 143
Hospitals
Public (Government) Hospital — the Only Hospital on Boracay Island
- Phone
- (036) 288-3041
- Name
- Ciriaco S. Tirol Hospital (CSTH) — formerly Boracay Island Hospital / Boracay Island Municipal Hospital
- Hours
- Emergency department operates 24/7. General outpatient/consultation hours are not consistently published; the ER is the reliable round-the-clock service.
- Address
- Barangay Balabag, Station 2, Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan, Philippines
- Staffing
- Nine resident physicians covering internal medicine, pediatrics, OB-GYN, surgery and anesthesiology, with two doctors on duty 24/7; consultants remain reachable even when off-site.
- Trauma Capability
- Classified as a Level 1 hospital/infirmary under the Philippine DOH hospital licensing system (the most basic tier, not a US-style 'Level 1 trauma center'). A new emergency wing with a dedicated trauma room and direct ambulance access was inaugurated on March 13, 2026, improving capacity for life-threatening injuries. However, as recently as a few years prior, hospital staff publicly stated the facility had no intensive care unit and no blood bank, meaning transfusions and critical/ICU-level care were not possible on-site.
St. Gabriel Medical Center
- Phone
- (036) 288-9911
- Type
- Private medical center
- Hours
- Not fully confirmed; described as accessible to patients from all parts of the island
- Address
- Main road, Barangay Balabag, Malay, Aklan (Boracay Island)
- Trauma Capability
- Provides minimal-to-intermediate care (medicine, pediatrics, OB-GYN, minor surgery). Not equipped for major trauma or ICU-level emergencies — treat as a walk-in/urgent-care option, not a trauma hospital.
Island Clinic Boracay and Diagnostic Center
- Phone
- (036) 288-4280
- Type
- Private 24-hour medical/surgical/emergency clinic
- Hours
- Open 24 hours
- Address
- 0689 Main Road, Barangay Balabag, Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan
- Trauma Capability
- Handles emergencies, minor surgical procedures and has admission rooms, but is a clinic-level facility rather than a full hospital — not a substitute for a trauma center for serious injuries.
Healthcare
- Overview
- Boracay has several clinics and small medical facilities adequate for minor and routine care, but lacks a full-service hospital for serious conditions.
- Critical Gap
- Boracay has no full-service hospital. Serious emergency cases must be transferred to larger hospitals in Kalibo (approximately 1-1.5 hours by boat and car) or Iloilo.
- Recommendations
- Obtain comprehensive travel health insurance that covers medical evacuation and hospital transfers before arrival. For serious medical emergencies, expect significant costs and delays in treatment access.
Facilities
Scandi Medical Clinic
- Type
- Private clinic
- Services
- Family medicine, acute ailments, chronic illness management, vaccinations, minor surgical procedures, X-ray services, 24-hour house/hotel call service
- English Spoken
- Yes
- Consultation Fee
- ₱500
- Emergency Capacity
- Limited; stabilizes and refers serious cases to nearby hospitals
Ciriaco S. Tirol Hospital
- Type
- Public hospital
- Location
- Station 2, Boracay Island
- Services
- Emergency care, general medical services, basic inpatient care
- English Spoken
- Yes
- Notes
- Primary public healthcare facility; limited capacity for serious cases
Island Clinic Boracay and Diagnostic Center
- Type
- Private clinic
- Hours
- 24/7
- Location
- 0689 Main Road Balabag
- Services
- General medical consultation, emergency care, laboratory services, pharmacy
- English Spoken
- Yes
Metropolitan Doctors Medical Clinic
- Type
- Private clinic
- Location
- Two branches: Station 2 and Station 3
- Services
- General consultations, minor treatments, house calls
- English Spoken
- Yes
Pharmacies
- Availability
- Multiple pharmacies scattered across popular areas
- Medicine Availability
- Over-the-counter and prescription medications widely available at major chains (Mercury Drug, Watsons). Common painkillers, antibiotics, and first-aid supplies readily accessible.
- Note
- Most pharmacies accept cash (PHP) and some accept cards. Staff speak English in tourist-area pharmacies.
Locations
Mercury Drug
- Location
- Caticlan Jetty Port
Watsons Pharmacy
- Location
- City Mall Boracay (heart of island)
Farmacia Gomez
- Location
- Tyrol Shopping Center, Tambisaan Jetty Port Road
Bysshe Pharmacy
- Location
- D'mall De Boracay, Balabag
Official Safety Apps
- Status
- no confirmed dedicated official safety/emergency app found specifically documented for Boracay or as a mainstream, verifiably-current Philippine national emergency app
- Recommendation
- Save the 911 number directly in your phone rather than relying on an app; it is the confirmed, currently operating nationwide channel.
National Universal Number
- Number
- 911
- Notes
- This replaced the older 'Patrol 117' as the primary number to call anywhere in the Philippines, including Boracay/Aklan province.
- Description
- Nationwide 24/7 emergency hotline covering police, fire, and medical/hospital dispatch. As of September 11, 2025 this was upgraded to the 'Unified 911' system, which centralizes all local emergency numbers, uses prank-call filtering, and offers operators trained in local languages and dialects. Calls are routed to one of sixteen regional 117 call centers depending on the caller's location.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this emergencies research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Boracay
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.