Finally, after about 10 years, we finally made it to the Palawan Islands. Ages ago Chantal had read about this amazing place that wasn’t very well known, and after seeing the pictures we were super keen to check it out. Obviously during that time the word has gotten out – but nevertheless it was awesome to tick this off our bucket list. We touched on 2 main destinations as our base (El Nido & Coron) and did multiple day trips from each place. You are able to do a 3 or 5 night expedition between destinations which would’ve been amazing, and maybe that’s something well explore next time.
Hit List:
El Nido
- Amakan Accomodation. This was our base for the 6 nights we had in El Nido. It was reasonably priced and provided great access to everyintg. El Nido town itself is rather compact, so we were well enough away from the nightlife (like 3 blocks) that it was quiet, but also close enough to access everything we needed. They had a partnership with David John Tours with whom we booked our days trips
- David John Tours. These guys are based out of Corong Corong Beach which is only about 5 mins from El Nido town. The beauty of departing from this beach for your tours compared to the main town is that its about 100 times less busy, which means you get away quicker in the morning – meaning you arrive at your destinations before the plethora of other people. The tour guides have great English, a great sense of humour and were awesome with Finn! In addition to the tour cost, you would pay extra for kayaks at specific locations such as Big & Small Lagoons, as this is the only way you can access them from the sea. Inclusive in the cost however was an awesome buffet lunch. Beers and icecreams weren’t included, however they had blokes on kayaks at each destination paddling up and selling you refreshments (at a decent price too!)
- Day tours. The Local Government and coastguard have organised 4 day tours (A, B, C, and D) that you can choose from only, from a wide range of providers, which ensures that destinations aren’t overcrowded. We did tours A (which includes the Big Lagoon and Secret Lagoon) and tour D (which includes Small Lagoon). This makes for a great experience and provides you with the opportunity to visit places you wouldn’t otherwise. Tours are 1400php per person.
- El Nido Zipline. Between island hopping, we hired a motorbike (a bit more expensive that Siquijor, at 500 php/day) and headed south to Los Cabenas beach. Located here was a zipline that went from the main island across a sandbar (at low tide) to another island. There was an option to return to the mainland via another zipline, however due to Finns weight we were unable to do this (he was too light and would’ve been stranded mid journey!) We opted for the 1 way with Camo leading the way and Chantal & Finn going tandem. We’d highly recommend this!!
- We also decided to head to Corong Corong beach and hire a kayak for the day – it was 500 php for the afternoon, and we were able to access some awesome beaches around the point.
- Also a must-do whilst in town is the Canopy walk, where you ascend Tawa cliff which provides an awesome vista over El nido town and bay. In addition to the tour you also need to pay 30 php ($1AUD) pp to the local school that you walk through to access the climb
- The coffee scene is El Nido is the best to date in the Philippines. Places to check out are Hama Coffee, Taste and Blackbird, with the latter providing the cheapest and best shot on tour to date at 100 php ($3AUD)
- 30 metres from our accom was a place called Caliente, which specialised in hot dogs. Whilst these were ok, and would recommend as an alternative to the traditional Filipino fare, the get a mention as they have the coldest beer in the Philippines for sure. Ther store it in a freezer and has ice on it when they serve it up. Great after a long day in the humidity and the heat!!
- Havanna Bar – located at the end of the beach, they do 2-4-1 cocktails in the afternoon, with a great sunset view over the bay. The kicker for us was that whilst we enjoyed a pina colada and amaretto sour, they also had swing seats which kept Finn entertained!!
Coron
- Same as El Nido – the day tours are like a ‘set menu’, but there is plenty more variety. We opted for the Super Ultimate Tour and Calauit Safari/Black Island Tours. We would say the scenery here is definitely better than El Nido (which was still awesome!) and would be our preferred out of the 2.
- Bay Area Lodge. Our accommodation which was tucked away off of the main street, and once you are in the venue it is a peaceful oasis!! The onsite kitchen, ‘Gavins Bar & Kitchen’ was a popular destination for people staying in Coron, and was pumping every night. These guys also coordinated our tour bookings and were great.
- Shawarma Place. Was a little hole in the wall on the main street outside our accommodation, but did $2AUD kebabs from 10am. Lets just say we had a plethora of these over our 5 night stay for lunch and dinner alike.
- Mt Tapayas is a free activity and we did it a couple of times from our accom. Is a bit of a hike uphill to reach the main carpark, (like 5 mins), but once you get there, then you start the journey of 720 steps to the summit. Once you cross off all 720 sweaty steps, it is totally worth it, providing 270 deg views of the bay at sunset. We got there at 5/515pm and were some of the first folk there, but by sunset the place was packed with people. Is a bit tricky coming down in the dark once the suns gone down, and the local kids take great delight in hiding behind trees and under benches and scaring the shit out of you on the way down. All in jest and was pretty funny tbh!
- Big Horse beers haven’t got a mention yet in the Hit List for anywhere in the Philippines. Brewed by San Miguel, these bad boys are 6.9% and are sold at the same price as their other heavy brethren (5%ers). You can buy these things by the litre for about $3 from the local shop. It was pointed out by a mate of mine that this is the only thing locals drink (The litre bottles) which is true. Strange enough all the locals are also 5ft nothing and weigh 60kgs, which leads me to believe that drinking a few litres of Red Horse on the daily is a good option for weight management.
Shit List
El Nido
- We had a minutes silence following one of the day tours, where we (I/me/Cameron) crashed the drone on a cliff at Cadlao Lagoon. It was a fkn mint video though, but may it RIP (rest in pieces) on the sharp cliff face above.
- Whilst not as expensive losses, on the same tour I left my beloved Vegemite hat and havs behind at the next beach. RIP (Rest In Philippines)
Coron
- Coron Public Market. Often we’ll be keen to go check out the local markets to jag some cheap fresh fruit and vege, but this place is a fkn shithole. Avoid at all costs and just buy it from the local shopfronts in town.
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