Adventures in Palawan, Philippines

Ahhhhh, the Philippines. What a magical place. Last time we went to the Philippines was the spring of 2014, when we were invited to a wedding in Manila and then tacked on a week on the island of Boracay. WOWZA, now THAT was something. You can read about that adventure here. Back in 2014, 10 years ago, Boracay was a sleepy little exotic island that people had to really search and make an effort to find and get to. It was unreal. Now, I hear that it is much fancier and crowded, although I have no doubt it is still stunning!

We have always heard about the Palawan area of the Philippines. It is large province with a smattering of islands…about 1800 of them, to the southwest of Manila. Relativity unknown in mass tourism, rather it is sort of like what Boracay was 10 years ago. It’s known for its diving and snorkeling and the many little islands you can hop around to, as well as the famed Puerto Princesa underground river (which is a destination in itself- we did not have enough time to stop here). The diving and snorkeling can be spectacular not just because of the crystal clear waters and white sand, but also because of the many sunken (in shallow waters) Japanese WW2 ships sunk off the coast of some of the islands. Pretty freaking cool to experience.

The process of getting to the Palawan area from Beijing, China was an event in and of itself, but thankfully there is 1 nonstop per day from Beijing to Manila so that helped tremendously! Once we arrived into Manila (and were pleased to see many airport updates from the last time we visited!), we had to get a nearby hotel room since the only nonstop flight landed just after midnight. We bunked up at the nearby Sheraton, which was a quick 20 minutes from the terminal (I mean technically it’s only about 2 miles away, but YA KNOW…… Manila traffic is a whole VIBE). Anyway, a quick 8 hours at the hotel and back to the airport where we took a small island hopper airline via Island Air (via Airswift) from Manila to El Nido. This flight was about an hour and 30 minutes tops.

Convincing Ava that this island hopping airline was safe took some time, lol.

The arrivals hall/baggage claim in El Nido.

The Cauayan Resort boat transfer

Arriving on the Cauayan Island via the gang plank! (side note that’s our villa directly to the right of Ava)

View of the plank and floating arrival dock!

Once we landed in El Nido, a very small and quaint little island terminal, greeters from our resort, the Cauayan Resort, found us and transported us about 20 minutes in a van to a marina, where we then hopped on a large speedboat where we cruised for another 20 minutes to the private island of the Cauayan Island Resort. Phew…..we thought well, we’ve arrived. But no.so.fast. LOL! The speedboat docked us on a floating dock where the amazing Cauayan workers pulled a literal “plank” from it’s stable landing zone at the base of the island, and we had to “hop up” onto the stairs when the waves hit right, and then “walk the gangplank” to the safety of the island. YEP…. and I mean it was stressful enough that I couldn’t get a video of it but yet we made friends with a family who was there with their 80year old grandma who made the trek as well as a 1 yr old baby, amazing.

Every night they made a new note for us out of bamboo leaves and flowers

Amazing fresh water plunge pool at our Villa

Sunset view from our Villa veranda

Beach swing at the resort!

The Infinity pool view of the beach!

Some snorkeling shots from the resort’s island reef!

Well hello cute little turtle!

The Cauayan Island Resort (pronounced like Hawaiian but with a “C”), was so magical and perfect. Only 29 villas in total, this was such a quiet and serene island resort. They had many types of villas available but ultimately with a family of 4, we opted for the 2 bedroom Bayview villa with private pool. We overlooked the west side of the island and had ridiculous sunsets. The rooms were spacious and the beds comfortable. The en suite bathrooms also spacious with spectacular views. The added bonus of the private plunge pool as well as a covered veranda with tables and seating was the perfect place to indulge in some room service after long days exploring the surrounding islands and lagoons. This resort was so intimate on the island, there were no motorized vehicles to be seen or heard. You walked everywhere…and be prepared for hills, haha. They even had sunrise and sunset treks to the top of the surrounding peaks and there were breathtaking!!! The infinity beachside pool was perfect. The cuisine was so international and included many gluten free & vegetarian options. We never had a bad meal or fancy beverage from their skilled chefs and bartenders. I even indulged in their spa with a relaxing massage where my face looked down onto the crashing waves underneath the spa building. The bayside (west) of the island had more of crashing waves into the cliffs and the beachside (east) of the island had a nice rolling smattering of waves that came in and out with the tide, but nothing too dramatic.

This was a great shot I took after we made the sunset trek to the peak for an epic sunset. Showcases the topography of the island with the Cauayan Resorts nestled right in the middle, with the bay for boat transport on the west and the beach cove to the east.

Sunset vibes

Couldn’t be more perfect!

Due to being on a private island, we really only had options of taking their water excursions, of which they had plenty. Beachside they had kayaks, SUP’s, and with some baby sharks and turtles, plenty to see with snorkel gear just along the shore. Their all day excursions were hosted on a gorgeous traditional filipino boat, that although wasn’t private, due the small amount of people even at the resort, was capped around 12 people total. Our all day excursion also included lunch, and free flow water, soft drinks, and beer. The food on the boat was so outstanding! The crew and captain skilled and gracious. Our fellow passengers fun and kind. All in all no complaints.

Another view of the plank from the resort side….always an adventure getting on and off the island!

Let the fun all day tour begin- we love the traditional Philippine boats!!

For our all day excursion, we chose a package that included both snorkeling and lagoon exploring. We experienced a breathtaking secret lagoon surrounded my limestone cliffs, snorkeling near another small island, kayaking near another island with turquoise waters, and venturing to snake island which was really this crystal clear water with a small beach that snaked through the area which we walked through, around knee high depth. Such a stunning day!! We highly recommend the Cauayan Island Resort due to its 5 star service and accommodation, its allure of adventure both within its resort and in the surrounding area of El Nido. 100% well worth the trek to get there.

Super cool hidden lagoon surrounded by limestone cliffs!

Entry and exit of the secret lagoon!

Mac with the cannonball to swim to the entrance of the secret lagoon!! (also showcases what the traditional Philippine boats look like in the background)

The beach!

This is from “snake island”

fun little reef along this island for snorkeling

snorkling adventures!

stunning kayak sesh amongst limestone cliffs and turquoise waters

After 4 nights at this resort, we decided to head to another area of Palawan called Coron, where we had heard the snorkeling was unreal. Thus we began our trek- down the gangplank to the floating dock, onto the speedboat for 20 minutes, arrive at marina and into the van for 20 minutes, take a small island plane via Island Air once again for a quick 35 minute flight to the island of Coron where we were picked up by our hotel greeter and taken on a 40 minute van ride to a marina and then a 45 minute speedboat ride to the private island for Two Seasons Resort. Hahaha so much adventure in the travel portion alone :). Again, worth it!! Side note, the El Nido airport was much nicer than the Coron airport….to temper your expectation, both VERY small island airports, but the Coron was just dirtier and more basic than the El Nido one.

Arriving into the Two Seasons Resort in Coron behind us!

Awesome Christmas decor in the Two Season’s lobby

Two Season’s lobby was so great

First sunset in Coron!

And duh…. sunset SUP session!

Our arrival to The Two Seasons Resort was infinitely less dramatic with a nice cruise to a floating dock where we were met with umbrellas for the shading of the sun while we strolled to the lobby, greeted with beautiful locally made necklaces, and checked into our side by side beachfront bungalows. This resort is classified as a 5 star and for what’s available in and around Coron, I would say that is correct, but in reality it’s more of a 4 star resort with a fantastic 5 star view! All in all I would say that Coron is a bigger draw for backpackers, which is why the Two Seasons resort is the most “luxurious” option, whereas El Nido area has more 5 star eco friendly resorts. Our bungalows were spacious and comfortable both with en suite bathrooms and beachfront views, but a little more basic necessities than Cauayan.  There was a great pool with swim up bar, and some pool tables and karaoke room for rent. The beach was stunning with hardly a whisper of a wave, perfect for the water bikes and SUP’s we took advantage of. There were also awesome snorkeling complete with baby sharks, lots of starfishes, and reefs just off the beach. The food was meh….little disappointed there, but still good, just not GREAT.

The kids had a blast with this toy!

I have never seen starfish like these before

Starfish hunting!

So many starfish at our beach!!!

We took 2 all day adventures and while we did have private tours both times, the boats were smaller and more basic but still great traditional filipino boats. Our first tour was the Ultimate adventure tour- we started with this awesome snorkeling stop at the Skelton wreck right off the bat which was an old Japanese WW2 wreck. We then ventured to the twin lagoons, so amazing and blue (but crowded), then 2 stops to Kayangan and Barracuda lakes- both brackish lakes (70% fresh water with 30% saltwater). It was so cool- after swimming in salt water and then jumping into the crystal clear limestone surrounded brackish lakes, it made you feel like you would sink, kind of disorienting but quickly we found our groove. From there a stop for lunch- made on the spot by chefs from our resort, and was so amazing. Then to one final snorkeling stop along a reef.

OK this was pretty unreal- a sunken WW2 Japanese warship!

Such cool shots of the sunken vessel!

Loved all the sealife surrounding the wreckage

The deep blue beyond…..

Mac becoming one with the sea- lol!

The entrance to the twin lagoons….tide was lower than expected so we didn’t have to choose to either climb over the rock or swim underneath under water.

Twin Lagoons!

Twin Lagoons entrance behind us

The walk to the climb for the lakes beyond!

Let’s gooooooo!! 163 steps up and 204 steps down to the lake!

View from the top!

Cave shot

Exploring the cave at the top!

I have never been to a brackish lake before, it was something to behold!

Ava exploring the limestone cliffs underwater in the lake!

Mac doing yoga under water!

Such cool topography underneath the surface

couldn’t get enough cool shots!

snorkeling along a pretty shallow reef!

NEMO!!!

Nothing like a boat nap at the end of the day!

snoozefest!!

We enjoyed this tour so much we booked another one for the following day- need.more.snorkling!! Our 2nd full day private tour was full of WW2 Japanese ship wrecks. 2 stops at 2 different shipwrecks plus a private lunch made on a beach island where we swam and tossed the football some.

These kids and the water….it calls to them 🙂

More sunken WW2 shipwrecks!

So much cool coral growth on the hulls of these WW2 shipwrecks

Say cheese! (next to the WW2 ship)

Can’t stop won’t stop snorkeling!!

A series of Ava tumbles….

she’s goes round and round

Hey girl hey!

Pass Island private lunch and chill beach time!

Fam bam!!

Final stop of the day…..beautiful colors on the reef!

more free dives from Mac!!

More NEMO!!

The grand finale- turtle after turtle after turtle along the reef!!

Great shots!!

After 4 more nights here, it was time to return to the cold winter of Beijing. The trek home was again an event- 45 minutes boat ride, 40 minute van ride, then a 1.5 hour flight this time on Cebu Pacific Air to Manila. Overnight at the same Sheraton hotel, and finally our direct flight back to Beijing.

A couple things I want to note- If you don’t know about Trip.com, you should. It is the best platform for booking flights and hotels here around Asia. I haven’t used it for other regions in the world but I am sure it’s just as great. Very robust with the airline searches and hotels with tons of filters to find what you are looking for. Additionally, I would say if we are lucky enough to visit the Palawan area again, I will book ahead or book in a less busy season that Christmas. I found this Eco-Luxury resort brand called The El Nido Island Resorts, which look stunning. Sadly they were all booked up for the Christmas Holiday. That said, I have ZERO complaints of the Cauayan Resort and do recommend that 100%! I will also say that in regards to packing, we were way off and I even thought I was dialed in! Since we stayed both places on private islands, there was no strolling around towns- you are just at the resort or on the water. So you really don’t need much at all. I think I wore makeup 2 days out of the 10 were were there, haha. Gloriously chill and laidback.

The filipino people are known for their amazing hospitality, and boy oh boy did we experience every bit of it. We also found that the Palawan area is a really small community as the workers at both El Nido and Coron seemed to know of one another and tend to work at resorts in both areas. We just love the filipino culture, the food, the kindness, and the whole VIBE. The beaches and the waters of the Philippines blew us away once again. It had been 10 years since our last visit and we forgot just how stunning the islands of the Philippines truly are. It’s magical and well worth the visit if you can swing it.

From sunrise to sunset, this was a 10/10 trip for our water loving, beach loving, adventure loving family! And bonus we got a GoPro camera for Christmas and brought it along….it was SO amazing to capture all the snorkeling and adventuring around the islands and waters. We ca n’t wait until Mac turns 12 and then we can start training to scuba as a family!

Thank you for following along on our adventures,

xo Kimbra