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The most popular spot of the whole Philippine island Palawan – EL NIDO – is most famous for its unique island hopping excursions. I spent in this town 5 nights & 5 days and took some of the tours, therefore, this article will focus on island hopping and everything you need to know about it.
Firstly, you will be offered at least 5 different tours. Tour A, B, C & D + inland tour. There is also a possibility to combine tours, for example A + C together, but you won´t be able to see everything. It is generally known that the best excursions are tours A & C what I can personally confirm. 🙂
TOUR A
Itinerary: 5 different places starting with 7 Commando beach, continuing with kayaking in Small Lagoon, then snorkelling at Shimizu Island (lunch served), afterwards Secret Lagoon and the last stop Big Lagoon
Price – 1200 pesos (20 euro)
Extra: rent of kayak for 400 pesos (if you are 2, amount can be split) + aqua shoes for 100 pesos
My highlights & observations: kayaking at Small lagoon was my highlight where water had amazing colour – tour was very relaxed with many beautiful spots to observe – 7 Commando beach offered great swing directly on the beach
TOUR B
Itinerary: Snake Island, Entalula beach, Pinagbuyutan Island, Cudugnon cave & Cathedral cave
Price: 1300 pesos (22 euro)
TOUR C
Itinerary: Helicopter Island, Hidden beach, Narrow Island, Secret beach & Matinloc shrine
Price: 1400 pesos (23,60 euro)
Extra: aqua shoes for 100 pesos
My highlights & observations: for me personally this was the BEST tour – I got to see baby shark while amazing snorkelling around Helicopter island – Matinloc shrine offered breath-taking views – Secret beach offered adrenaline as the entrance was pretty rough – make sure you are good swimmers at this tour 😉
TOUR D
Itinerary: Cadlao lagoon, Nat-Nat beach, Paradise beach, Bukal Island & Pasandigan beach
Price: 1200 pesos (20 euro)
IN-LAND TOURS
El Nido offers variety of beautiful beaches and adventure activities which can be reached by land, not only by boat as the above mentioned excursions. I, personally, visited & tried:
– remote but naturally breath-taking Nacpan beach where you can get either by motorcycle or by renting a tricycle for around 1500 pesos – road is pretty rough and it wasn´t easy to get there – be careful about sand flies – they can be pretty annoying and might be terribly itchy afterwards
– Las Cabanas beach where you can get also by tricycle for 100 pesos or by your own motorbike – road was easily accessible – sunset at this beach was stunning!
– To the adrenaline activities you may try in El Nido belong zip-line (which I haven´t tried as I did it already in Sabang few days before) & canopy walk which I highly recommend if you want to explore beauty of whole El Nido from the top view point. Price for canopy walk is 400 pesos.
At the end I would like to mention that there are many travel agencies & companies which will book your excursions with pleasure. I had everything organized though local agency Northern Hope Tours which was more than great. Their service was excellent and I never had any problems or matters to complain. My guide Lito was very professional and paid me a lot of attention. Highly recommended.
EXTRA TIPS & TRICKS for EL NIDO
→El Nido is almost double more expensive than Puerto Princesa. Your wallets should be prepared for that.
→I stayed in OMP (Our Melting Pot) accommodation. Price per night per bed in 9 dorm room was 550 pesos including nice breakfast. Use booking.com to make reservation and receive $15 as a reward!! 😉
→Internet in El Nido isn´t the best. However, if you visit ice-cream shop Gusto and sit upstairs, you find perfect wifi where you can work (or just chit-chat for hours). 😉
→Amazing place to hang out at night is Pukka bar (reagge style) & Sava bar (modern style).
To sum up, I personally experienced tour A & C and went to Nacpan & Las Cavanas beach. Moreover, I tried canopy walk and got to see whole El Nido from the top. My favourite has been tour C. And I truly recommend you Northern Hope Tours agency as I was very happy with their service.
Do you have more questions about island hopping tours in El Nido? Feel free to ask. I don´t bite. 😉
If you are also heading to Puerto Princesa, check my Ultimate Guide for Puerto Princesa or Reasons why to visit Puerto Princesa. And I truly recommend islands Coron & Busuanga.
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