El Nido, Palawan

In July 2014, Ling and I went on an out of town trip with Tina and Sid, Ling's sister and brother-in-law. We're usually together in mountain climbing and family gatherings so this trip was a breath of fresh sun-sand-sea air.

Arrived in Puerto Princesa, Palawan in the afternoon. Fort Wally Shuttle Service and Terminal's van was waiting for us upon our arrival. We contacted and reserved ahead of time. One-way travel cost to El Nido is P700/pax, travel time took us 4-5 hours. Checked into Ogie's Beach Pension by nighttime. It is situated in the beachfront, overlooking El Nido's nearby islands. Standard aircon room rate for two is P1,500. Really appreciated the view in its roof deck. =)

Island hopping was scheduled the following day. The staff in Ogie's Beach Pension arranged everything. At the cost of P1,200/pax, we chose tour package A for our first day:

1. The hidden Small Lagoon with stunning rock formations and crystal clear water

2. Miniloc Island's Big Lagoon enclosed with limestone cliffs and good for kayaking

3. Payong-payong Beach where you can enjoy its white sand beach and snorkel endlessly

4. Quaint Simizu Island named in memory of a Japanese diver

5. The stretch of the Seven Commmandos Beach commemorating the seven Japanese commanders who lived in the island even after the World War II

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't quite good during our trip. We experienced light to moderate rainfall and strong current. Good thing we were still able to do some snorkeling and sightseeing. El Nido's rock formations were splendid. Marine life was fairly good but not better than Coron or Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park 1, Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park 2.

Bad weather condition continued until our 2nd day. The local Coast Guard didn't allow island-hopping tours. So we ended up doing the in-land tour to Nacpan Beach. It's the better half of the famous Twin Beaches and its 4-kilometer shoreline is lined with palm trees and nipa huts. Paid our guide P500 including the payment for the van. Wasn't able to enjoy the abundant stretch of white sand though because of the rain. Just decided to have a massage instead and a sumptuous buffet dinner afterwards. =)

For our 3rd day, island-hopping tours were still not allowed. So we just spontaneously went to San Vicente, Palawan.

For inquiries and reservation for van transpo going to El Nido, contact Fort Wally Shuttle Service and Terminal at these numbers: 0917-276-2875, 0921-311-8755.