After visiting the main city on the island of Palawan, Puerto Princessa, we booked a ticket on a bus heading up to the top of the island bound for the tourist town of El Nido.
El Nido is a tiny collection of buildings, almost exclusively aimed at servicing the needs of the tourists that visit. You have the usual collection of guesthouses, restaurants and tour operators that you see in any place like this.
We had heard about El Nido from other backpackers and blogs and wanted to explore the islands that are around the El Nido bay. We quickly booked an island hopping tour that involved some snorkelling.
But before we went island hopping I read about the local cliff, Taraw. There was a hidden path that went up the cliff and held amazing views from the top. I also read that it wasn’t for novice climbers, you needed good footwear and stamina. We found a guide and headed up… After finishing it I kept thinking maybe I should have headed those warnings because we ended totally exhausted and I was shaking from the exertion, but we did it. Here are some pictures from the climb.
And here is the view from the top, totally worth it.
Once we’d recovered (the next day) we went hopping around some local islands. There are a few tours to choose from (A, B, C, D) but we chose the one with a few lagoons, tour B.
We were picked up and sailed about 40 minutes to Small Lagoon where we drifted slowly through the shallow, crystal clear waters.
Next we went to secret lagoon, a small lagoon only accessible by a cave entrance during low tide. Nothing spectacular but interesting.
Our last stop before heading back was big lagoon, a long and shallow lagoon with a surprisingly deep end. You can choose to snorkel or kayak down.
The tour cost 1300 pesos each and included a very nice buffet lunch.
A good day out for not so much money!
]]>This was our first time in Palawan Island. It is a beautiful place and recently I saw it was one the most beautiful islands in the world. In brochures you will see the crystal blue waters, perfect white sandy beaches against the grey karst limestone backdrops.
The island is long and narrow and there are also several smaller islands (hello! Philippines is made up of more than 7000+ islands!) consisting of Coron, Busuanga and several others that make up this province.
We took the Cebu plane from Cebu to Puerto Princesa, where we spent a few days here visiting the Underground River and doing some island hopping.
In Puerto Princesa we stayed at a hostel called the Sheebang Hostel which was a distance away from the airport and there was not much outside of the hostel. The main road was extremely noisy and busy and it was great this hostel was tucked away from the main street.
We both really wanted to go to the Underground River in Sabang (80km or 50 miles away from the city center). The Underground River is located in a National Park that was recently discovered back in 2010. The cave is one of the biggest ones in the world with the river running through it and eventually joining up to the West Philippine Sea. It has no been named of the great wonders of the world and given a UNESCO title and so many people come here to venture into the longest underground river in the world. Due to it being recently discovered, a lot of research is still being carried out hence why only a small proportion is open to the public. They do say that you have to obtain tickets prior to going there because only a certain number of people are allowed in on each day but we booked our through a tour company (thanks to our trike driver or dropped us outside the agent and we bagged a 10% discount) and they will usually have tickets reserved already.
The cost of the tour is normally 1500 Pesos but we did get a 10% discount.
To be honest I was a little disappointed because we only got 45 minutes in the cave. The journey takes 2 hours to drive to Sabang along the short and windy roads (with the joys of someone vomiting freeflow on the way). You then get there and have to wait due to the number of people waiting to get on the local boats to the island. You can spend 550 Pesos to do the zipline but we hadn’t brought that much cash with us so we waited and had the buffet lunch, which was nice. After that we headed out on a boat to the island and then queued up for another hour and a half before getting on a boat and heading into the cave. I have seen pictures of the river from a Filipino friend but I just think now with so many tourists flocking here it isn’t as beautiful anymore. The 45 minute tour is nice but not informative (no details about the discovery, research etc). There is some information but then you will be spending the last 30 minutes trying to spot the elephant, Buddha, snake etc!
We also decided to do some island hopping but we were both very excited about because we wanted to see the views that we had seen in the pictures elsewhere. The cost for 1 day was 1000 Pesos and then you had to rent the snorkel and mask. Shoes, which were recommended could also be rented but we decided to risk it and save 300 Pesos. Everything was kind of adding up and we weren’t used to paying for added extras. We were in a group of 8 and because there are multiple islands we had to choice which of the ones we wanted to go to. Island Pandan was apparently the most beautiful island but again we were told we had to pay extra to go there. We refused to pay but ended up going there anyways. We visited 3 islands in total – Starfish Island, Cowrie Island and Pandan Island.
Starfish Island was a total disappointment. I was angry because people were just picking up the starfish and taking selfies and then throwing them back into the water. No one was telling them not to do it and that there actions would have consequences for the sealife. Even the Fillipinos were joining in. The whole place was a tourist trap. It was not nice at all – the coral was dead and I didn’t see many starfish.
The next island was Cowrie island with its white sand and blue waters. We had our buffet lunch here too.
Island Pandan was also great but again, I just felt something lacking with the all of this island hopping. Yes sure it was nice scenery but I think people’s actions had put me off a little bit.
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The JR website has some good information regarding outlets where you can purchase the JR pass. As we were in Manila, we went to a travel agents to get ours (there are a few places to obtain a pass). The link is here and you can also see there are outlets in Cebu too.
I emailed a few and I worked on the basis that I needed the pass past and whoever got back to me first would get my business.
The two companies that got back to me were:
Attic Tours Phils. Inc. (I decided not to go with them because they charged an extra 5% if you pay by credit card)
Unit 203 Coko Bldg. 1
Patio Madrigal Compound
2550 Roxas Blvd. Pasay City,
Manila.
Telephone: 556 6301 to 05 Loc. 201
Mobile: +63 922 8900654
Universal Holidays Inc.
Mezzaine Floor,
Dusit Thani Hotel
Ayala Center,
Makati City,
Manila.
Telephone: 032 859 3828
www. universalholidays.com
With Universal Holidays Inc we could:
- you can purchase the 7, 14, 21 day pass (green car or ordinary car)
- get the JR pass the same day. You have to wait for around 15 minutes (depending on how busy they are) for them to print of the receipt where you will exchange it for the pass in Japan.
- pay by cash or credit card with no extra fees (there fees are already included in the overall purchase of the pass).
- they also print off a useful leaflet detailing how to exchange, use the pass, restrictions which is very helpful.
The location of the office is very easy to get too. You get the LRT to Ayala Station and then ask someone for directions. It’s right outside a big shopping center inside the hotel itself.
Voila….15 minutes later and here is the pass (we had already exchanged the ticket in Japan!)
I would definitely recommend Universal Holidays as I was emailing them back and forth with a bunch of questions and they were always quick to email me back.
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After Manila we took a flight to Cebu city, which is an island south of Manila (£32 per person one way including 20kg of luggage). The airport is Mactan Cebu International Airport. The best way to get around the Philippines is either by boat if the weather and schedule permits. The other option is flying, which is a bit more expensive but incredibly quick so it all depends on your budget and time constraints. We took a mixture of boats and flights throughout our trip around Philippines.
The low cost carriers around the Philippines include:
They always have promotions now and again and sometimes the fare can be dirt cheap so it’s worth looking back at their websites from time to time. The Philippines Airlines isn’t specifically a low cost carrier but prices are sometimes the same as Cebu Air.
Another thing to note is everytime you leave an airport you need to pay a ‘departure tax’. This could be anywhere from 400 Pesos to 1300 Pesos. However if you book your flights online you will likely have already paid the fees as part of your overall airfare.
Cebu city was a stopover for us so we could explore the southern tip around Boljoon and Oslob (whale sharks!). You can sightsee around Cebu city but it was very crowded and busy. There are a few churches nearby.
We stayed at Le Village Guesthouse and from there we took a taxi (70 pesos + 10 pesos entrance fee into the bus terminal?! – yes very bizarre). There are lots of buses departing and different types of buses. Some have no aircon whilst others have aircon. As it is not a lot more expensive we opted for the aircon bus as the journey was at least 3 and a half hours dependant on traffic. It does make stops on the way to drop off and pick up passengers. The fare was 120 Pesos.
We arrived at Cebu Airport and then took a metered taxi from the entrance of the building. The total fare does vary because there are lots of traffic jams in Manila. We hadn’t really experience any in Manila but we were thinking how great it was to get a metered taxi and not having to barter with the fare and getting ripped off. However we were so wrong. The sat in a traffic jam all the way from the airport into the city. At one point it was 45 minute and all you can do is hope that the cars start moving. There was a lot of road works at the time but mainly because there were too many cars. The total fare amounted to 350 Pesos when actually it would have been a lot less as it was only 20 minutes away.
The hostel is nice with tables at the front to socialise and relax with. There is also a pool table and a free beer or soft drink for staying the night. There are a lot of dorm rooms here and we stayed in a what seemed to be a recently refurbished room. However the second time we stayed in the room next to the reception and it was terrible – noisy and smelly as it was attached next to the bathroom and you could smell the sewage. We did get use to the smell and it was only for one night so try to get the dorms away from the reception.
The dorm beds are nice, basic and clean. Not all of them have power sockets that were working. There was a big cabinet to store our belongings and also lockers near the bathroom to lock away valuables. Note that the lockers are very small. The aircon worked really well too. The bathroom was basically 3 showers and 3 toilets all lined up next to each other in a big room. Sinks are available on the other side. The one problem was the flushing situation as Cebu was experiencing a draught you could only flush the toilet using a bucket and pail, which was really annoying because a trickle of water would come out to refill the bucket and many people did not flush the toilet properly. I don’t think the staff cleaning the toilets would have been happy.
Other things to note:
- The wifi is okay (although to be fair it is slow anywhere in the Philippines!). You can only access it in the reception or outside seating area.
- There is 2 ATMs nearby – BDO, which charges a 200 Peso fee for a withdrawal and the Metrobank further down the road, which doesn’t charge.
- Sometimes the electricity goes out (again, common throughout Philippines).
- The lockers are small and they have a key provided already.
- They do cooked food and cold drinks and a free water dispenser. You can use the kitchen area but it is self service only.
- There are also food shops nearby and a fruit shop right outside.
- Taxis cost roughly 70 Pesos to the bus terminal if you are catching a bus to Boljoon.
Overall for the price of 450 Pesos it was a good nights sleep and we learnt a lot of places and things to visit by talking to other people, who also stayed there.
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Noordzee Hostel is situated in Boljoon, which is in the south of Cebu city. This hostel is a very popular stopover for backpackers who have come to visit the whale sharks in Oslob. Another reason is because there are no other hostels in the area like many other places in the Philippines!
Manila – the capital of Phillipines is an intriguing city in Southeast Asia. It’s the first time where we could have a decent conservation to any stranger on the train or on the streets because they are so friendly, helpful and most of all they speak perfect English. Most Fillipinos learn English at a very young age at school along with Tagalog, which are their official languages. There are also lots of dialects, which we came across as we travelled to the south island for a spot of whale sharks, Palawan (voted one of the most beautiful islands in the whole world) and Coron, where there are many Japanese ship wrecks.
Another interesting thing is that the Phillipines were colonized by the Spanish for 300 years and there are many Catholic churches, which is great for a change after looking at so many Asian temples. Everywhere you will see Spanish themed buildings such as:
Fort Santiago was built by the Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi and was used to protect the new Manila that had been formed. There is also a nice park to walk around.
The Museum of the Filipino People is a good starting point if you want to learn more about the history of Phillipines and there is also an Art Museum but there are separate to each other, although only a 5 minute walk between them.
We spent 2 days in Manila when we landed in the Phillipines and then another 7 days at the end before flying to Japan. However the last days were not very good for travelling and seeing what is around Manila as a typhoon had welcomed itself onto the city and it rained heavily every single day. This made it difficult for us to travel up north to see Taal Volcano Batangas and also Mount Mayan, which you can climb. The Banaue Rice Terraces are also spectacular during the rainy season. There are places we have penciled in for a future visit to the Philippines.
The rain was so bad that it is not uncommon for certain parts of Manila to become flooded as the drainage system is blocked really easily. Luckily there are many shopping malls in Manila and also some indoor attractions, such as the Manila Ocean Park. Normally I don’t like Ocean Parks as I would rather see the animals and sea life in their natural habitat and free from barriers but we had 7 days to fill with activities.
We are going to swim with the whale sharks in our next post!
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