In September 2023 I spent two weeks exploring the beautiful islands of the Philippines with a close friend. We’d both been hankering for an exotic long-haul adventure, and with its beautiful beaches, stunning snorkelling spots and vibrant culture, the Philippines fit the bill. We chose to mainly explore Palawan to best suit the amount of time we had – the larger islands are all surprisingly far apart so we didn’t want to spend too much time travelling between. We planned our full trip before departing, booking the internal flights and the ferry in advance.

We flew with Emirates from London Gatwick to Dubai on an A380, and then on a B777 to Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It’s a long time in the air with the two flights taking about 7 and 9 hours respectively, however I was impressed with Emirates’ service and food. When we first stepped out into bustling Manila I was glad this was not my first time experiencing an Asian capital city as it can be quite a culture shock (I visited Bangkok in 2022). It still felt overwhelming, however I knew we would be headed out to the smaller, quieter islands soon. The traffic was horrendous so even short journeys can take a very long time.

We stayed one night in Manila and then returned to the airport the next day for a scenic one-hour AirSwift flight to El Nido, Palawan on a small aircraft that was only four seats wide! Christmas music was playing as we boarded, and we were later told that Filipinos love Christmas so this was perfectly normal even though it was September!

El Nido airport

From the tiny El Nido airport we took a tricycle into the town – these are essentially motorcycles with a frame and seats attached to the side. We checked into the lovely Spin Designer Hostel where we’d spend the next 4 nights, which is set back from the main streets of the town making it a little quieter, and then we wandered into town to explore. We ate some delicious fried fish sandwiches for lunch at the vibrant ArtCafe and chilled at Las Cabañas beach in the afternoon.

Spin Designer Hostel, El Nido

ArtCafe, El Nido

El Nido is a great jumping-off point for exploring the smaller islands around Palawan. The multiple boat tour operators all offer trips following 4 very similar routes (creatively named Tours A, B, C & D!). September is considered low season, so on our first day trip (Tour A) there were just 12 of us on a boat that takes up to 40 in high season. We had a delightful day stopping off at beaches and lagoons, kayaking and snorkelling in the clear turquoise water. The scenery was beautiful and the guides were well-versed in taking great photos of guests! In the evening we ate some delicious food at Big Bad Thai in El Nido.

Tour A

Tour A

The following day followed a similar pattern, this time we opted for Tour C, and there were just 6 of us on a bangka (traditional boat). It was lovely to chat to our fellow international day-trippers. We visited more beautiful sandy bays and coves, with a lovely lunch stop at a beach we had all to ourselves! We even spotted a turtle from the bangka. I acquired a small sting from a baby jellyfish which left some tingly marks on my forearm for a little while, but luckily there was some vinegar onboard and it had faded by the morning (the adult jellyfish are only active at night, so swimming after dark is not recommended). For dinner we took a tricycle to the La Plage restaurant on Corong Corong beach and enjoyed a gorgeous view of the sunset.

Tour C

Corong Corong beach

We decided to explore a little more of El Nido the next day, and after some lovely smoothie bowls at Taste we went on the Canopy walk, which had great views of the town and the bay, and enabled us to get up close to the striking limestone cliffs. In the afternoon we booked seats on a minibus to take us to Nacpan beach (and we were very glad we weren’t on a tricycle for the 20 minute drive!). It was a stunning large wide sandy beach with palm trees and shallow water, and we had a very enjoyable relaxing afternoon.

Taste, El Nido

Canopy walk, El Nido

Nacpan beach

The following day we joined a 3-day boat expedition from El Nido to Coron. There were 9 of us in total from across Austria, Germany, America and the Netherlands and it was really interesting to hear where else everyone had visited in both the Philippines and around the world. We used the company El Nido Paradise and had a positive experience, although a friend of mine did a similar trip with them a year or so later and had a less good experience. The company Tao Philippines was also highly rated but they weren’t running expeditions during the month of September.

We left the cliffs of El Nido behind and entered an island paradise, making stops to swim amongst beautiful corals and starfish in the crystal-clear water. The crew prepared delicious buffet meals for us and it was very relaxing to read on the boat and watch the stunning scenery go by. Both nights we camped in huts on beaches and enjoyed a bonfire, and it felt wonderful to wake up in such remote, beautiful, peaceful places.

El Nido Paradise boat

The last day of the boat expedition coincided with my 29^th birthday and the crew carved a lovely fruit platter for me and even baked some fairy cakes which was so sweet. We explored a sandbar, went kayaking and spotted another turtle. A pretty amazing way to spend a birthday!

We arrived at Coron port and a minivan was waiting to take my friend and I to a small boat to reach our destination for the next 4 nights – Paolyn Houseboats, one of the most unique and beautiful places I’ve ever stayed. The rooms and the restaurant are all on floating houseboats set amongst the stunning lagoons of Coron Island, with small boats always available to transport you around. You can even have meals delivered to your deck at no extra charge, and we ended up doing this for breakfast every day which was delightful.

Paolyn Houseboats

Paolyn Houseboats

Paolyn Houseboats

We spent the days swimming and reading by our houseboat, kayaking to the nearby Twin Lagoon, and we also did a private speedboat tour stopping by a shipwreck, some coral gardens, more beaches and Kayangan Lake where we climbed up for a beautiful view.

Kanyangan Lake

Paolyn Houseboats

After our relaxing time at Paolyn Houseboats we began to gradually make our way back to Manila. We took a ferry from Coron port back to El Nido – the ‘quick’ ferry takes 5 hours. We  stayed one night in El Nido, enjoying some very affordable massages and tasty food at the Happiness Beach Bar. After the short flight back to Manila, we had some time to go into the city for the afternoon and we visited Casa Manila and Fort Santiago, before our flights back to the UK the next day. I’m glad we went but don’t feel bad if you don’t have time to do this, Manila is very hectic.

Manila

The Philippines truly is a lesser-trodden paradise of endless islands, and we only scratched the surface. Visiting in September is considered off season/low season which meant it was a quieter time to go, and it was lovely for there to be fewer people on the boat trips and at tourist hotspots. There were one or two downpours of rain but that was it, otherwise we had plenty of sunshine, however it’s hard to know if this would be the case every September.

The Philippines is 7 hours ahead of the UK and the plug sockets are similar to America. We picked up sim cards in the airport which are overpriced but convenient. On other trips since then I’ve used the app airalo where you can buy digital sims in advance. In Manila we used the app Grabcar to get around which is similar to Uber. It’s worth noting that it’s now been a couple of years since I visited the Philippines, so some of the information I’ve mentioned throughout this post may no longer be accurate.

Where else should I visit for an island-hopping adventure?

Alexa

P.S. If you enjoyed reading this post, why not take a look at Sightseeing in Sri Lanka, 30 Countries Before 30 and Exploring Egypt.

Header photo: El Nido to Coron boat expedition

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