Finally, we%26#39;re going to Palawan for a whole month, if possible. We%26#39;ve been to Davao, Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo and Boracay (four times) and now, to PP, El Nido, maybe Coron.
Just find it not easy to make an itinerary with so many beautiful beaches to choose from.
So, could some one please describe the %26#39;must visit%26#39; areas in Palawan in a nutshell.
Palawan Itinerary
hi. i think that palawan is very beautiful. you can fly to PP and do the caves and the croc farm. the beaches there are quite nice too. if you want the better beaches and crystal clear water, i would recommend coron! this place is amazing! you can go el nido if money is not a problem but if you would like to go a bit more rustic you can take cebpac or palexpress to busuanga and check out all the nice hotels there. then i suggest you find a banka or outrigger boat and haggle with them for renting it for the whole day to really see all the beautiful islands and saltwater lakes. they can even go to the market for you in the morning and doo the grilling on the boat. that is what we did the last time and saved so much money.
Palawan Itinerary
While in Puerto Princesa, visit the underground river in Sabang. Sabang is about 2hrs away from the city. From Sabang Beach, you have to take a boat ride for about 15 minutes and a less than 5min walk to the cave.
El Nido to me is the highlight of my 4 trips to the Philippines. It is such a beautiful area, the township is small but clean, the people friendly, and heaps to do with boat tours,snorkelling and diving, plus some great climbs of the mountains overlooking the township.
Chris
Hello, I have been to Palawan twice. My first time was with my boyfriend last August %26#39;07 and we decided to go back again last year on November %26#39;08. I would like to recommend the place where we stayed in Puerto Princesa, in Niko%26#39;s Cabanas. Kindly check their website at www.nikoscabanas.com for the complete infos about the must visit areas in Puerto Princesa. Their rates are reasonable and the people are very nice too.
We%26#39;ve just come back from Palawan -we had a couple of weeks there, it was really fantastic.
Puerto is fine for a couple of days, Sabang and the underground river is also ok, although I found the underground river a bit of a let down - tourists can only go inside about a kilometer or so.
El Nido and the bacuit archipelago is something else. We went island hopping and snorkelling for several days to the most beautiful beaches with stunning limestone cliffs. I also went diving with Palawan divers, who were great.
We hired a motorbike and found the most beautiful huge beach i%26#39;ve ever seen about 6kn north of elnido town which was empty.
I%26#39;ve heard that Port Barton is nice but the road was bad when we were there and we couldn%26#39;t be bothered with the hassle.
We had our honeymoon in Busuanga in 2006 and that is also a fantatic place. There are not as many beaches, but the water is clear, snorkelling and diving is brilliant (wreck dives) and there are also amazing lagoons, hot springs, thermoclines etc etc.
There%26#39;s more to do at night in elnido, but remember there are no ATMs!!
Enjoy the trip!!
Matt
For now, our itinerary is: fly to Coron (4 nites) from Manila, catch the next Seair flight to Puerto (to avoid the 8 hrs boat trip to El Nido)take van from Puerto to El Nido (don%26#39;t want to miss El Nido)stay 4 nites, take boat to Port Barton (3 nites) boat to Sabang (2 nites)for underground river and mangrove tour then to Puerto for city tour, Honda Bay and Dos Palmas excursion.
The next question is: which malaria prophylaxis to take: Lariam or Malarone?
I think you should review your plans, I wouln%26#39;d bother with Seaair. The boat trip from Coron is long, but the van from Puerto to el nido is not a good trip. It%26#39;s at least 5 and a half hours and cramped and unpleasant. The road is also very bad. If you take a bus it%26#39;s 9 hours plus! (and you might have to sit on the roof!).
Only take Larium if you%26#39;re not worried about the risk of mental illness!
Thanks Matt,
1. Malarone is said to have less serious side effects. Prescription would be for 27 pills for 18 days (2 before and 1 week after).Other than the fact that they are quite expensive, we don%26#39;t want to take it because of the side effects. But if one gets bitten by an anopheline mosquito (and it takes only one teeny bite) how fast can one get to a malaria treatment center. And how long would it be to recover from Malaria? It would also mean trip interruption, etc.
2. ';The best protection against Malaria is still to sleep only under mosquito nets, use mosquito repellant on all exposed skin, use long sleeve shirts and long pants at nighttime (white colors preferably), have lighted mosquito coils in the room at night.
The reason we always skipped Palawan in our Philippine travels is the Malaria question. Maybe I made the mistake of planning for 18 days. I could have made it shorter.
I%26#39;ve found Palawan no worse than anywhere else in Phils for mozzies, my advice is to acquire some DEET (neat if possible) before you go and cover yourselves in it, and sleep with a fan blowing on you, and/or get a room with good mozzy screens. Avon%26#39;s skin so soft also works quite well, and is non toxic!
Don%26#39;t let the mozzies alter your plans! You%26#39;ve made a good choice to go there for that length of time, I wish we could have spent that long there - you%26#39;ll enjoy it, have fun!
Friends,
Malaria/sandflies- Jan is winter. No big deal to us. Repellent ok. Of course, more protection less worry the better, agree;
UR- i saw more than 10 caves in mainland China far better than UR (sorry to UR lovers). However, Monkey trail-UR-jungle trail then mangrove in one go is worthwhile and time/cost effective; When i was in sabang days ago, boat to UR stopped service due to the big waves. Abovementioned trails/UR trip was amazing to me;
Sorry, didnot snorkel (even myself equipped) due to rough sea in Jan. muddy water. Hope u luckier.
Not much sunshine(27 degrees noon) in mid-Jan. Sorry again.
GaryPaula
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