Palawan is not a small island by any means. Approximately 270 miles long but just 25 miles across at its widest point, the island province looks like an extension of the Philippine archipelago pointing southwest towards Borneo. Palawan the province actually includes 1,780 islands and islets in addition to the long and narrow Palawan main island. Which means there are a large number of destinations for the taking.

One of the more popular destinations is El Nido, a formerly quaint municipality located at the northern edge of the province. Today there is a large number of resorts in town but the real draws are the islands offshore in Bacuit Bay. Organized tours have grouped these island destinations into 4 – namely Tours A, B, C and D. Island-hopping tours may be booked at the resorts in El Nido or through any of the establishments in town. Tours A and C are the more popular of the 4 and includes the following attractions.

The lagoons formed by karst cliffs enclosing turquoise waters in the island of Miniloc are probably the most popular and most enthralling of El Nido’s gems. During high tide the Big Lagoon may be explored using tour boats with a shallow-enough draft but to get to the Small Lagoon we had to rent a kayak and paddle through a small opening. Once you’re inside any of these two lagoons be amazed at the stunning turquoise and emerald green waters and the huge surrounding limestone walls.

Reaching other lagoons and concealed beaches requires a little adventure. Miniloc Island also has the Secret Lagoon which could only be accessed by docking at a white sand beach on the island’s southern section, walking inland and finally squeezing through a narrow opening in a karst wall. Once inside we spotted swiftlets darting in and out of the surrounding limestone cliffs. The nests of these birds are highly sought for the expensive bird’s nest soup in Chinese cuisine and locals used to climb these cliffs to gather them. (The nests were called El Nido after which the town is named.) However, due to the influx of tourists in recent times many nest-gatherers abandoned their trade to become tour guides or boat operators.

The Secret Beach – actually another hidden lagoon – lies in nearby Matinloc Island. It’s even more difficult to reach as we had to swim through a hole among a line of the now-familiar karst walls. (The boatmen were a big help to the non-swimmers in our group, helping them to get across without much difficulty.) Once through the opening we were greeted by the primordial sight of a shallow, crystal-clear lagoon fringed by a white sand beach and soaring karst walls. It’s as if you opened a small door in a huge wall and found paradise on the other side. Alex Garland visited El Nido and Secret Beach years ago and locals here say the latter might have inspired him to write the book The Beach (the film was shot in Thailand). Matinloc also has the Hidden Beach, only accessible during our visit by wading and swimming from our boat which could not negotiate the narrow passageway between huge karst formations. But as you can see from the photo on the right boats can dock on this beach under the right sea conditions.

Karst landscape dominates much of the islands in El Nido’s Bacuit archipelago. From a vantage point in Matinloc, one can get a panoramic view of karst formations among adjacent islands. Shimizu Island has an interesting collection of karst rocks of various sizes and shapes set among a white sand beach. We were intrigued by its Japanese-sounding name and later learned that it was named after a Japanese diver who lost his life while exploring an underwater tunnel off the island. This island also offers several excellent snorkeling spots and is often used as a lunch stopover. (Lunch is provided by the boat operators as part of the tour package.)

When it comes to snorkeling El Nido has provided one of the better experiences we’ve had. Tour C is reputed to have the best snorkeling and it did not disappoint in this regard; El Nido and the whole of Palawan has a rich aquatic biodiversity. The best snorkeling experiences we’ve had were at Helicopter Island and the reef at Talisay Beach in Tapiutan Island.

Tours A and C are the best of the lot but the remaining B and D tours are no pushovers either according to other bloggers. We would have gone on these tours last March but for Covid19. We were looking forward to touring pristine Pinagbuyutan Island, exploring Cathedral and Cudugnon Caves, beach-bumming at Entalula Beach, exploring the remarkable turquoise-hued Cadlao Lagoon and wasting time at the 4 white sand beaches of Cadlao Island.

In recent years more gorgeous beaches have opened up north of El Nido town proper all the way to the edge of the main island of Palawan. The most stunning of these are probably the Twin Beaches of Nacpan and Calitang. The longer of the Twin Beaches, Nacpan is a 4-kilometer curving swath of fine, creamy white sand. You can get an impressive view of both beaches from a low hill at the end of Calitang Beach.

Beyond El Nido: Other Palawan Destinations

El Nido is just the tip of the tourism iceberg that is Palawan. The Calamian group of islands lies to the northeast of El Nido and includes the islands of Busuanga, Coron and Culion and the Linapacan group of islands with many more small islands and islets in between. Coron is probably just as popular as El Nido while the Linapacan Islands (also in our travel plans last March) is just gaining visibility on the tourism radar. Linapacan topped an unofficial online list of “clearest waters in the world to see before you die” a few years ago and piqued our interest so much we just had to see it but for this pandemic.

Puerto Princesa, the capital of the province is famous for the Underground River – actually the Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park, an 8.2 kilometer long subterranean river system that flows directly into the sea. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the park includes a rich forest ecosystem and spectacular karst landscape while the Underground River itself has remarkable rock formations.

Halfway up Palawan island between Puerto Princesa and El Nido is San Vicente town with the longest white sand beach in the country and the seaside village of Port Barton with its laid-back pace, lovely small islands and outstanding marine ecosystem. Snorkeling here is on par with that of El Nido and Coron with one major difference: we got to snorkel with sea turtles here.

Lastly, at the southern fringes of Palawan and just a short distance from the northern tip of Sabah, Malaysia, are the islands of Balabac, another dream destination. Blessed with fine white sand with the consistency of talcum powder, dreamy coconut palms and crystal-clear aquamarine and turquoise waters, Balabac like Linapacan is only getting its share of attention in the past 2 years or so.

Although we’ve been to Palawan numerous times, new, formerly “secret” destinations keep showing up forever adding to our bucket list. A major concern is the preservation of the mostly pristine nature of its islands and its diverse terrestrial and marine life which increased tourism is beginning to tax. With the province temporarily closed to tourists due to Covid19, nature in Palawan can at least enjoy a much-needed break.

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We were about to explore a tidal pool just a short distance from the beach when our boatman hurriedly motioned for us to join him up a flight of steps carved into the rock surface of a limestone cliff. Halfway through the rugged pathway we stopped at a view deck and stared below into the Blue Lagoon, the shallow tidal pool that plunges abruptly down into a subterranean hole, forming a deep blue-green color at its far end. We stood there in a long collective gasp before the obligatory photo shoot.

But we weren’t finished yet. Or at least our boatman-turned-tour guide thought so. He was soon leading us up another steep flight of steps towards the apex of the cliff. It now became a dangerous climb as we had to literally crawl on our hands and feet to balance ourselves on the uneven rock surface with a fall down a precipitous cliff not a distant possibility. We were beginning to think whether the risky effort was worth it but it was too late to go back. Once we reached the top however, we were rewarded with a view that made us momentarily forget the precarious climb we had just made.

A little-known island province, Dinagat has countless deserted coves and lagoons, immaculate white-sand beaches and verdant islands wrapped in seemingly impenetrable jungle foliage and mammoth rock formations. It possesses an abundance of minerals such as nickel and chromite yet it is also one of the poorest provinces in the Philippines. And despite being a neighbor to internationally famous Siargao Island, it rarely gets visited. So when we toured this underrated province last year we were looking forward to relishing relatively undisturbed natural destinations while having many of them practically all to ourselves.

One day after arriving in the capital town of San Jose by ferry boat, we were off to an island-hopping tour of the western side of Dinagat. Just off the pier at San Jose is Unib Island, more popularly known as Lalaking Bukid, translated as “male mountain” in the local dialect (we never found out the reason for this interesting moniker). Unib Island alone has 5 gorgeous white sand beaches and although it’s difficult to select the best from among them, Bitaog Beach with its fine white sand, towering karst cliffs and crystal-clear waters is often touted as the best of the lot. Duyos Beach is classified as a public beach which means it’s often brimming with local visitors out for a picnic. But it’s as clean and stunning as any in the country.

Two other beaches – Gealan Beach and Pagkawasan Beach are located close to Bitaog and to each other. One of our boatmen narrated the story of a local treasure hunter who discovered a cache of gold on the island – some say it was part of the fabled World War 2 Yamashita treasure – and who subsequently built the grotto on Pagkawasan Beach as a thanksgiving. We would have wanted to treasure a visit to fascinating Cabacungan Cove instead with its imposing karst cliffs and a lush forest which sea eagles and horn bills had made their home. But it was off-limits at the time either due to questions regarding its ownership or the beach manager’s violation of government regulations.

The boat ride back to the main island of Dinagat took us along a coastline studded with magnificent rock formations and into tranquil Babas Cove. This cove features a picturesque beach and lucent aquamarine and turquoise waters revealing corals and marine life underneath. We climbed up another karst cliff – thankfully a less perilous climb – and had a grandstand view of more beaches and coves in the peninsula jutting out from the mainland (see also top photo).

To a first-time visitor Babas Cove and beach look to be the main attractions of this part of Dinagat known as Basilisa town. But the beach is just the starting point of a trek to enigmatic Lake Bababu, an emerald body of water nestled in the forest inland. The trek to this lake was certainly no walk in the park – at least for us. The demanding hike required negotiating steep 45-degree inclines and sharp coral rocks scattered along a large portion of the trail, at times made slippery by ground soaked from previous rains. After 45 minutes of an arduous trek we arrived at the edge of the lake – a body of dark green water framed by a lush forest and white limestone walls.

Lake Bababu is a unique lake with a combination of fresh and salt water with the former occupying the upper 20 feet layer. The two layers do not mix. Our tour guide encouraged us to drink directly from the lake – the waters are said to be that clean. And it did look very clean. But we stole a glance at another group of visitors playfully gliding along the water near us and politely declined. We could also see several colorful reef fishes in the water – proof of the 650 meter long underwater tunnel that connects the lake to the sea – the longest underwater cave in the country.

The following day another island-hopping expedition took us to a cluster of islets northwest of Babas Cove. Part of our itinerary included Sundayo Beach at Hagakhak Island with its long white sand beach and beautiful rock formations but it was disappointingly closed to visitors that day like Cabacungan Cove. But with a profusion of natural attractions around us we simply headed off to Little Hagakhak Island to explore its colossal sedimentary rock formations and later to Isla Aga, a cluster of karst cliffs with a small white sand beach on its western face. You can actually spend a whole day just touring the cluster of islands, beaches and coves around Isla Aga but there are more destinations further north that clamored for our attention.

These islands and coastal spots are part of the town of Libjo. The collection of numerous coves and white sand beaches, karst cliffs and islets in this town is very much similar to the landscapes of Coron and El Nido in Palawan, destinations that are now quite popular outside the Philippines.

We could have explored the largely unspoiled coastal landscape of Libjo at leisure but we could only pass by the stunning scenery and head straight for Pangabangan Island and its Blue Lagoon that we described earlier. From there our little party sailed back towards the shores of Libjo town and into Punta Villa. This resort is better known locally as the starting point for the trek to Quano Cave, a massive cave housing a large number of bats within its limestone formations. But with a limited amount of time on our hands we just chose to enjoy the sights around the resort – its fine white sand beach, several karst islets lying just offshore, beautiful corals easily visible through crystal-clear waters and a panoramic view of nearby islets from a villa on a hill that was open to visitors.

Two other destinations in Libjo are worth mentioning even if we did not get the chance to visit them: Jelmar Resort which is often called the Maldives of Dinagat for the stunning colors of its crystalline waters and Punta Buena Suerte for its remarkable marine life including sea turtles. And on the eastern side of the island lies the town of Cagdianao with more beaches including the sprawling, powdery white-sand Hinabyan Beach and beautiful Sayaw Island.

Our tour of the province was restricted to its western coastal areas and only later did we learn about a worrisome reality that has hovered over Dinagat for some time now. The province, as previously mentioned, is rich in nickel and chromite. Consequently there is widespread mining in the province resulting in environmental damage involving wide swaths of formerly green areas. Some of the mining operations were ordered closed 3 years ago but using Goggle Maps’ satellite view one could easily see scarred surfaces on the northern and southern sections of the island province as well as in the town of Cagdianao on the east coast. The situation at the northern portion of Dinagat is particularly alarming since it holds several environmental gems including a bat sanctuary and the largest bonsai forest in the country. We could only hope and pray that the province would be able to limit the environmental destruction already inflicted and preserve the beauty of its natural wonders for generations to come.

(At the time of this writing the Philippines remain closed to most foreign travelers. Filipino nationals, spouses or children of nationals, and residents returning from abroad are exempt from the ban, and may be subject to quarantine for a maximum of 14 days or COVID-19 testing upon arrival.)

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