Coron

Coron is one of the largest town on the island of Busuanga and it is also a name of a smaller island offshore. But now Coron is building its name for tourist for its famous powdery-white sand beaches surrounded by small and big rock formations. It is also the ancestral domain of one of the indigenous tribe in the country, the Tagbanuas.

Aside from the beaches, Coron also houses some Japanese Ships that sunk during the WWII in 1944 and is now well preserved under warer surrounded bu coral reef. 

Coron city is still laid-back place. There is not much bar for drinkers or club for party-goers. What they will offer u for night life is the Maquinit Hotspring where u can lay down, relax and enjoy the hotspring. Or either push yourself to go up 700steps high to reach the highest peak of Coron City in Mt. Tapyas where they did put up a new cross since the old one was was destroyed by Typhoon Yolanda in 2014. Enjoy the panoramic view of the island above. 

Getting to Coron is either by plane from Manila to Cebu and land in Busuanga Airport, a 45 minutes away from the city. Or by 2GO ships that travel from Manila Port Area to Coron Port. Travel Period is approximately 15hours. 

What one must to do in Coron? Two things- do island hopping and Scuba Diving. 

There are lots of amazing coral reefs that u can snorkel around. Do some dipping as well to it beaches and lakes. Dont forget to bring your cameras with u. There are rock formations along the way that is worth ur memory. Be on your swimming attire readily, u may not know how inviting the waters are. Take some dip in CYC Beach and walk around its lush-green mangroves area. If too tired of walking, use ur snorkeling gear and head up to its coral garden and enjoy the underwater photography. 

Your island hopping wont be complete without the sumptous lunch on one of the beach area. Your boatmen as well as your guide is already cooking on their boat while u are enjoying the scenery, swimming, snorkeling or just plainly relaxing. After that awarded lunch, u will then proceed to Kayangan Lake. Take a short hike up and down to the lake. Its easier now because the locals had built a cemented stairs already. Be sure to stop at Kayangan Viewpoint and take ur "selfies". Behold of the background. 

Kayangan Lake is considered the cleanest lake in the Philippines for its cystal-clear turquoise water. It has wooden platform for tourists who just wanted to enjoy the view. 

Aside fron Kayangan Lake, there are more islets and lagoons to see. Some of these were the Barracuda Lake where limestone walls greeted u as u proceed for snorkeling to ibserve its rock formation under. 

The Twin Lagoon where water and towering rocks meet up, a good place for kayaking. The 1st lagoon is located outside the 2nd lagoon so u either kayak or swim to reach it which makes it more exciting. 

As for diving, there are sights that do not require you to have a certification for divers. There are ship-wreck which is available for non-divers but u have to take a pre-diving lesson for 2 to 3 hours. Ask your tour agent to arrange this for you. 

EL NIDO

What always pop-up when we heard of El Nido- its a Paradise. But NO, Its Not. It's more than that. EL NIDO is a PIECE OF HEAVEN. 

The place is situated in Bacuit Bay,surrounded by Sulu Sea and Philippine Sea and is one of the original habitat of Tagbanua and Cuyon Tribe. It is also considered one of the best diverse ecosytem in the country that needs to be highly protected. What makes it popular before and until now is the harvesting of swift nest used for Nido Soups. 

El Nido is not just a typical tropic beach paradise, it's a place compared to none. Having its own unique identity- the breathtaking views of nature, above and below sea, the towering limestone cliffs that seems haven for the Gods, the lagoons, the pristine water and its endless white beaches. 

Actually it is not the town proper of El Nido that makes it special. Though the Poblacion (town itself) is so accomodating with its line up of hotels and resorts of every kind-from lowest to luxurious, of its friendly people-hospitality at its best, of its restaurants- built along the shoreline that caters sumptous seafoods, El Nido is seen more on its islands and islets. To simplify, the best thing to do in El Nido is Island Hopping. Dont leave without exploring its tremendous nearby places- the Big,Small and Secret Lagoons, Shizumi Beach, Hidden Beach, Snake Island as well as the Helicopter Island because along its exploration gives u an idea of dipping into its crystal clear waters, snorkeling, kayaking and diving the underwater world composing of countless of corals and reefs and fishes. 

The beauty of El Nido is unexplainable. Better see it yourself. 

There are daily commercial flights from Manila to Puerto Prinsesa in Palawan. From there, take a 6hour ride to El Nido via shuttle vans. Though there is a direct flight from Manila to El Nido via ITI (island transvoyager inc.)its has very limited seats, most often it is fullybook. 2GO ships accomodate passengers as well bound to El Nido via Coron, Busuanga for a 15hrs ride then hop on on some vessel in Coron bound to El Nido for another 8hrs ride.