THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE IN THE WORLD
Are you dying to visit the most beautiful Philippines island in the world? We enjoyed our time in Coron so much, we wanted to share some tips with you so you can have the best experience without the tedious hours of research. From how to get to Palawan, what to do in Coron, Island Hopping Tours and more, here is everything you need to know about visiting Coron Palawan.
There is a reason Travel & Leisure magazine named Palawan the #1 Island in the World for 2017. Vibrant blue waters stretch as far as the eye can see and some of the worlds largest limestone cliffs are waiting to take your breath away. With only 50,000 local residents, Coron Palawan is a less touristed part of the province vs. El Nido which is brimming with backpackers at every corner. Once you’ve chosen to visit the Philippine island paradise of Coron, there are a few things you need to know before you go.
Our most recent trip to Coron was in March of 2018. Catch a glimpse of the incredible islands and limestone formations on our private island tour. You will see drone views of Kayangan Lake and Twin Lagoon, and cinematic from Siete Picados and Baraccuda Lake! Make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more regular travel vlogs and video editing tricks!
GETTING TO CORON PALAWAN
Getting to Coron a few years ago was difficult. You either had to fly into Puerto Princesa (13 hour drive away) or hire a small airplane to take you directly to Coron. Now with increasing travel interest, there are a few larger airlines that will land you directly into Frederico B. Reyes Domestic Airport in Busuanga, about 30 minutes outside of Coron Palawan. Tourists beware, large travel websites like Google Flights and Expedia have not yet added Coron flights to their websites, so you will have to book directly with the airline.
Airlines that currently fly into Coron Palawan (Busuanga): Cebu Pacific, Air Asia, SkyJet, AirJuan and Philippine Airlines. We chose to fly with Cebu Pacific because, simply put, it was the most cost effective. The direct flight from Manila to Busuanga is only 1 hour, so you don’t really need anything fancy to get you there and back. The flight was around $225 roundtrip per person which was booked two months in advance. Prices will increase the closer you get to your departure date, so don’t sleep on booking your flight!
PRO TRAVEL TIP: If booking through Cebu Pacific, make sure to uncheck all additional add ons at checkout. The airline automatically adds in flight meals, seat selections, flight insurance and baggage charges to your final ticket price. However, you can uncheck all of these and save your ticket from rising in price. Last but not least, buy your baggage in advance online vs. at the airport terminal. Online a 20kg checked bag costs around $8, and in person at the airport costs $30.
HOTELS IN CORON PALAWAN
First things first, be sure to book a hotel or hostel within Corn Town Proper unless you are staying in a luxury resort that provides daily transportation. There are many listings for resorts, hotels and hostels in Coron that are not within walking distance to the town. Take this as a word of caution. Outside of the small Coron Town it is extremely rural which makes meeting basic needs for food, water, and activities more difficult.
There are plenty of great hotels and hostels that are very affordable situated within Coron Town. We stayed at One Averee Bay which is a new construction right in the middle of Coron Town Square. It suited our needs being walking distance to restaurants and Coron Bay aka the Island Hopping jump off point.
Take a look at these other highly rated hotels in Coron to fit any budget:
Hostel: SeaHorse Guest House $18 USD/night. A newly renovated guest house in the middle of all the Coron Town action. Amenities: Free Breakfast, Shared Outdoor Terrace.
Hotel: One Averee Bay $70 USD/night. A newly constructed building with views of Coron Bay. Step outside your door to the Coron Public Market, all of the towns shops, bars, restaurants and boat tours. Amenities: Free Wifi, Free Breakfast, Air Conditioning, Shared Balconies on each floor.
Luxury Resort: Two Seasons Coron Island Resort & Spa starting at $350 USD/night. On your own private island, in your own private bungalow, relax amidst luxury accommodations and views. Two Seasons will arrange an airport pickup shuttle to Coron Town, then a private boat ride to your own private island. Amenities include: 2 Private Beaches, Restaurant, Free Wifi, Fitness Center, Gift Shop, Karaoke Room, Game Room, Library, Computer Room, Adult & Kids Pools, Aqua Sports.
FOOD IN CORON PALAWAN
Eating in Coron Palawan can be extremely affordable if you’re interested in trying the local Filipino Cuisine. The Coron Public Market boasts about 8-12 food stands that serve daily pinoy specials like Pork Sinigang and Pancit Bihon. Meals will run you around 100 Pesos or less ($2 USD) and are always served with rice. Another cost effective way to eat in Coron is to stock up on fresh fruits and vegetables from street vendors. We gathered vegetables, spices, potatoes, eggs, and rice, all to be cooked during our private coron island hopping tour for a total of $235 Pesos ($4.50 USD).
If you want a more full service experience, there are plenty of sit down restaurants within Coron Town to enjoy a meal ranging in cuisine from filipino, Italian, American, and more. Our favorite restaurant in Coron was called The Altrove, an incredible Italian restaurant with sunset views and a no-shoes dining atmosphere. I had the seafood risotto which was made to order (and incredibly delicious) and Ryan ordered a pepperoni pizza. With two drinks each and a 20% tip, our meal came to $30 USD total. Quite the steal if you ask me!
TIPPING IN THE PHILIPPINES
Spending 15 years in the American restaurant industry, figuring out the tipping policy was high on my list of research before embarking on this amazing Philippines travel journey. Surprisingly enough it was pretty difficult to get a clear sense of customary tipping guidelines online, so here is what I learned.
The Philippines is not considered a “tipping” country. However, in the recent years service workers do expect tips from travelers and tourists. Most restaurants in tourist areas addd a 5-10% service charge to your bill to ensure that restaurant workers receive added compensation for their work. Above and beyond the service charge, they don’t expect much. However, if the average meal is 250 Pesos ($4.75 USD) a 20% tip is 50 Pesos ($.95). Tipping 20% (total) as a westerner a reasonable way to show someone gratitude for their hard work while still remaining budget friendly.
ISLAND HOPPING IN CORON PALAWAN
If your’e reading this, I can take a wild guess that island hopping is the main reason you’re visiting Coron Palawan, and it should be. The views are unlike ANYTHING we’ve ever seen before, like seriously, Avatar in real life. So here is the rundown of your Coron Island Tour options. First decide if you want a public or private tour. I highly suggest a private tour because you can snag your own boat for under $100 USD, but if you’re a budget traveler then there are plenty of affordable group tour options for you to choose from.
Group Tours:You will need to reserve your spot on a group tour one day in advance with any of the local island hopping companies, so plan to scout out your tour company a day ahead of time. Very few companies have websites, but don’t worry, there will be someone at every turn asking you if you want to go island hopping. They all generally have the same prices so don’t expect to accomplish too much haggling for a group tour. The prices range from 900 Pesos ($17 USD) for 3 locations to 1500 Pesos ($29 USD) for 5-6 locations. A great place to find a reliable tour is outside of the Coron Public Market in the main town square. Grab a few flyers, do some price comparisons, and choose your company. We went with Nature’s Way Tours who is located inside the Coron Public Market.
Private Tours: For a group of 2-4 people, chartering your own private boat will be around 5,000 Pesos ($95 USD) with Nature’s Way in the Coron Public Market. The reason I suggest a private tour so highly is because you can basically choose your own destiny (remember how fun those books were?). Our island hopping tour guide took us in a route that minimized the amount of tourists in each of the 5 locations we visited. With the freedom of a private boat tour, we were practically the only ones in each location which was priceless. Big shoutout to Rose, our tour guide, for her incredible knowledge and navigation skills!
Another plus to a private tour is the ability to customize which sights you’d like to see, contrary to the pre-arranged group tours. The Coron Islands and lagoons we chose to visit, and highly recommend to you, were Siete Picados, Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, Shipwreck Point and Atwayan Beach.
DRINKING WATER IN THE PHILIPPINES- IS IT SAFE?
I’m sure you’ve heard this one a million times, but it is not safe to drink the tap water in the Philippines as a tourist to the area. Bottled water is cheap and there are even local filter companies that are filtering and bottling fresh water in each populated town in the Philippines. A 6 Liter jug of water will cost around 85 Pesos ($1.65 USD) while single serve bottles are anywhere from 20-40 Pesos (+- $.40 USD). Some high end restaurants in the Philippines will serve complimentary filtered water, but we didn’t experience this in Coron so it’s best to play it safe and order bottled water while dining out.
PRO TRAVEL TIP: If you are staying in a location for an extended period of time, purchase a large reusable water jug at a local filter center to keep water costs to a minimum. You can get it refilled at the filtration center for a fraction of the cost.
TRANSPORTATION IN CORON PALAWAN
Transportation in Coron is easy to find. Whether you want to hire a driver or rent a motorbike for the day, both ways of getting around are accessible in the main vicinity of Coron Town. If you’re comfortable on two wheels, I suggest renting a motorbike which costs you 200-300 Pesos ($5.75 USD) for up to 4 hours and 500 Pesos ($10 USD) for an entire 8 hour day. Renting your own motorbike in Coron is great because you can come and go as you please while getting a real feel for the town’s culture and people.
On the flip side, hiring a tricycle driver to take you to and from popular destinations in Coron, like Maquinit Hot Springs, is another cheap option that can be found any time of day. If you are heading to main tourist destinations in Coron there are always drivers waiting to take you back into the main town… but I suggest you play it safe and get the phone number of a local driver in case of emergency.
Transportation is another reason why I highly suggest staying in Coron Town Proper. Visit the “Staying in Coron” section above for more details on accommodations.
INTERNET SPEEDS IN CORON PALAWAN
I’ll keep this one short. Internet is basically non existent in Coron for anything other than basic browsing and even then, google often times out. Because internet speeds only reach 3G, Coron isn’t a good place for digital nomads to post up shop. Even when hotels offer WiFi services the internet can cut out or lose signal, so if you’re looking for the optimal time to post those amazing instagrams Coron’s internet is faster in the early mornings and late nights. Either way, it’s best to keep your web surfing to a minimum while you’re visiting Coron and enjoy the breathtaking landscapes.
DO LOCALS IN CORON SPEAK ENGLISH?
Although English is technically the “World Language”, you might find yourself having a tough time communicating with some of the locals in Coron. Unlike Manila which is extremely easy to get around speaking only English, many lifelong Coron locals will only be able to communicate with you in short bursts.
PRO TRAVEL TIP: Download an App like Google Translate to use when you get in a bind. It helps to learn a few key words and phrases before traveling to new places. Last but not least, always remember that a smile is universal.
ARE CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED IN CORON?
Not really. If I had to put a number on it, I would say that Coron Palawan is a 90% cash only town. Again, this has to do with the limited infrastructure and unreliable internet which makes it near impossible to run credit card transactions. Instead, the town has a few ATM’s within walking distance to most hotels so stock up on cash before you head out for the day.
PRO TRAVEL TIP: To avoid foreign transaction fees, get a Charles Schwab debit card and they will reimburse you for any foreign transaction fees. A big money saver while traveling overseas. (Thanks to our YouTube subscriber “southbound1969” for this travel tip!)
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Great view point, amazing photos
Thank you! This place is amazing 🙂