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Limestone islands and clear water, Palawan

Also curated · Sulu and South China Seas

Palawan

Karst cliffs, hidden lagoons reachable only at low tide, and a marine biodiversity count among the highest on earth. The Philippines' wildest beautiful province — and far better value than the Indian Ocean.

Plan Palawan on WhatsApp

Limestone rising out of the sea

The place

Palawan is a long, thin island province with two very different draws. El Nido in the north is the postcard: jagged limestone towers straight out of the water, and lagoons you enter by kayak through gaps in the rock. Coron, further north again, is the wreck-diving capital — a Japanese WWII fleet sits in shallow, clear water. And out on its own is Amanpulo, on the private island of Pamalican, which is one of the most exclusive addresses in Asia. Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, a UNESCO site in the middle of the Sulu Sea, is reachable only by liveaboard and only from March to June.

Gateway
Puerto Princesa (PPS), El Nido (ENI) and Busuanga (USU) airports
Best months
November to May — dry season
Green season
June to October — wetter, with typhoon risk
Currency
Philippine Peso
Language
Filipino and English

What it is known for

  • 01El Nido's Big and Small Lagoons, entered by kayak
  • 02Coron wreck diving on the sunken WWII fleet
  • 03Kayangan Lake — often called the cleanest lake in the Philippines
  • 04Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, a UNESCO site
  • 05Tubbataha Reefs by liveaboard, March to June only

Getting there

The approach is part of it

Flying in

  • Manila1–1.5 hours domestic
  • Singapore / Hong Kong3.5–4 hours to Manila
  • Mumbai / Delhi8–10 hours to Manila, one stop

The last leg

  • Light aircraft

    Private strips serve El Nido and Pamalican directly from Manila.

  • Banca boat

    The traditional outrigger. How you reach most island resorts and every lagoon.

  • Road and boat

    Puerto Princesa to El Nido is a five-hour drive — fly it instead.

Where to stay

7 resorts in Palawan

Every rate on request. Tell us the month and the shape of the trip and we will say which of these actually fits.

Routings we build here

Lagoons and Wrecks

9 nights · El Nido, then Coron

Lagoons and Wrecks

The two halves of northern Palawan: Bacuit Bay's limestone lagoons, then Coron's WWII wreck fleet, sitting in water shallow enough for recreational divers.

The Pamalican Week

7 nights · One private island, one aircraft

The Pamalican Week

Seven nights on Pamalican, where a single resort occupies the whole island and a healthy reef runs the whole way round it.

Worth knowing

  • Infrastructure is thinner than the Indian Ocean — internal flights get cancelled and schedules move.
  • El Nido town is busy and backpacker-heavy; the island resorts are a different world.
  • Typhoon season is real. November to May is the window worth planning inside.

SuitsDivers · Adventurous couples · Photographers · Value at the top end

Every rate, on request

Palawan, then.
Tell us when.

We hold 7 properties here and quote every one to the season and the routing. Send a rough shape and we will come back with options.

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