Palawan: Puerto + El Nido + Coron – 6 Days 5 Nights

Palawan packs a lot into one week. This six-day route links Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Coron, giving you the island’s best-known sights without arranging every hotel, boat, meal, and transfer yourself. I like the strong mix of culture, wildlife, limestone scenery, beaches, and swimming stops. I also like that the price includes accommodations, five breakfasts, three lunches, tour fees, and the boat and ferry ticket to Coron.

The catch is the pace. You spend long hours in vans and on boats, and the move from Puerto Princesa to El Nido comes after a full Underground River day. The operator’s own response makes clear that the trip is not recommended for people with health issues, yet one booking description gave an age range of 0 to 100. Read the physical demands carefully before paying the non-refundable $887 price.

Key points to know before booking

• Three major Palawan bases: Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Coron are all included in one six-day plan.
• The Underground River is a full-day outing: Pickup begins around 7 a.m., with return to Puerto Princesa scheduled around 5:30 p.m.
• The El Nido transfer is long: After the Underground River, you travel by van for about six hours to reach El Nido.
• El Nido’s boat day covers major sights: Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island, and Small Lagoon are listed, with snorkeling and lunch included in the day.
• Coron combines town and sea: You visit Mt. Tapyas, Maquinit Hot Spring, Kayangan Lake, and several reef and beach stops.
• The pace favors active people: Long transfers, boat rides, swimming, snorkeling, and a climb to a view deck make this a demanding schedule.

What the $887 package really covers

At $887 per person, this is not a cheap island-hopping holiday. Its value comes from bundling the expensive and time-consuming pieces of a multi-stop Palawan trip: accommodation, organized sightseeing, boat services, meals, and the transfer by boat and ferry to Coron.

You receive five breakfasts and three lunches. That is useful on a route where several days are spent away from town, but it does not mean every meal is covered. You should budget for other food and personal spending, since the supplied details do not list dinners, drinks, or extra purchases.

The package also saves you from coordinating three different regions on your own. Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Coron are not one compact resort area. Moving among them takes planning, and this tour handles the main transport links. For someone with only six days, that convenience may justify the price.

Still, ask yourself what sort of holiday you want. If you prefer slow mornings, long stays at one beach, and flexible meal times, this schedule may feel cramped. If you want to collect Palawan’s headline sights in one trip and accept some road time, the package makes more sense.

The tour is commonly booked well ahead, with an average booking lead time of 138 days. That suggests you should not leave this route until the last moment, especially if your dates are fixed.

Puerto Princesa begins with churches, war history, and a crocodile center

Your first day starts with hotel pickup in Puerto Princesa and a short city tour lasting about four to five hours. The opening stop is Immaculate Conception Cathedral, followed by Plaza Cuartel next door.

Plaza Cuartel was once a military fort and became the site of tragic events during the Japanese occupation in World War II. This gives the first day more weight than a simple sightseeing loop. You are not just moving from photo stop to photo stop. The fort connects modern Puerto Princesa to a painful chapter of Philippine history.

The next stop is the Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center, often called the crocodile farm. It houses Philippine crocodiles, an endangered species native to the country. The stop should appeal to anyone interested in local wildlife, though the supplied details do not say how long you spend there or what portion of the visit is guided.

Baker’s Hill adds a lighter pause. You can try sweet treats before continuing to Mitra Farm, a hilltop property with horses, cows, and a shaded veranda facing Honda Bay. The view gives you a pleasant close to the city tour, and the animals make it more than a lookout point.

Hotel drop-off finishes the day. Since the excursion is listed at around four to five hours, you should have some independent time afterward, though no evening plans are specified.

The Underground River is the trip’s biggest day

Day two focuses on Puerto Princesa Underground River, one of the seven natural wonders named in the tour description. The schedule begins with pickup around 7 a.m. and reaches Sabang Wharf around noon. Lunch is included, followed by leisure time before the return to Puerto Princesa around 5:30 p.m.

The cave visit is the main reason to take this excursion. You explore the underground river by boat, with a boatman or guide helping explain the setting and keep the ride interesting. The supplied information does not specify the exact cave duration, so you should think of this as a full-day outing rather than a short attraction visit.

A buffet lunch is included, which matters after an early start and a long day away from the hotel. The time at Sabang Wharf also gives you a pause between the river visit and the return drive.

The real test comes after the day trip. Someone picks you up at your Puerto Princesa hotel and transfers you toward El Nido by van. The road journey is listed at about six hours. In practical terms, day two is not only the Underground River. It is also your first major relocation.

That combination is the key difficulty in the whole trip. You finish a nature excursion, return to town, collect your belongings, and then begin a long road transfer. Pack water, keep essential items with you, and avoid assuming that an early bedtime will be possible. The tour information does not give a detailed transfer timetable, so confirm the pickup arrangements when booking.

El Nido brings the classic limestone and lagoon day

Day three is built around El Nido’s famous lagoons and island scenery. The listed stops include Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island, and Small Lagoon, with swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, and lunch forming the heart of the day.

Secret Lagoon sits inside limestone karst cliffs. You enter through a small opening and reach a larger basin formed after a cave collapsed. The unusual entrance is part of the appeal, but it also tells you something about the visit: this is an active water excursion, not a simple viewpoint reached by road.

Shimizu Island provides the lunch and snorkeling stop. Its limestone cliffs are associated with swiftlet nests, which are used in bird’s nest soup and valued in parts of Asia for their supposed healing properties. The tour description says the guides prepare a substantial meal while you snorkel near the coral reef.

Small Lagoon is located in a cove of Miniloc Island. You enter through a small swim-through opening, either by kayak or by swimming, and reach calm turquoise-green water surrounded by rock walls. The supplied details mention kayaks, but do not say if kayak hire is included, so that is worth confirming before departure.

The six-hour schedule gives you a useful but limited window for these sites. You will need to follow the boat timetable and share attention among swimming, snorkeling, meals, and moving between stops. The scenery is the star, but the day requires comfort in the water and some willingness to get in and out of a boat repeatedly.

This is also where the tour’s physical demands become clear. The route combines a long van ride, a full boat day, swimming through or near small openings, and wet conditions. You do not need to be an athlete, but you should be comfortable with active sightseeing.

Coron starts with a town tour and a steep view

Day four shifts to Coron and offers a half-day town tour. The stops include Mt. Tapyas View Deck, Maquinit Hot Spring, the public market, town plaza, Lualhati Park, souvenir shops, St. Augustine Church, Harbour Center, Cashew Harvest, and other town landmarks.

The Mt. Tapyas climb gives you a bird’s-eye view of Coron town and the bay. The height is appealing, but the tour does not state the number of steps or the time required. If stairs are difficult for you, ask for exact details before booking. This stop is one reason the itinerary is not a purely passive beach holiday.

Maquinit Hot Spring offers a slower contrast after the climb. You can soak and rest before the town visits continue. The public market, church, plaza, park, and Harbour Center provide a look at everyday Coron rather than only its postcard scenery.

The town tour is described as a convenient and affordable way to get an introduction to Coron’s people, dialect, culture, and main landmarks. That is valuable because the schedule gives you little free time to arrange your own orientation. The tradeoff is that a half-day tour can only provide an overview. You will see many names on the list, but the depth of each stop is not explained.

Coron’s sea day covers lakes, reefs, and beaches

Day five is the strongest water-based day in Coron. The listed stops are Kayangan Lake, Green Lagoon, Quin Reef, Isla Coral, Cyc Beach, and Atwayan Beach. The timing shown for this section is only 30 minutes, which appears too brief for the full list, so you should confirm the operating schedule and time at each location.

Kayangan Lake is the headline stop. Coron is known for dramatic limestone scenery and clear water, and a lake visit gives the day a different character from the open sea. Green Lagoon, Quin Reef, and Isla Coral add more opportunities for swimming and snorkeling.

Cyc Beach and Atwayan Beach provide sandy breaks between the reef and lagoon stops. The tour description does not specify lunch for this day, so do not assume that meals are included beyond the three lunches listed for the entire package.

The important point is variety. You are not spending the entire day at one resort beach. You move among different kinds of water scenery, from a lake to coral areas and beaches. That is excellent for people who want visual variety and active stops, but less appealing if you dislike boat transfers or frequent changes of location.

Day six is short, but the airport transfer matters

The final day lists Airport Road and a 30-minute airport stop in Coron. The description is very brief and does not provide a flight time, hotel pickup time, or detailed airport procedure.

Treat this as a transfer day, not an extra sightseeing day. Keep your passport, phone, tickets, and valuables with you, and confirm exactly when you will leave the hotel. The tour includes a mobile ticket and pickup is offered, but the provided details do not state the airport transfer conditions in full.

Long transfers and changing operators need attention

The route uses more than one form of transport. You have hotel pickups, a van to the Underground River area, a return to Puerto Princesa, another long van journey to El Nido, and a boat or ferry connection to Coron. The package includes the boat and ferry ticket to Coron, which removes one major planning task.

The first booking review raises a practical concern: the person expected the named tour company to host the full trip but was instead collected by a contracted company that handled part of the service. This is not automatically a problem, since local operators often handle separate legs, but you should know who is responsible for each transfer.

The same account criticized the age guidance, which listed people from 0 to 100 despite the demanding route. The operator responded that the trip is not advisable for people with health issues and that some people in their 50s and 60s still choose to take part. The useful lesson is simple: age alone is not the issue, but your health, stamina, comfort with van rides, and ability to manage active water days matter.

The tour allows up to 1,000 participants, an extremely high stated maximum. That does not tell you the actual size of your vehicle or boat, but it does mean you should not assume a small private group. Ask how many people are assigned to your particular departure.

Who should book this Palawan route

I would point this trip toward an active first-time visitor who wants to see the three best-known Palawan bases in one organized package. You should enjoy swimming, snorkeling, boat rides, scenic viewpoints, and full days that begin early.

It may also suit you if planning transport feels stressful. The included accommodations, meals, tour fees, and inter-island ticket reduce the number of separate bookings you must make.

I would be cautious if you have health concerns, dislike long van rides, or need a slow schedule. Families should note that children must be accompanied by an adult, and the general wording says most people can participate, but the operator’s warning about health issues deserves more attention than the broad age range.

The single available rating is 3 out of 5, so the experience does not have a large body of praise to rely on. The strongest case for booking comes from the itinerary itself: major sights, broad coverage, and included transport. The main risk is coordination and stamina.

Should you book the six-day Palawan tour?

Book it if your goal is to collect Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Coron in one fast-moving trip, and you value having the main arrangements bundled together. At $887, the package can be fair for the right person because it includes lodging, five breakfasts, three lunches, activities, and the boat and ferry ticket to Coron.

Skip it if you want relaxed island time or if long road and boat connections will wear you down. Before paying, confirm the exact hotel names, transfer timetable, group size, contracted operators, kayak arrangements at Small Lagoon, and what meals are covered on each day.

Also remember that the experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed after booking. That makes careful checking essential. For a fit and organized person with limited time, this is an efficient way to see Palawan’s big sights. For everyone else, a slower trip split between fewer regions may be the wiser choice.

FAQ

How long is the Palawan tour?

The tour lasts six days and five nights.

Which Palawan destinations are included?

The route includes Puerto Princesa, El Nido, and Coron.

Is hotel pickup available?

Yes. Pickup is offered, and the first day begins with pickup at your hotel in Puerto Princesa.

Is the Underground River excursion included?

Yes. The Underground River tour includes admission and a buffet lunch.

How long is the transfer from Puerto Princesa to El Nido?

The transfer by van is listed at about six hours and takes place after the Underground River day.

Are meals included?

The package includes five breakfasts and three lunches. Other meals are not listed as included.

Can children join the tour?

Yes, but children must be accompanied by an adult. The activity information also says most people can participate, while the operator advises against the trip for people with health issues.