hi! just want to share yun trip namin last oct 9 - 13, 2015 sa palawan. 4 days were spent in el nido.
we availed of island hopping tour and van transfer from PP - El Nido RT with kuya Joseph Ednalino (found reviews of him in some blogs and fb). bale 9 pax kami so nakatawad kami kahit paano.
TOUR A is 900/pax while TOUR C is 1000 per pax. private boat na yun with lunch, tour guides, vests etc.. snorkles and mask we rented sa puerto princesa for 150/pax for 2 days use na. van transfers was 10K inclusive of free city tour (not all spots though pero since we've been to PP before, ok na rin, ang pinuntahan namin are plaza cuartel, church, croc farm, binauatan, kasoy factory, bakers hill and souvenir shop). inclusive na rin yun drop off sa hotel namin sa puerto princesa and el nido.
anyway, here's our itinerary:
10/9
7am arrival in puerto princesa
met kuya joseph sa arrivals area, and proceeded sa city tour. visited plaza cuartel, church, passed by baywalk, binauatan, croc farm (P40 entrace fee). asked him to just have bakers hill and souvenir shop stop on the way back from el nido para di na dagdag sa bagahe and ok lang naman sa kanya. after ng city tour, proceeded to el nido na. dumaan pa nga pala kami sa KEN's to rent yun snorkles and mask and underwater pouch for our cam. snorkles/mas is 150 and the underwater pouch is 250, both for 2days use na so ok na rin. we visited a kasoy factory, mura yun mga kasoy na packed. sa PP mga 180pesos, pero sa factory 130 lang. masarap yun gawa ang makikita mo kung pano nila nililinis yun kasoy and niluto.
had our lunch in HALF WAY resto (mga 1 hr before el nido ito), food was so-so. di namin masyado nagustuhan. sakto lang lang para di ka gutumin. then we also passed by the el nido viewdeck. ganda ng view, kita kasi yun 180deg view ng el nido. nice for pcis. after that, diretso el nido town na. reached CASA CECILIA around 4pm. after i-settle yun mga natirang bills, nakacheck in din kami. kuya joseph asked for the van transfer and next tours' payment para masettle na niya. gave him the payment tapos we set a time to have dinner, he'll accompany us sa isang resto in el nido.
7pm pinasundo niya kami sa CASA CECILIA ng trike , had dinner in BULALO PLAZA. mga around 5-10mins trike ride lang namn pero palabas na ng town kasi yun lugar. food is good, ordered chopsuey, crispy karekare and bulalo. our bills was 1500+ for 9pax. ok na rin since the food tasted great especially yun bulalo. nagpahatid kami sa trike pabalik ng hotel. trike ride balikan is 100 per trike.
10/10
TOUR C - Hidden Beach, Helicopter Island, Secret Beach, Matinloc Shrine, and Star Beach
- not to be missed! better go to el nido when its summer or if maganda yun weather. ok din yun adventure sa secret beach, maliit lang yun lagusan and ma-corals so better have your aqua shoes on. the secret beach itself is small lang pero yun adventure kasi papasok ang habol mo eh. hidden beach is really nice, when i first visited el nido (2013), nakakapasok pa yun mga bangka pero ngayon hindi na pala. so you need to swim or glide papasok. di naman malalim yun tubig so ok lang. kaya lang better have underwter cam here para di ka maalamngan mag-take ng pics.
dinner in kaptains diner. malapit lang sa casa cecilia and katapat ng catholic church. food is so-so. tap meals around 70-80 per meal, pasta 150 with bread and chicken na. ok na rin since late na kami lumabas and nag dinner.
10/11
TOUR A - Big Lagoon, Small Lagoon, Simizu Island, Secret Lagoon, and 7 Commandos Beach
- nag kayak kami sa small lagoon, very nice experience. dati kasi nagswim lang ako sa nahirapan and di ko masyado naenjoy yun view. better pala talaga if magrent ng kayak kasi mas madali magpicture and mas maaappreciate mo yun buong small lagoon. if magswim ka lang kasi, di ka naman masyado makakaikot eh medyo wide din kasi ang area ng small lagoon.
- sa big lagoon naman, better have this as the 1st spot to visit, kasi pag nag low tide na kasi hirap na yun boats pumasok sa loob. and better leave the town early, say mga 8:30am para wala kayo masyado kaaway sa picture taking. pag marami ka na kasing kasabay na boats, puro nagmamadali na lahat so konti lang time mo to take pics.
- simizu island is where you do the snorkling. daming fish dito.
- 7 commandos beach is like a mini-boracay. ang calm ng water so di nakakatakot magswim. may isang store din na nagtitinda ng foods (halohalo, buko etc) so hayahay lang kami dito. pahingan and enjoyed swimming lang. supposed to visit a 5th beach pero since medyo madilim na and we were enjoying 7commandos a lot, di na kami tumuloy. we just spent the rest of the day there.
dinner in Coco Bar. discounted kami since kilala ni kuya joseph yun may ari. half of the group ordered filipino food (sinigang, rice, chopsuey) while the other half ordered pizza, pasta and salad. ok yun food and mura. our bill is almost 1k lang for the 9pax.
10/12
- woke up early since we'll be going back to puerto princesa. our van fetched us around 8am, di na sumama si kuya joseph pabalik kasi may guests naman siya na kadarating lang. binilin niya na lang kami sa van driver (GRANDIA yun gamit) na idaan sa bakers hill and souvenir shop. so on we go to PP. had our lunch na sa susunod na resto AFTER yun "HALF WAY resto". wasn't able to get the name pero newly built, and mas ok ang food. viands are 70pesos and marami naman ang serving.
bought hopia and pastillas sa bakers hill. picture taking etc. tapos dumaan din kami sa souvenir shop. tell the driver to pass by MCE souvenirs kasi dun yun mura and mas maraming klase. baka kasi kung saan nila kayong shop dalhin na mas mahal.
after nun, the van dropped us at our hotel PALO ALTO in PP.
overall, ok ang service ni kuya joseph. mabait and madaling kausap. customized tour siya usually but kung island hopping lang ang avail niyo puwede naman siguro. text or call him na lang. he's based in Puerto Princesa pero if may guests siya in el nido, sumasama siya sa tours para maasikaso niya yun guests niya.
Joseph Ednalino (FB page : Palawan tourist transport and Tour services)
- 09997093300; 09162380040
sa accomodation naman, we stayed in CASA CECILIA sa el nido. ok na ok ang casa cecilia if you're only after sa matutulugan. quad room is 2500 while family room (5pax) is 3500. inclusive of breakfast na and toiletries, towels. clean place. very near the beach and beside el nido bakery (sarap ng pandesal dito). malapit sa mga kainan like squidos and altrove. the staffs are courteous and polite. with fast wifi pero di gaano malakas ang signal sa room so we usually update our social sites sa lobby. no elevator btw, so if may senior citizen, request a ground flr room na lang. however, yun breakfast nila is being served at the rooftop so aakyat pa rin si senior if ever. breakfast is plated meal, sometimes silog meals minsan naman continental. di madali matuyo yun damit sa room so nakikisampay kami minsan sa rooftop, ok lang naman sa kanila. ^__^
CASA CECILIA:
09076929798 ; 09262032413 ;
casacecilia.ph@gmail.com
