EL NIDO Thread 5

[kristinebarrios]

Well 5 days kami dun from Sunday to Thursday. First flight out to Palawan ng Sunday eh syempre yung Sunday ilalaan mo lang sa byahe papuntang El Nido. Then flight namin pabalik last flight ng Thursday night

[ohcmon]

Flight na namin bukas! Sana okay ang weather.

[janixx]

^hi! nakahanap ka ba ng private boat na mura? kasi may friend ako na from puerto princesa, i can give you the number, nagquote sya sa amin ng 4500 a day private boat rate. is that a good price na? walang minimum number required, i don't know yet kung ano yung maximum number of people.

Post modified. Please use the ^ or @ sign instead of quoting posts.

Hello sis, Interested ako sa contacts mo na boat man. May number ka pa ba niya? pwede ko bang mahingi sis? Maraming salamat 

[kit kat]

Kakagaling lang namin sa El Nido. Initially dapat kukuha kami ng package so we contacted Northern Hope Tours kasi yun laging binabanggit dito pati sa blogs. Kaso waley di sila nagrereply. I contacted them via text tsaka email, nung una sumasagot pa sila sa email biglang nagdisappear na din. Haha.

If off-peak season pwede ng di kayo magpackage para makatipid. Discounted rates na binibigay ng mga travel agencies. Tours A and C may mga nag-aalok ng P900 each. Inland tour via trike nakuha namin ng P1k instead or regular rate na P1500. Basta 7-8am mag-ikot-ikot na kayo marami naman agencies dun sa may port para maghanap ng murang tour.

Kung 3 days kayo I suggest tours A and C tsaka nacpan beach on the 3rd day.

Will write about this soon sa blog hintay lang ako ng maedit yung pics namin haha.

sis @superpinya kahit 9pm meron pang masasakyan from San Jose terminal to El Nido. Madaling araw na dating niyo, meron naman naghihintay or dumadaang trikes sa babaan.

[kristinebarrios]

^as low as 900? That's very cheap ha kasi yung Dayunan Inn where we will stay, 1200 ang quote nila per pax. I can maybe haggle pagdating dun sa hotel if may makita akong mas mura sabihin ko tapatan nila hehe. Kamusta pala yung weather dyan sis?

[divamom]

I inquired the rate from Northern Hope for a private boat for 5 pax for A and C combi tours and they quoted 1800 each. Is this reasonable enough or I can still haggle for a better price? Thanks!

[michipoo]

Hi girls. May private car with driver ba na pwede ihire from puerto princesa to el nido? Kahit sedan lang but not van kasi its too big. Thanks

[ooh-la-la]

meron bang nagpapa rent ng motorcycle na automatic (like Mio), kasi hindi ako marunong nung may clutch eh. how much kaya? thanks!

[ficklemind]

^ sis dun sa nirentahan namin meron automatic and semi automatic though walang mio. wala ako alam sa motor, si hubby nakipagusap, nagask siya if meron Mio, wala daw. tanda ko automatic naman yung nirent namin. i think wala difference sa rent kung automatic or hinde.
350php bayad namin (tawad from 400), maghapon na yun, nagstart kami around 10am na, basta balik daw namin by 8pm. hinde kasama gas sa bayad, 120php yung pinalagay namin.

[ficklemind]

back from El Nido, just like to share na lang our experience namin ni hubby for your reference. pasensya mahaba 

-Part 1-

Day 1
4 hrs delayed flight namin  , arrived in PPS 930PM na, inantay naman kami ng van dun sa airport. 10 kami lahat sakay ng van. swerte  kami ni hubby 2 lang kami sa middle row. nagpafull tank, kumain sa Jollibee at may dinaanan pa yung driver, 11pm na when we left Puerto Princesa. 4.5 hrs lang travel namin,  arrived in El Nido at 330am, diretso na sa hotel yung van, (may quick stopover sa Roxas for bathroom break). 600 per person bayad namin.

Day 2:
All Island tours are cancelled due to bad weather (pang 3rd day na daw na walang tours). Nag Nacpan na lang kami. Rented a motorcyle for 350 + 120 for gas. From 10am to 6PM nasamin yung motor. Madali naman puntahan ang Nacpan. kulang kulang 1hr drive. need to pay 50 per person for environmental fee.  Daming tao sa Nacpan haha malayo sa mga pics na nakikita ko lol. andun ata lahat ng turista  lakas ng alon pero enjoy pa rin magswim. Hinde convinced si hubby na yun ang best beach sa elnido, ang dami kasing tao para kang nasa white beach sa Boracay  maganda nga ang view dun sa may hill.  hinde na kami kumain dun, ang gulo eh. bumalik na kami sa el nido town for late lunch. Squidos kami kumain tapos balik sa hotel para magrest. Labas ulit kami nung hapon, nagmotor to Corong Corong, kain sa Republica Sunset Bar, drive ps around town before returning the motorcyle. Balik hotel. Lakas ng ulan nung gabi.

Day 3: Tour A
Tour C bawal pa daw. A,B and D pwede na
nagjoin kami sa Northern Hope for Tour A.  1200 per person + 200 for environmental fee.
Dun sa may canteen sa PPA ang assembly. Ang dami dami nilang guests. ang daming groups! matagal tuloy naayos.
1030am na nakaalis bangka namin  Ok for us kasi nasama kami ni hubby sa maliit na group. 10 lang kami. other groups nasa 15 to 20 pax.
Big lagoon muna, ganda! pero umikot lang ang boat dun, picture2x lang. Hinde kami pinababa. Next is Secret lagoon, meh kami dito.
Overcrowded ang mga beaches for lunch. Nag Small Lagoon na kami, sa boat na lang daw kami kakain. While cooking, kayak kami to small lagoon (300 for kayak) then lunch na. ang dami ng food for us, halos half pa ang natira. More Kayak and swim sa area ng small lagoon.
Next destination is a snorkeling site pero wala naman halos makita haha. picture2x na lang with our guide, may mga camera tricks siyang na ginawa samen.
Last stop is 7 commando beach then back to town na around 4pm. Dinner at Altrove

[kristinebarrios]

Just got back din from El Nido. Hay we want to go back, super nag enjoy ako sa snorkel saka sa beach ng 7 commandos. Our flight was last Sunday, July 17. Effective ang wish ko kay Santa Clara at very good ang weather! We paid 500 each ni BF and bago ang van through Nature Island Tours.

Arrived on time sa PPS, it took 5 hours and we arrived at 1PM. We checked in sa Dayunan Hotel. Kala ko maganda sa pictures sa internet---yung building lang pala yung maganda. Papunta sa hotel ang pangit ng daan at mabaho kasi may katabing kanal. As in dulong accomodation na siya. Malapit sa sakayan ng boats for the tour, pero nadiri talaga ako. Mahal pa at 1800/night. Nag stay lang kami for 1 night then next day nag transfer na kami sa may town proper -- Villa Del Vincejos. It's along Rizal corner Calle Lisang. Walking distance to our needs. And 1200/night lang. Malinis, malamig AC, with veranda and most of all accessible! we realized we dont need near the beach because everything is walking distance! Wala kaming ginawa sa day 1 kundi pahinga and scout the area for hotel and restaurants.

For the tours--I cancelled it with Dayunan and we scouted for cheaper ones. Kasi ang price ni Dayunan yung regular rate eh off peak season naman. Nakuha namin ng 1000/pax per tour inclusive na ang environmental fees. Sayang kasi ayaw magpatawad ng 900 eh. But yung friends ni BF na couple din na nakasabay namin sa island got theirs at their rate.

Anyway, first order of business namin ay food! First namin kinainan ang Art Cafe and sarap na sarap ako sa seafood pasta nila. The pizza is so-so lang. Squidos and Seaside Resto bar (formerly Seaslugs) has good seafood pizza. we also ate sa Jarace by the beach (day 3) nagpa ihaw kami ng bangus, liempo, pusit and talaba. Nasa 200/meal with rice na. Actually yung natipid namin sa hotel and tours napunta lang sa food.


2nd day is tour A. Enjoy ako sa 7 commandos kasi linaw ng tubig. small boat lang kami, 2 foreigners na couple, isang group ng mga thunders from GSIS El Nido na nag VL mga 6 sila then kami ni BF. Kaso panget ng buffet, walang crab o hipon. Isda, chicken, pork and tahong ang protein nila. Pero ok ang tour guide, pangalan niya Rizal and he does know well!

Babalik kami kasi saglit lang kami sa Twin Beach. Nag rent kami ng motor from 4PM-10PM at 400 + 120 gas. Ginawa namin yung ride sa 2nd day namin sa island right after finishing tour A. Wala kasi ulan so might as well grab the opportunity. Saglet lang kami sa twin beach kasi medyo pagod na rin kami. Si BF enjoy sa pag motor. Wala naman kaming binayaran na entrance fee. Dinner namin sa Seaside and madami servings in fairness.

Day 3 namin is Tour C. Nag brekky kami sa Skyline grill with burgers. Ok naman siya. Mahal ang nido soup, 200/bowl good for 1-2 pax. Sa Jarace 600/bowl good for 4 pax. Hindi namin na try to kasi ang OA sa price eh hinahaluan din naman nila ng powder. Anyway, same tour guide but this time big boat na around 20 pax, nakasabay uli namin yung mga taga GSIS pero with mixed group na. Yung boat pwde ka umakyat sa taas kasi maganda ang view. Dinner namin sa Jarace grill by the beach. Nagpatawag kami ng massage via homeservice, 500/head. Sarap ng tulog namin!

Day 4 pahina na kami, staycation lang. Brunch namin sa Squidos and masarap ang pizza nila! Kain tulog lang kami. Dinner naman sa Seaside uli for pizza, pasta and stuffed squid. Very chunky and madami laman ang piza.

Day 5 we left early to catch the 7AM van. By 12 nasa PPS na kami and we asked to be dropped off sa Ka Inato for lunch. Dun kami mineet ng driver from Nature Island to do our city tour. 600 per pax and kami lang ni BF ang sakay. We love how it is personalized. Namili kami ng hopia and kung ano ano sa baker's hill and pasalubong center. Our flight was 7:55PM via AirAsia but napaaga and they started to board at 6:50PM.


Birthday celebration namin pareho ni BF and so far we love how it turned out! Babalik uli kami!

[ficklemind]

Cont.... 


Day 4: Tour C
Finally meron na tour C but we had to wait again at 8am para maconfirm. Tinamad na kami punta sa Northern Hope kaya sa Marygold na kami nagavail ng tour, same rate lang naman, sundo pa kami sa room namen  sa labas ng marygold yung boat. this time madami na kami kasama, 15pax kami sa boat. First stop Helicopter Island, hinde naman kami natuwa, malakas ang alon then yung snorkeling site accdg to hubby wala naman siya nakita, hinde na ako nagattempt puntahan nagswim swim na lang ako. Due to bad weather na din siguro kaya ganun.
Next is Hidden Beach, nagustuhan ko dito. then lunch na sa beach sa may matinloc, our food this time is sakto lang for the group. same menu as Northern Hope except with Crabs, yey!
After lunch sabi ni guide cancel na daw yung secret beach delikado daw eh, ayaw niya magrisk. Wala naman ako idea ano meron sa secret beach, pumayag naman lahat kami.
Dinala kami sa snorkeling site, according to hubby eto pinakamaganda sa lahat ng snorkel namin sa El Nido (although wala pa din daw laban sa Coron lol)
Last stop na kami which is Matinloc Shrine, hinde naman nagbabaan yung iba, sandali lang kami dito.
330 nakabalik na kami sa town, ang aga! parang hinde sulit.
Food trip na lang kami ni hubby then tambay sa hammock ng Marygold.
We had dinner sa Art Cafe, sarap ng paella nila.  we had drinks after sa SAVA beach bar, sarap ng Palawan Breeze.

Day 5:
as usual, breakfast c/o Marygold. Napaaga alis namin El Nido, we planned to have lunch pa sana then leave at 12noon kaso 10am sinundo na kami ng van.
Grabe ang init nung van. the travel from El Nido to Taytay sobrang torture sakin. sa pinakalikod kami ni hubby, hinde naman masikip kasi 3 lang kami pero mahina aircon.
Stopover lunch sa Roxas, overpriced eatery enough pantawid gutom.
Sobrang bilis ng driver namin, took us only 4.5 hours to reach PPS airport.
Dahil sobrang aga pa namin, namasyal muna kami sa Robinsons.



Some reviews:
Hotel: Marygold - beachfront resort, ok naman rooms nila, maganda din location. Breakfast (included in the room rate) is pwede na din. They have hammocks and beach chairs para tambayan. Madami boats and vendors to obstruct the view pero still ok pa din to just sit, talk and mag people watching 

Squidos -  stuffed squid best seller nila pero hinde available, yung calamares ang konti ng serving. The price is ok, 600 bill namin pero hinde namin nagustuhan food nila.
Republica Sunset Bar - ganda ng view. good food and good music. Hinde naman kami nadisappoint given it's ranking sa tripadvisor. Our bill is around 800 for 1 beer, 1 cocktail, 1 appetizer and a burger meal
Altrove - sarap naman ng food, nice ambiance. Less than 5 mins lang naman kami nagwait for our table. Total bill for 1 pizza, 1 pasta, 1 appetizer and 2 fruitshakes is 900++.
Art Cafe - nasa 900++ din bill namin. we ordered paella, pasta, fries & juices. sarap naman lahat.
SAVA bar - mukhang bago lang to. ok din naman. just had few drinks here, medyo pricey.

nagenjoy naman kami sa elnido, despite the bad weather at the beginning.

[winkypops]

ang ganda ng El Nido as in. sulit ang 5 hrs na land travel, we stayed at Casa Cecilia,okay sya.
mabait ang staff, malinis ang room. Breakfast lang nila ang hindi ko nagustuhan.

Nag enjoy talaga kami sa El Nido Vacay namin

[lovely_carrot]

Thank you for your inputs. I will plan a vacation with my daughter next year. Ipunan ko muna ng budget para makagala at makastay at least a week.

I also want to try yung underground river and visit coron

[finna]

Joining the thread. Excited na ko for our palawan tour on september 13 to 20. 4Days in el nido and 3days in puerto princesa

[ooh-la-la]

Just wanted to ask kung meron bang mga ATM Machines sa El Nido? Thanks

[istine0618]

I want to stay sa El Nido Resorts and planning our vacation next year.
Need to save up more for this travel.

Tempting yung rates nila sa Travel Mart. Sana magkaron parin sila next year ng promo.

[kristinebarrios]

Just wanted to ask kung meron bang mga ATM Machines sa El Nido? Thanks

 
There's BPI that just opened this year and apparently the first and only ATM in the island hehe

[ooh-la-la]

yey! flight na namin bukas! will be staying Sept 11-14. sale ko nabili yung fare kaya for 2 pax 2,700+ na yung balikan.
Sulitin ang fare!

[divamom]

I want to stay sa El Nido Resorts and planning our vacation next year.
Need to save up more for this travel.

Tempting yung rates nila sa Travel Mart. Sana magkaron parin sila next year ng promo.

My family visited Lagen Island last July and it's really worth the price. Initially we wanted to stay in Miniloc lang but under renovation on our planned dates. Ok na rin since Lagen has a pool and wala sa Miniloc. We hope to be back and visit their other resorts.