El Nido, Philippines: Tropical island hopping, secret beaches and kayaking in the Big Lagoon
- Esther
- Jan 18, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Apr 4, 2020
I loved our Winter break in Japan but flying straight to the sunny Philippines afterwards was definitely the right move. Outside of the budget hostels we've been staying in, this part of the Philippines is basically paradise!
We’ve stuck to just exploring El Nido (a municipality in Palawan Island) while here because there are so many cool places to see in this area alone and after such a packed couple of weeks, we just wanted to just slow down, relax and enjoy the warm weather for a while. Besides, with there being over 2000 inhabited islands in the Philippines (!), it’s hard for anyone to ever say they’ve seen that much of it.
The first beach we visited, Las Cabanas, was just a few-minutes ride (in a quite loud and rickety tricycle - the Filipino alternative to the tuk tuk!) away from our hostel in El Nido town.
Las Cabanas was such a beautiful beach, and really popular with travellers in El Nido, meaning there are lots of nice beach bars and restaurants along it. But despite there being quite a few backpackers chilling there it didn't feel crowded at all.
There's also a really highly rated zipline over Las Cabanas. We never actually got round to doing that, but we did make the most of the incredible sunsets there! In the evenings, we sat on the sand with our super cheap cocktails watching the sky turn gold and pink.
In the town itself, the atmosphere was really laid-back and fun (even if it was pretty touristy there). El Nido's streets were mostly lined with beachy souvenir shops, boat tour stalls and countless cafés, bars and restaurants. I loved the pizza at the famous Altrove restaurant (definitely worth the huge queue!) and the ocean view at the Greek restaurant Café Athena. I don't think we went one day in El Nido without picking up a fresh fruit smoothie from one of the stalls in town.
The Canopy Walk was another one of my favourite things we did in El Nido town. The walk itself didn't take long and was super easy (they definitely went overboard making us wear a helmet and harness!) but the view from the top was great.
Island hopping in the Philippines
The days we spent island hopping around El Nido were my favourite days of the whole trip. We went for tours A and C because those were the ones we had been recommended by friends and the stops there looked the most exciting.
To kick off tour C, our group's bubbly guides Raf and Jomar took us straight to Helicopter Island (named after its shape), where we spent some time sunbathing, swimming in the ocean and drinking fresh coconuts. The coconuts here never taste as good as I think they're going to but I like buying them on the beach anyway because nothing makes you feel more like you're on a tropical holiday!
Next, we sailed over to Macinlot Island to have some lunch (an amazing Filipino buffet and fruit platter) and climb up the rocks to another beautiful viewpoint over the ocean.
Afterwards, we snorkelled by the nearby Star Beach and Hidden Beach. Well, I didn't snorkel for the whole time because it was really rocky around the beaches and - as I found out in the Phi Phi islands - having fish touch me freaks me out a bit! Still, the scenery was amazing and sunbathing and chatting with the others on the boat was a lot of fun as well.
We finished off the tour with a trip to Secret Beach, which we could only reach by swimming through a narrow cove. The rocky floor there was a bit treacherous - and there were so many tourists around that it definitely did not live up to its secret name anymore (!) - but it was still really beautiful inside.
As fun as Tour C was, I thought Tour A (which we did the next day) was even better! This tour started very similarly to our last as we sailed to more tucked-away beaches (like Seven Commanders beach and the Hidden Lagoon) to swim, relax and enjoy the sun.
Having some time on the beaches was great but the most memorable part of the tour was definitely our visit to the Big Lagoon, which looked like something out of a movie!
The water was bright and crystal clear, the lagoon was pretty uncrowded and all the limestone cliffs around the water made you feel like you were really in the middle of the wilderness.
We hired kayaks to explore the lagoon, and even though none of my smudgy Go Pro pictures did the lagoon any justice, it was definitely one of the most magical-looking natural areas I've seen in Asia so far!
Staying on Nacpan beach
After hearing from some other travellers that Nacpan beach was one of the most beautiful beaches on the island (and that it's apparently been rated the best beach in Asia!), we had to go and see it for ourselves.
When we arrived on Nacpan beach, we immediately got why it was so popular. The water was even bluer than it had been at Las Cabanas and the sand stretched on for miles.
Our hostel, Dandal Bay View, was also right on the beach, so we had an amazing view of the sea every day when we ate breakfast outside. There was no WiFi at all in the hostel (or really anywhere in Nacpan except for at one café a couple of minutes walk away) but it was actually great to have a really low-tech time in paradise.
There were a few little bars and restaurants scattered along the beach, but Nacpan did feel a lot quieter than Las Cabanas in general. My favourite place to eat was a Thai restaurant on the sand next door to our hostel (called the Sunset Bar). Sadly, the restaurant completely burned down a few years ago and is just getting started up again, but its Thai food was so delicious that for me, it beat all of the food we'd eaten in Thailand hands down!
I also loved the Sunmai Sunset bar on the beach, which did the best cocktails (and actually felt pretty fancy compared to every other beach bar in El Nido)!
Our stay in the Philippines has been the best end to an incredible few months in Asia. With its happy, beachy vibe and incredible natural sights, I'd say it’s one of my favourite countries we’ve visited so far. Following Japan, which was my other favourite country, it feels like we accidentally saved the best for last!
I’m excited (but nervous) to make the move to Australia now, where I'm planning to live, work and get settled for the next few months.
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