AdventureScapes

	Activity		Cost		Comments
	Package Tour from Hadefe includes:
	Roundtrip airport transfers
	1 night in Ysabelle Mansion
	2 nights in Hadefe Cottages
	breakfast for 3 days
	lunch for 3 days
	Underground River tour
	El Nido Island hopping tour B
	El Nido Island hopping tour A and C		6,800		per pax
	Dinner at Kinabuch		400
	Ugong Rock Spelunking		200
	Ugong Rock Zip line		250
	Dinner at Seaslugs night 1		250
	Dinner at Seaslugs night 2		250
	Dinner at Art Café		320
	Souvenir T shirt at Art Café		300
	Pasalubong		340
	Extra Night at Hadefe		250		got a discount
	Total		9,360

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

Alright so I decided to make a separate entry for the delicacies in Puerto Princesa. I've always researched what are the must-try foods in all the places I visit but I seldom give emphasis on them in my blog posts. So for once, let me do.

Fresh Tamilok with Vinegar

Of course, the most famous (and the most dreaded) specialty found only in Puerto Princesa, is the tamilok. We'd been in Coron and there's no tamilok there.

The tamilok (woodworm) is a long whitish worm-like creature found on mangrove trees. They are dipped in vinegar before being eaten and they taste like oysters. Since I don't like oysters, I didn't care for the tamilok either.

For the less adventurous, one can try the breaded tamilok in Kinabuch's Bar and Restaurant. We didn't try this because they ran out of tamilok, and even then, I wanted the classic serving. In Kinabuch's, it costs Php 135 for a serving of tamilok. It's cheaper to try in Sabang Port (near Underground River). Vendors offer it for Php 100.

The next interesting specialty in Puerto Princesa is the crocodile sisig. This, we found to be delicious, and only slightly different from the usual pork, chicken or bangus sisig.

And finally, I've heard the hopia found in Baker's Hill are the must-buy pasalubong. Unfortunately, we didn't get to try this because we ran out of time to do the city tour. So if the hopia are really as good as I've heard, let me know!

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

The next day, we had the boat all to ourselves. The plan for the day was to have the combination tours A and C which included the following:

1. Helicopter Island
2. Secret Beach
3. Matinloc Island
4. Shimizu Island
5. Big Lagoon
6. Small Lagoon

Helicopter Island was so named because its shape resembled that of a helicopter. It had powdery white sand but a small shore.

Helicopter Island

To get to Secret Beach, one has to go through a small rocky opening. Unfortunately, the waves were too strong and only one of us was able to get through. Clin warned us that shouldn't attempt to go through any longer. Oh well.

Next, we visited the Matinloc Shrine. Clin told us that bishops used to visit the shrine and have their spiritual retreats there, but lately they haven't been coming back. Only the caretaker of the shrine resides there.

Matinloc Shrine

Shimizu Island was where we were to have our lunch. It was a crowded island. Lots of tourists were already there and the shore was almost filled with pump boats. While Clin and the other boatmen prepared our lunch, I snorkeled and marveled at the various fishes found on this island. The fish here were fearless. I often got bitten by palm-sized fishes if I stand still on the water. I was taken more by surprise rather than pain when they did this. Still, I had the uneasy feeling that a piranha attack would be akin to this.

If yesterday was any indication, then our lunch this day would be just as bongacious. And in fact, it was. Clin once again laid out a feast for us. We had pork, grilled squid, steamed shrimps, ensaladang talong (grilled eggplant), grilled fish, bananas and mangoes.

After the sumptuous lunch, it was time to feed the fishes! I still maintain that the fish we saw in Balicasag Island were the most vibrant I had seen. While those in Coron, specifically near the sunken shipwreck, had the most varied species. The fish in Shimizu were still abundant, though, and were more varied than those found in Boracay. Still, I was disappointed that the corals in El Nido were mostly dead, too, just like in Coron.

In my entire life, the most beautiful corals I had ever seen were in Nagarao Island, off the coast of Negros Occidental. The live corals were huge, maybe almost a meter in diameter and all clustered together. And at night, every step you took disturbed glowbugs on the beach. They were like faint disco lights on the beach. But that was way back in 1994. I haven't returned since.

The Big Lagoon

Anyway back to El Nido. Our next destination was the Big Lagoon. This was one of the most scenic spots in all of El Nido. Our little boat passed through a small opening while our expert boatment avoided the rocks. Clin told us that most of the pictures of El Nido were taken at the Big Lagoon.

Our final stop was the Small Lagoon. Like the Secret Beach, we needed to pass through a small opening to get to the lagoon. It reminded me of the Twin Lagoons in Coron, only larger. This was a very peaceful place. No waves. And we just relaxed and swam all around.

When we were done, it was time to go back. It was nearing the end of our adventure.

That night, we had dinner at Arts Cafe, where we enjoyed the live acoustic band and also bought a few shirts from their souvenir shop.

We left El Nido at 3 am the next morning, with Clin still accompanying us all the way to Puerto Princesa. We had a short stopover to buy pasalubong before finally heading for the airport.

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies 

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

The next morning, we learned that another group would be joining us. Thee were four of them, all working as call center agents.

View from Hadefe Cottages

We were having the Tour B that day. This was composed of the following attractions:

1. Snake Island
2. Pangalusian Beach
3. Pinagbuyutan Island
4. Cathedral Cave
5. Candugon Cave

Our first stop was Pangalusian Beach, a pristine beach where we snorkeled.

View from Snake Island's peak

Snake Island

Next, we visited Snake Island. This was named as such because of the long sandbar connecting the island to another island. At the top of Snake Island was a hut where we were afforded a bird's eye view of the place. Lunch was also served here and I must say, Clin outdid himself. We had chicken, grilled pork, steamed crabs, grilled fish, pineapples, mangoes and even a salad of cucumbers and tomatoes, all presented artfully. Need I say that we were glad he was our boatman?

A feast!

Next, we headed for Cathedral Cave. There wasn't really anything to do here, just snap photos, because we couldn't get off the boat.

Cathedral Cave

Up next was Candugon Cave. We crawled through a small opening in order to see the natural cave formation inside. We had a fun time climbing the rocks and taking photos.

Candugon Cave

Our last stop was Pinagbuyutan Island. This was a large expanse of beach with coconut trees and nice, swimming areas. We stayed for a long time, just relaxing and swimming.

Pinagbuyutan Island

At around 4:30 pm, it was time to go back. I'll talk about our second day in the next post.

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies 

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

On our first night in El Nido, we were informed by Clin (09482604177) (our soon-to-be boatman) that we would be staying at the resort beside Hadefe's. One of their guests got sick and extended their stay so our room was still occupied. We would transfer rooms in the early morning.

We took a long walk going to our resort. Maybe 10 to 15 minutes. Note that although Hadefe's is a beach front resort, the shore is rocky and it's not advisable to swim. Because it was raining, the path in front of the cemetery (yes, you will pass by a cemetery going to Hadefe's) was flooded. We had no choice but to wade through the ankle-deep flood water. Good thing we only had to do this once because the water dried up on the succeeding days.

Throughout the rather disappointing first impression, Clin was instrumental in helping us get through the first evening. When he learned that the resort we were staying in did not have most of the food written on their menu, he volunteered to take us on his motorcycle and bring us to a good restaurant. There were four of us but he was still willing to take two passengers first then return to fetch the others.

Clin took us to Seaslugs and we ended up ordering dinner. The owner agreed to deliver the food to our resort because Clin knew him and because Seaslugs was already full. And also because the resort we were staying in was a branch of theirs.

We were very grateful for Clin's help that night. He told us that our island hopping would start at 9 am in the morning.

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

Ugong Rock was just an hour's away from the Underground River, making it an ideal destination to include in one's itinerary. They offered rappelling, spelunking, and zip line. We chose to try spelunking for Php 200.

The name Ugong Rock came from the sound the limestone makes when one strikes it with a open palm. It produces a hollow, gong-like sound.

It took around 15 to 20 minutes for us to navigate the cave until we reached Ugong Rock's peak. The climb wasn't too hard. The most challenging part was the 7-step vertical climb using nylon ropes tied in knots.


At the summit, we were treated with a majestic view of the surrounding mountains. To get down, we had two options: either go down the way we came, or take the zip line. My three friends chose the first option while I, feeling lazy, took the zip line (Php 250).


So I was down in 20 seconds and waited for the others to join me before we all rode for El Nido.

The drive lasted for almost 6 hours along a long and winding road. Some areas were rough roads but most were paved.

At one point, we stopped to admire the truly wonderful sunset before making our way again. We arrived at El Nido at 8 pm and had dinner at Seaslugs (highly recommended).

Related Posts to this story
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Spelunking at Ugong Rock
A Very Helpful Boatman
El Nido Island Hopping Tour B
El Nido Island Hopping Tour A and C
Puerto Princesa Delicacies

Puerto Princesa and El Nido Itinerary
Puerto Princesa and El Nido Expenses

As I sit here right after our final island hopping tour in El Nido, I realize that the three whole days allotted for our tour was not enough. We'll have to skip the city tour in Puerto Princesa.

Let me start at the beginning. We arrived at 5 pm in Puerto Princesa airport and was picked up by the shuttle service of Ysabelle Mansion, where we would be staying.

Ysabelle Mansion

Since it was too late to do anything else, we opted to walk along Rizal Street before having dinner at the famous Kinabuch Bar and Restaurant. We tried the crocodile sisig and found it delicious! Unfortunately, they were out of tamilok (woodworm), which was the exotic delicacy of the region. Still, we enjoyed dinner and were very excited to start the real tour the next day.

Puerto Princesa Tourist Map

Around 7:30 am, we left Ysabelle Mansion to do the Underground River Tour. We were joined by an elderly couple, balikbayans from California, who were full of energy and regaled us with stories of their travels. Our tour guide was Jake (09096641705), from Hadefe Travel and Tours. He was great, and made us laugh all the way to the port. He explained a lot of things about Palawan in general and pointed out interesting sights, and also let us stop to take pictures. He took care of us and attended to all our needs.

There were huge waves when we arrived at Sabang Port, some two hours later, but it didn't hinder us from going ahead with the tour.

So we boarded the small boat that would take us 1.5 km inside the underground river. The total length of the river was 8.2 km but for tourists, only 1.5 km is the allowable length to explore. Researchers could go as far as 4 km, but they need to secure a permit. The whole activity took about 45 minutes.

Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park

Since the Underground River (official name is Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park) was chosen as one of the 7 New Natural Wonders of the World, Jake informed us that tourism has tripled. I wonder how long it takes until Palawan becomes the commercialized center that is Boracay.

Our boat guide had names for the different rock formations found in the cave. A dinosaur's head, the Nativity, a mushroom, even Sharon Stone's butt. Lol.

Bat Cave

Jake invited us to take photos near the mouth of the cave, and also led us to see the 2 meter long monitor lizards.

We had a buffet lunch in Taraw Restaurant. Jake was thoughtful enough to ask if we wanted to try tamilok. We gave a resounding yes, given that we missed this dish in Kinabuch. In Sabang, tamilok costs Php 100 for a small bowl.

What're you staring at?

It tasted like oysters but since I don't like oysters, I didn't care for tamilok, either. My boyfriend liked it, though.

Then Jake informed us that we had to switch vans because we were going to El Nido, but the elderly couple we were with were returning to Puerto Princesa.

So we went with Fred, our new driver. We made a stopover to Ugong Rock, where we had another experience. See next post.