El Nido: The Journey Continues

The following day, we woke up early to stroll around Bacuit bay and wait for the sunrise. Unfortunately though, the sun does not rise (nor set) on that side of El Nido. Despite the epic failed sunrise catching, we waited for the dusk to break while feeling the sand and waves on our feet.

For this day we had Tour A, the most popular and most visited of all places in El Nido. This tour includes the Big Lagoon, the cover and setting of all El Nido advertisements and international movies. Our itinerary also included visit to the Small Lagoon, Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island and Seven Commandos Beach. We did some snorkeling, which gave us the chance to see the beauty of El Nido underwater. Warning: Another picture-heavy post.

a) Big Lagoon

Big Lagoon is El Nido's main attraction. Entering the lagoon is comparable to entering a paradise, the waters were so serene and relaxing. According to Kuya Dennis, the lagoon is like a soup bowl - the water gets deeper as you approach the middle. 

The gateway to paradise

Upon entering the lagoon, the katig almost caught up with the rocks so our boatmen had to go down and push.

Find the hand of Talim, one of our boatmen.

El Nido: The Journey to Paradise

El Nido is located at the northernmost part of mainland Palawan; roughly  five to six hours drive from Puerto Princesa City. It's quite amazing that despite the location, many tourists are visiting El Nido. I guess the distinct beauty of El Nido makes it a premier destination for both Filipino and foreign tourists. FYI: Almost 80-90% of tourists are foreigners.

The most popular activity in El Nido is island hopping. The islands of El Nido are made of limestones, believed to have risen from underwater and are expected to rise a few meters every year due to environmental changes.

Tours range from A - E. Tours A-D are the island (water) tours while Tour E is mainland tour of inland beaches and waterfall. For tourists with limited time, some travel agencies offer combination tours. Combination tours consist of selected places from Tour A and Tour C which can be visited within a day. For our two-day stay in this paradise, we availed of the most recommended tours - A and C.

Because we need to catch the van going back to Puerto Princesa on the second day, our contact travel agencies decided that we start with Tour C because its farther compared to Tour A. For the first day tour, we visited Hidden Beach, Secret Beach, Talisay Island, Matinloc Island and Helicopter Island. Warning: This is a picture heavy post. 

1) Hidden Beach

Group picture at Hidden Beach

On to our first stop, Hidden Beach. As its name suggests, the white sand beach is hidden from view and located between the limestone cliffs. Big boats dock at a particular place and guests can either walk or swim to the beach. We were lucky because it was not yet crowded when we arrived. 

The limestone cliffs and tourists walking towards the beach.