EL NIDO, Palawan: Day 1: Island Hopping - Tour C

As soon as we settled our things, we asked the Manager of the lodge if he could join us with other touring groups. He told us there's a group who will be doing a Combination A & C tour the next day. Tours A & C are the most popular ones though tours range from A to D. We really wanted to avail one tour per day to enjoy each spots, however we were strongly persuaded for a combination to save cost and a chance to avail one more tour the next day. As explained to us, tour A costs P700 and tour C costs P900, both with free lunch. Combination A & C costs P1,300 with free lunch.

Tour starts at 9AM. I was so excited. Finally, this is it! I want to see whatever this place has to offer. We started with Tour C being the farthest.

Helicopter Island. 

they say this island looks like a helicopter without its rotor. but for tourists, it looks more of a dolphin

Hidden Beach.

a beach hidden by cliffs 

we had to swim or walk to reach this area. this is the entrance.

to the left is where the hidden beach located. going straight leads to the sea. there are fish in the water already! 

there it is.... the hidden beach.

water is just knee deep. 

to the open sea. this is where we found clown fish!

nemo!

there are tons of clown fish here

sea worm?

Miniloc Shrine.

they say that the owner abandoned this place but will return and convert this area into a resort

they built a shrine and every year they celebrate a mass on the day they built the shrine.

way to the view deck

There is a stage and an abandoned house. Tourists are not allowed to enter the house. We noticed some furnitures are still there and some are already stolen.


Lunch. 

We stayed at one of the beaches for our lunch. Unlike in Coron, bangkeros cook food in the boat while sailing so that right after we reach the beach, we can eat right away. In El Nido, that's not the case. Bangkeros cook food in the island so we really had to wait. Sorry nalang sa mga gutom na tiyan, walang choice!!

Our menu consists of grilled chicken and fish,  mixed vegetable, cucumber salad and bananas and pineapple for dessert. The servings are huge and we're all satisfied except for one thing - no water to drink!!!! Good thing, we were able to bring our own bottled water.

I availed this tour from the Manager of Bancuit Grill Bar and Restaurant, which is located at the other end the bay. He also manages the newly built accommodation we stayed in, Cabugao Lodge.  I let him know about the water experience and though he was apologetic about it, he explained that water is really not included in lunch for safety reasons that's why they advise tourists to bring their own water. Oh mee gawd! whatever!!

Secret Beach.

This spot is very very famous to all tourists. A beach that's secret? Who wouldn't?

Tourists are not allowed to visit this place if it's high tide because the water would reach as high as covering the hole. Lucky for us, the weather was cooperative during our tour.

The secret beach is surrounded by cliffs that one must pass through this hole to reach it.

this is the scene after passing through the hole. it was a struggle .

.....and lalong mahirap maglakad sa mga bato. Aqua shoes are highly recommended for this.

tadaaah! the beach! the sand is powdery white. 

this is what's under the pass through.

That's it for Tour C. I like the hidden beach and secret beach for tour C because of the idea of them being hidden and secret. :) As for their sand, both are powdery white but can't swim in it. In hidden beach, I was glad to see clown fishes for the first time, which I was hoping to see in Coron but failed. In Secret beach, it was difficult to reach but worth seeing.

As the day progressed, we continued on to Tour A.


El Nido, Palawan: Getting There Via Puerto Princesa
El Nido, Palawan: Day 1: Island Hopping - Tour C
El Nido, Palawan: Day 1: Island Hopping - Tour A
EL NIDO, Palawan: Day 2 : El Nido Town
EL Nido, Palawan: Day 2 : Island Hopping - Tour B