Coron is one of the most sought-after destinations of travelers, Pinoys and foreigners alike. My fiancé and I finally had the chance to explore this captivating place, and the experience is surreal! If you are into traveling, then you probably have heard of “Palawan,” considered as the most beautiful island in the world. It boasts of crystal clear blue waters, beautiful white sandy beaches, and colorful and diverse marine life. Coron is a municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. Here are some notes from our trip. Hope they can help you with yours! Our Itinerary in a Gist Day 1 – Island Escapade Tour (joiner) Day 2 – Coron Island Ultimate Tour (joiner) Day 3 – Private DIY Tour for 2 pax Getting to Coron, Palawan: Cebu Pacific The easiest way to reach Coron from Manila is by plane. Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, and SkyJet Airlines offer several flights a day to Francisco B. Reyes Airport in Busuanga. You can find the cheapest tickets from Cebu Pacific. Here’s our promo ticket cost. Php 1,599 x 2 = Php 3,198 Manila – Busuanga Php 1,414 x 2 = Php 2,828 Busuanga – Manila Airfare to Coron from Manila can go as low as Php 699 if you search for promo fares and book in advance (like 6 months or so before the travel date) or wait for Piso fares (promo airfares with 1 peso base fare) from budget airlines like Cebu Pacific. I booked our tickets a month before the travel date so the price was not that cheap. *Tip: Like their official Facebook page here to get updates on promo fares. They usually announce promo fare periods a few days beforehand. Just keep in mind that tickets to Busuanga can be sold out in seconds so better book fast. After you arrive at Francisco B. Reyes Airport in Busuanga, you can commute to Coron Town Proper or request a van pickup from your hostel (which is usually Php 150, the same price when you commute). To commute, go to the van terminal just outside the airport exit and ride a van going to Coron Town Proper (Php 150 fare). It will take you 30 minutes. Accommodation: Sea Coral Lodge We booked a standard room for 2 nights at Sea Coral Lodge, a budget accommodation along Coron, Busuanga National Hi-way. We preferred to stay here because of its strategic location and its very affordable price: Php 1,000 per night for a standard air-conditioned room for 2 persons. There were cheaper options in other hostels like fan rooms or dorm-type rooms for around Php 300 per person per night, but I decided to get an air-conditioned room for us so we can really relax after a tiring day. Room: The room that we got is basic but it is comfy enough to have a nice rest after all those touring. The toilet is small but clean, with hot and cold water. They have fresh towels for you, a small bar soap, and some toilet papers. They don’t provide those disposable toothbrush, comb, shampoo, etc. so better bring your own. It is a budget accommodation after all. Amenities: Minibar, balcony, kitchen Services: In-room massage and tour packages Staff: The staff are friendly and approachable, and reception is available 24/7. They can smoothly handle guest requests like airport pick up and tours. We did not get our joiner tours from them but we did request a last-minute DIY tour the night before and they made it happen. How to book? You can book your rooms directly at their website. We did so and paid with a debit card. Make sure to save your confirmation email to show in the reception once you arrive. Sea Coral Lodge Barangay 5, Bancuang, Coron, Palawan , Philippines 09399240187 or 09175624387 http://www.seacorallodge.com/ Tours We Took JY Travel and Tours (Joiner Tours) I’ve read positive reviews on JY Travel and Tours from other blogs so I’ve decided to book our tours from them. We booked two joiner tours: Coron Island Ultimate Tour (the most popular island hopping tour in Coron) and the Island Escapade tour. The staff of JY Travel and Tours are very nice people. The guides are mindful of their guests and are very chatty in a good way. Never a dull moment with these guys. I highly recommend the Coron Island Ultimate Tour. The destinations are near each other so you won’t be tired of long boat travels. All destinations are worth visiting. Be sure to reserve your stamina because there will be lots of swimming and snorkeling. The tour agents can be generous in giving discounts. I haggled on prices and got the Coron Island Ultimate Tour for Php 1,400 instead of Php 1,500. Maybe you can get a bigger discount if you are booking for a big group. Coron Island Ultimate Tour (Php 1,400/pax) Destinations: Siete Pecados, Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, Smith Beach, Skeleton Wreck, Las Islas de Coral, CYC Beach Inclusions: Hotel pick up, boat transfers, guide fees, life vest, lunch, and island entrance fees Island Escapade Tour (Php 1,200/pax) Destinations: Bulog Dos Island, Banana Island, Malcapuya Island Inclusions: Hotel pick up, boat transfers, guide fees, life vest, lunch, and island entrance fees Review: The tours were amazing. The guides were very funny and could communicate well in English with foreign tourists. They will take you to a lot of great snorkeling and picture-perfect spots. They are good at taking pictures too and are knowledgeable in using gadgets like GoPros. One of the guides insisted on taking an underwater video for us using our GoPro while swimming in Kayangan Lake and the result was amazing! He is better than us in positioning the GoPro at the right angle. LOL. How to book? What is great about JY Travel and Tours is that they won’t require you to pay to reserve a spot in their tours. Simply call them and tell them that you want to have a tour reservation and provide specific details: Your name, what tours you’d like to go to, how many people joining, the date, and if possible the hotel you will be staying. Then you discuss the price over the phone/email. You can haggle if you are booking for many people or if you are getting several tours. We were picked up on time and the tours went smoothly. Here is a list of their tours and prices:
(All tours include hotel pick-up, boat rental, tour guide fees, life vest, buffet lunch, island entrance fees, some snacks, and drinking water) They also have tour packages with accommodation for different duration of stay. Check their Facebook page for more information: JY Travel and Tours No. 19, Real St, Coron, 5316 Palawan, Philippines Contact person: Joel Layson E-mail: [email protected] Mobile numbers: 09162391704 / 09215136061 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Coronvacation/ Sea Coral Lodge (DIY Private Tour for 2 pax) It was our last night in Coron and we will be returning to Manila the next day at 4:20pm. We were supposed to do a laid-back DIY city tour the next day, but we thought of doing one last island hopping tour before going back to Manila. This was not possible with a joiner tour because the tours usually run from 9:00am to 5:00pm and our flight was at 4:20pm. So we asked our lodge receptionist (because they also offer tour packages) if it is possible to arrange a private DIY tour for 2 people for the next day and how much it will cost. After making a few phone calls, they said it is possible and showed us the fee breakdown. We agreed on the fee and so the DIY tour was scheduled for the next day. In this tour, we picked a few islands in Coron loop. I’ve been wanting to visit the Barracuda Lake, which was not included in the Coron Island Ultimate Tour that we took. A boat captain and a guide will accompany us in this tour. We visited five destinations in almost 6 hours, which is OK because we need to get back and leave Coron Town at 2:30pm. It would have been more fun to do a DIY with a group of friends because you get to decide where to go, you have more privacy because you can avoid the crowd, you’ll have wonderful photos together, and of course, you can split the bill. LOL. Here is a picture of me and my fiancé in Skeleton Wreck in our DIY private tour. Below is the fee breakdown of our private DIY tour for 2 pax; not bad considering there are only two of us. Although, it is still better to have 4 or more people in the group. Private DIY Tour Fee Breakdown 1,500 Private boat rental for 2 pax 1,300 (650 x 2) Island fees for 5 destinations: 100 Balinsasayaw Floating House 100 Skeleton Ship Wreck 200 Barracuda Lake 150 Twin Peak Reef 100 Siete Pecados 300 Lunch (adobong manok, rice, watermelon, mineral water) 200 Tip (optional) ======== Php 3,300 Total expenses for 2 pax Inclusions: Hotel pick up, boat transfers, guide fees, life vest, lunch, and island entrance fees Review: It was more expensive than the joiner tours, no doubt because there were only two of us, but it was so worth it! We had all five destinations to ourselves because we started our tour at around 7:30am, avoiding the usual time the other tours start. There were no swarming tourists and the pictures were great (no photo bombers LOL) especially those taken in the Skeleton Wreck and Barracuda Lake. Kuya Elmer, our guide, was very patient in guiding us to perfect snorkeling spots. He took great GoPro underwater photos and videos of us. He is a skilled swimmer and always looks after us if we get too far or if the current is getting strong. How to book? Just ask your hotel if they can provide a private tour. They usually have their own tour agency or are affiliated with some. In our case, because it was a sudden booking, we just asked the reception if it is possible and how much it will cost. We paid at the reception, except for the entrance fees for individual islands, which we handed over to the boat captain). I recommend Kuya Elmer Caabay from Sea Coral Lodge. Here is his contact information: Sea Coral Lodge Barangay 5, Bancuang, Coron, Palawan, Philippines 09399240187 or 09175624387 http://www.seacorallodge.com/ Guide: Kuya Elmer Caabay Mobile number: 09090951639 Where To Eat? Here are some restaurants we tried during our trip. I highly recommend all of them because they serve delicious meals, which will surely fill you up after a tiring day! I wasn’t able to get pictures of our food because hunger took over. LOL. So, I’ve included links to their TripAdvisor reviews here.
3 Days and 2 Nights in Coron, Palawan Day 1 6:55 am – ETD Manila 7:30 am – ETA Busuanga 8:00 am – Check in at Sea Coral Lodge 8:10 am – Quick breakfast 8:45 am – Pick up for Island Escapade Tour (JY Travel and Tours) 9:00 am – Start of tour (Bulog Dos Island, Banana Island, Malcapuya Island) 3:30 pm – End of tour 5:00 pm – Arrival at pier 7:00 pm – Dinner at Santino's Grill Day 2 7:30 am – Breakfast at Sea Coral Lodge 8:30 am – Pick up for Coron Island Ultimate Tour (JY Travel and Tours) 9:00 am – Start of tour (Twin Lagoon, CYC Beach, Smith Beach, Skeleton Wreck, Kayangan Lake, Siete Pecados) 4:30 pm – End of tour 5:00 pm – Arrival at pier 7:00 pm – Dinner at Kawayanan Grill Day 3 6:30 am – Breakfast at Kaison Restaurant 7:20 am – Pick up for DIY Private tour for 2 (Sea Coral Lodge) 7:30 am – Start of tour (Balinsasayaw Floating House, Skeleton Wreck, Barracuda Lake, Twin Peak Reef, Siete Pecados) 1:15 pm – End of tour 1:30 pm – Arrival at pier 1:45 pm – Wash up 2:30 pm – Pick up going to airport 4:20 pm – ETD Busuanga 5:35 pm – ETA Manila Expenses Breakdown (for 2 pax) in Php 3,198 = Cebu Pacific Airfare: MNL–Busuanga (1,599.00 x 2) 2,828 = Cebu Pacific Airfare: Busuanga–MNL (1,414.00 x 2) 400 = Terminal fee in Busuanga (200 x 2) 2,000 = Accommodation: Sea Coral Lodge (1,000 x 2 nights) 2,800 = Coron Island Ultimate Tour (JY Travel and Tours) (1,400 x 2) 2,400 = Island Escapade Tour (JY Travel and Tours) (1,200 x 2) 3,300 = Private DIY tour for 2 (Sea Coral Lodge) 1,500 = Private boat rental for 2 pax 1,300 = (650 x 2) Island fees for 5 destinations: 100 Balinsasayaw Floating House 100 Skeleton Ship Wreck 200 Barracuda Lake 150 Twin Peak Reef 100 Siete Pecados 300 = Lunch (adobong manok, rice, watermelon, mineral water) 200 = Tip (optional) 1,962 = Food 300 (150 x 2) SCL Breakfast (Day 1) 618 Santino's Grill 300 (150 x 2) SCL Breakfast (Day 2) 409 Kawayanan Grill & Restaurant 185 Kaison Restaurant 150 Snacks/water 640 = Transportation 600 = Roundtrip van transfer to airport (300 x 2) 40 = Tricycle fare (10 x 4) 200 = Souvenirs (sarong and keychains) ======= 19,728 TOTAL EXPENSES FOR 2 PAX (3 Days & 2 Nights trip)
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