It was an unforgettable experience. It has been so long since my last trip, and I was really hungry for travel that time, and good thing I choose Coron to do it!
Hopefully through this blog post and to serve the purpose of this travel blog, I’ll be able to share some insights for you guys who wants to visit or planning to visit Coron.
How to Go to Coron Palawan?
I believe there are 4 ways on how you can get to Coron, but of course I’ve just tried one of them. You can get to Coron …By Plane
There are airlines that flies in directly to Coron at Francisco B. Reyes Airport of Busuanga island which is about an hour away from the town of Coron. There are V-Hires (van for hire) at the airport waiting until the last flight comes in (which was in our case). You may arrange it with your travel agency or hotel to have a van pick you up, or you can just go to the drivers that offers a ride to the town. They will drive you to your hotel, door to door delivery (LOL).
Philippine Airlines
By Sea
Via El Nido
You can actually go to El Nido via Coron through taking the ferry which is hours of trip, and of course you can go to Coron via El Nido. I don’t’ have any information for you on this since I don’t have any personal experience on this trip. But yes, you can get to Coron via El Nido, this will be great if you’re planning to tour the whole Palawan province.
Will try to update this post if there are any information I can share with you guys on this since I’ll be in El Nido this 2016.
Via Puerto Princesa
Another way you can get to Coron via sea is through Puerto Princesa, but El Nido is much more nearer in Coron, so it’s best if you’d go there. This is another way that you can take, but I don’t have any more information for this since I don’t have any experience on this but will try to update you once I’m able to tour Puerto Princesa.
You can actually go to El Nido via Coron through taking the ferry which is hours of trip, and of course you can go to Coron via El Nido. I don’t’ have any information for you on this since I don’t have any personal experience on this trip. But yes, you can get to Coron via El Nido, this will be great if you’re planning to tour the whole Palawan province.
Will try to update this post if there are any information I can share with you guys on this since I’ll be in El Nido this 2016.
Via Puerto Princesa
Another way you can get to Coron via sea is through Puerto Princesa, but El Nido is much more nearer in Coron, so it’s best if you’d go there. This is another way that you can take, but I don’t have any more information for this since I don’t have any experience on this but will try to update you once I’m able to tour Puerto Princesa.
In our case, since I'm from Cebu, we took a flight from Cebu to Manila via AirAsia. We then wait for more than 5 hours to take another trip from Manila to Coron Palawan via Philippine Airlines!
On our way back, we took the flight by Cebu Pacific Air from Coron to Manila, then another flight from Manila to Cebu via AirAsia.
If you're not sure which airline to go for to Coron from Manila, well, Philippine Airlines is totally okay. The flight was okay too and they gave us free snacks. For Cebu Pacific Air on the other hand, their plane is a bit better, or should I say newer. But Philippine Airlines have been around for a long time, so either of them two are great.
Coron Accommodations
For our 5 days and 4 nights in Coron, we’re able to stay in two (2) different accommodations, and they are:
If you’re in a budget, then we highly recommend Sea Coral Lodge. Their staffs are friendly, accommodating, and their rooms are clean, plus it’s air-conditioned, with cable TV and free (fast) WiFi.
But if you want a hotel that’s comfortable to stay, a hotel with a pool and away from the town’s noise, a romantic place. Then Asia Grand View hotel is the hotel to go for.
Then again, if you want to try other hotels, lodges, or any other accommodations in Coron, I have the list of 30 hotels and resorts in Coron Palawan.
Restaurants in Coron
Our breakfast for the first 3 days are included in our stay at Asia Grand View Hotel, our lunch is also taken care by our travel agency, the Blue Lagoon Adventure Travel and Tours. At our first night in Coron, we were too tired to leave the hotel (since we were like at the airport for almost the whole day due to air traffic), we decided to eat at the hotel – good thing Asia Grand View hotel have their own restaurant.We took our dinner at Asia Grand View Hotel's restaurant, Lolo Nonoy's, and Coron Village Lodge restaurant. We didn't mind the restaurants for dinner, we forgot to do some research about it, but there are a number of restaurants that I wish we did try.
Since breakfast is not included in Sea Coral Lodge, we decided to try the town instead, but Sea Coral Lodge do offer breakfast, they have the same breakfast meal at the market store we ate, so just eat there.
How to Get Around in Coron?
The Coron town is actually a small town, I can totally live there, and go to church, do some groceries, and all in just few minutes by just walking. So, you can actually just walk around to go around Coron town, but don’t walk the trip from the airport to the town. If you don’t want to take the walk, then you can just take the tricycle, I only paid P25 when I was at the town going back to my hotel, at Asia Grand View hotel and I’m the only passenger.
Things to Bring in Coron
Here are some items that you must bring in Coron, items that you should have in your luggage.
Waterproof Camera – since all of the tours involves water activities, and yes most of the tours requires you to hop into the boat. I’d say go for GoPro!
Skin Protection – luckily, few weeks before the trip Flawless gave me their latest product their Skin Protect Mist with SPF 70. I was able to try it out there! And yes, I was able to bring it on the plane along with my checked in bags, the AirAsia attendant said as long as the bottle doesn’t say “flammable” it’s okay. They’ve checked it themselves.
I’d totally recommend for you to bring your skin protection, again all activities there are water activities, under the sun. I was kissed by the sun, yes, my Mama even laughed at me every time she sees me for days because I was like almost black, but thanks to the Skin Protect Mist it’s not as bad as I usually get (like it hurts already on the first day), and my skin is back to its natural color in just few weeks.
Snorkeling Gear – this is recommended for those who’ll be taking the tours for days in Coron, or someone who loves underwater view. You can save a lot if you’ll just have the gear instead of renting it for days. But if you’re just taking one tour, and it’s best to just rent one.
Sunglasses – again, something to do with the sun. So, go and bring your sunnies with you especially if you’re out for a tour.
Skin Protection – luckily, few weeks before the trip Flawless gave me their latest product their Skin Protect Mist with SPF 70. I was able to try it out there! And yes, I was able to bring it on the plane along with my checked in bags, the AirAsia attendant said as long as the bottle doesn’t say “flammable” it’s okay. They’ve checked it themselves.
I’d totally recommend for you to bring your skin protection, again all activities there are water activities, under the sun. I was kissed by the sun, yes, my Mama even laughed at me every time she sees me for days because I was like almost black, but thanks to the Skin Protect Mist it’s not as bad as I usually get (like it hurts already on the first day), and my skin is back to its natural color in just few weeks.
Snorkeling Gear – this is recommended for those who’ll be taking the tours for days in Coron, or someone who loves underwater view. You can save a lot if you’ll just have the gear instead of renting it for days. But if you’re just taking one tour, and it’s best to just rent one.
Sunglasses – again, something to do with the sun. So, go and bring your sunnies with you especially if you’re out for a tour.
The Coron Tour Packages, Destinations, and Itinerary
There are more than 5 tours you can have in Coron Palawan, as for our case, we’re able to do 4 different tours. So along with the destinations, the tour packages we’ve tried out and the itinerary, here they are.Coron Palawan Day 1 Itinerary
Tour Package: None. We spent most of the day going to Coron.
Time
|
DAY 1
|
Expenses
|
6:50 AM - 8:10 AM
5:00 PM
|
Cebu – Manila
Manila – Busuanga
* Airport to Hotel
** Breakfast
** Lunch
** Dinner
** Snacks
|
P150/person
P200
P200
P200
P100
|
P750
|
Coron Palawan Day 2 Itinerary
Tour Package: Coron Island Adventure Tour
Time
|
DAY 2
|
Expenses
|
7:00 AM
8:00 AM
8: 30 AM – 5:00 PM
7:00 PM
|
Breakfast (included in the hotel)
Hotel Pick Up
Coron Island Adventure Tour
Dinner at Asia Grand View
|
P1,550/person
P250
|
P1,800
|
Coron Palawan Day 3 Itinerary
Tour Package: Malcapuya Island Escapade
Time
|
DAY 3
|
Expenses
|
7:00 AM
8:00 AM
8: 30 AM – 5:00 PM
7:00 PM
|
Breakfast (included in the hotel)
Hotel Pick Up
Malcapuya Island Escapade (Beach tour)
Dinner at
|
P2,000/person
P200
|
P2,200
|
Coron Palawan Day 4 Itinerary
Tour Package: Calauit Safari Adventure
Time
|
DAY 4
|
Expenses
|
5:00 AM
5:30 AM
6:00 AM – 7:00 PM
7:00 PM
|
Hotel Pick Up
Buy Food for Breakfast
Calauit Safari Adventure
Dinner at
|
P100
P2,500/person
P200
|
P2,800
|
Coron Palawan Day 5 Itinerary
Tour Package: Coron Town Tour
Time
|
DAY 5
|
Expenses
|
5:00 AM
5:30 AM
7:00 AM
8:00 AM
12:00 NN
1:00 PM
4:20 PM – 5:20 PM
9:50 PM – 11:15 PM
|
Hotel Pick Up
Mt. Tapyas
Breakfast
Coron Town Tour
Lunch
ETA at Busuanga Airport
Coron to Manila
Manila to Cebu
** Pasalubong
|
P200
P950/person
P200
P1,500
|
P2,850
|
Destinations:
Mt. Tapyas, Maquinit Hot Spring, Cashew Factory, and Coron Giftshop
Now I know some of you may not have the time and/or the budget for this kind of trip, but if you can only do a getaway for 3 days and 2 nights, I highly recommend that you take the Coron Island tour and the city tour, and take the last flight out.
Coron Budget and Expenses
A 5 days and 4 nights getaway is really great, but I'm totally aware that not all of us have the luxury (time or money) to do this, but if you do I'd totally recommend for you to take this 5 days off trip.
Here are our Coron budget and expenses for the 5 days. Just to give you an idea with our expenses.
Here are our Coron budget and expenses for the 5 days. Just to give you an idea with our expenses.
Days
|
Expenses
|
Day 1 Expenses
Day 2 Expenses
Day 3 Expenses
Day 4 Expenses
Day 5 Expenses
|
P750
P1,800
P2,200
P2,800
P2,850
|
Daily Expenses
|
P9,000
|
Hotel Accommodation:
Asia Grand View (P6,600/night x2)
Sea Coral Lodge (P1,500/night x2)
|
P13,200
P3,000
|
Accommodation Expenses
|
P16,200
|
Total Expenses
|
P25,200
|
Please take note that the accommodations that we did have are sponsored by the hotel, plus our tours are partially sponsored. Big thanks to all of our sponsors that week!
As a Cebu travel blog, this trip was expensive for us but thankfully for the locals who supported us, we were able to make it.
Some may also ask if there's no DIY for this to get the expenses cheaper. The only way to get this cheaper is book the tour there, and look for a boat to take you for a tour. But then, if you're like me who wants to be guaranteed to be able to get a tour and be able to arrange everything before going there, then this would be it.
The rooms at Asia Grand View can occupy up to 5 (I think, but there were 4 adults, and 1 kid, and there's still a space for an extra bed) and the Sea Coral Lodge room is good for 3.
Is Coron a Must Visit Destination?
Coron is already very beautiful and unforgettable for me, a Cebu blogger who love beaches and view this is really a beautiful place. It's where I learned that I should not be afraid of drowning - yes, this is my first time swimming in an open water, really deep, with no life vest (on some tourist spots). It's where I fall in love with the under water world.People say El Nido is prettier than Coron, I haven't been to Coron yet but I'll be in a few weeks. I'll update you with this issue.
But as of now, yes, Coron is one of the must visit destinations in the Philippines. Actually, the whole Palawan province I think is a must visit place.
If you have any questions about our trip in Coron Palawan, please leave it as a comment below!
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