16 Best Things to Do in Palawan 2026: El Nido, Coron & More

El Nido Activities

For more tips, Best Food in Palawan 2026: What to Eat in El Nido & PP, Best Luxury Resorts in Bali 2026: Reviewed and Ranked, Da Nang Packing List 2026: What To Bring and Skip.

1. Island Hopping Tour A (Big Lagoon & Small Lagoon)

Tour A is El Nido’s most iconic — and most popular — experience. The centerpiece is Big Lagoon (entered by kayak, enclosed by vertical limestone walls) and Small Lagoon (even narrower passage, accessed via kayak through a gap in the cliff face). Tour A also includes Secret Lagoon (walk through a small rock hole to a hidden beach) and Shimizu Island for snorkeling.

How to book: Any El Nido town tour operator; shared tours PHP 1,500–2,000 including lunch, kayak hire, and snorkel gear. Private tours PHP 5,000–8,000 for the boat.

Tip: Arrive at the pier by 7:30am — all tours leave around the same time and the lagoons get crowded by mid-morning. Early boats get clearer water and fewer people.

2. Island Hopping Tour C (Hidden Beach & Matinloc Shrine)

Tour C reaches the most scenic spots in the Bacuit Archipelago. Hidden Beach sits inside a cove completely ringed by limestone — only accessible by swimming through a small gap. Matinloc Island has a clifftop Catholic shrine with one of Palawan’s best views. Secret Beach (also Tour C) involves swimming through an underwater gap at the cliff base — not for non-swimmers.

Cost: PHP 1,500–2,000 shared, PHP 5,500–9,000 private.

3. Nacpan Beach & Twin Beach

Nacpan is El Nido’s best mainland beach — a 4km stretch of white sand with almost no commercial development and minimal crowds compared to town beaches. Twin Beach is a 5-minute walk over the headland. No island hopping needed — accessible by habal-habal from El Nido town (~40min, PHP 300–500 round trip).

Best for: Spending a full day without a tour itinerary. Bring food and water — facilities are basic.

4. Kayak to Helicopter Island

Helicopter Island (Dilumacad Island) is named for its helicopter silhouette shape when viewed from the water. Reachable as part of Tour B or independently by kayak from Las Cabanas Beach (45min). The beach on the island’s south side has good snorkeling. Entrance fee PHP 100.

5. Sunset at Las Cabanas Beach

Las Cabanas is El Nido’s closest resort beach (2km south of town, tricycle PHP 30–50). The zipline over the sea (PHP 250) is a sunset activity. The beach bar scene starts from 17:00 — less crowded than town, better sunset angle.

Taraw Cliff — El Nido’s Sunrise Climb

Taraw Cliff rises directly behind El Nido town, and the trail to its viewpoint is one of the few things to do in El Nido that doesn’t involve a boat.

The climb is steep and scrambly in sections, with loose rock and no fixed ropes for most of the route. Treat it as a proper hike rather than a casual walk, and wear shoes with grip, not sandals.

At the top, the payoff is a 360-degree view over Bacuit Bay and the limestone islands beyond, which is most rewarding at sunrise before the heat and haze build up over the water.

Go with a certified local guide rather than attempting it solo. The rock can be sharp, the path isn’t signposted throughout, and guides know which sections to avoid after rain, when the trail gets slippery enough to turn back.

Bring more water than you think you’ll need — there’s no shade for most of the climb and no vendors at the top. It’s a short-but-steep outing, best paired with a lazy afternoon rather than squeezed before a full-day island hopping tour.

Coron Activities

6. Diving the WWII Wrecks

Coron’s main draw is wreck diving in the Coron Bay — 12 identifiable ships from the September 1944 Imperial Japanese Naval air fleet. Top wrecks for divers:

Okikawa Maru (transport ship, 24–42m depth, 160m long) — Coron’s largest wreck and a full-penetration dive for advanced divers. Covered in soft corals, home to large grouper.

Irako Maru (refrigerated transport, 40m max depth) — excellent coral growth, resident turtles on the deck.

Kogyo Maru (armed transport, 30–38m) — cargo holds still contain machinery.

Skeleton Wreck (10m, Lusong Gunboat) — accessible to snorkelers; the ship’s outline is visible from the surface on a calm day.

How to dive: PADI Divemaster-led trips from Coron town operators (PHP 1,500–2,500/dive). Dive centers: Dive Right in Coron, Discovery Divers.

7. Kayangan Lake

The most visited lake in Coron — accessed via a 5-minute concrete staircase climb and then a short walk. The view from the top of the stairs (limestone cliffs framing the lake) is one of Palawan’s most photographed images. The lake itself: crystal-clear freshwater over 50m deep, visibility 15–20m, sharp thermocline at 8m. Snorkeling only (no scuba permitted).

Fee: PHP 200. Best time: 7–9am before tour groups arrive. Most tours reach Kayangan between 9–10am — arriving independently early avoids the crowd.

8. Twin Lagoon

Two connected lagoons — the outer accessible by boat, the inner via a low rock passage (swim-through or step-through depending on tide). The inner lagoon is warmer and more sheltered. Popular snorkeling spot. Part of most Coron island hopping packages or bookable as separate boat charter.

9. Barracuda Lake

A crater lake beside the sea — the geological formation means it has a halocline (salt/fresh water layer) AND a thermocline: warm freshwater surface, then a transition to cooler denser saltwater below 15m. Scuba divers descend through temperature layers — a disorienting but memorable dive. Snorkeling permitted in the upper layer. Fee PHP 200.

10. Coron Island Hopping

Coron town operators offer full-day island hopping routes combining Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, Barracuda Lake, CYC Beach, and Skeleton Wreck. Cost: PHP 1,500–2,000 per person shared, PHP 5,000–7,000 private boat. The shared routes are well-organized — start by 8am to reach Kayangan Lake before the crowd peak.

Calauit Safari Park

Calauit Island, off the northwestern tip of Busuanga near Coron, is Palawan’s one safari-style wildlife stop — a legacy of a 1970s wildlife sanctuary that brought African species like giraffes and zebras to roam alongside native wildlife such as the Calamian deer.

Visits run as a guided safari tour, typically booked through a Coron-based tour operator rather than arranged independently, since the island sits a boat-plus-van transfer away from Coron town rather than a quick hop.

Morning is the better time to go. The animals are more active before the midday heat, and a guided visit works around their routine rather than yours.

It’s a different kind of day out from the rest of Palawan’s water-based activities, worth building into a Coron itinerary if you have a spare day and want something besides diving and lake-hopping.

The sanctuary dates to 1977, when African species were brought in under a wildlife preservation program; after decades on the island without fresh bloodlines, some of the herds are now inbred, which is part of why the park is managed as a conservation project rather than a simple zoo.

Puerto Princesa Activities

11. Puerto Princesa Underground River

A UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature — an 8.2km navigable underground river through massive caves. Tours cover 4km of the navigable section by paddle boat. The cave contains bat colonies, swiftlets, stalactites, and rock formations up to 20m high.

How to book: Must book in advance — the Philippine Tourism Office restricts daily visitors. Booking via accredited Puerto Princesa city tourism operators is safest. Total cost: PHP 600 park fee + PHP 1,000–1,800 van transport from PP.

Tip: Book minimum 1 week ahead; 3–4 weeks ahead November–February. Walk-ins without permits are turned away.

12. Honda Bay Island Hopping

3 small islands (Pandan Island, Luli Island, Starfish Island) a short boat ride from Puerto Princesa. Snorkeling, beach time, and seafood lunch. Less dramatic than El Nido but convenient if transiting through PP. Cost: PHP 1,200–2,000 including boat and basic lunch.

13. City Tour — Crocodile Farm & Mitra’s Ranch

Puerto Princesa Crocodile Farm houses 900+ crocodiles including some of the largest in captivity. Mitra’s Ranch is a hillside viewpoint over Palawan’s coastline. Both can be combined in a half-day city tour (PHP 400–600 per person).

Tabon Caves — The Philippines’ Cradle of Civilization

Tabon Caves sit at Lipuun Point in Quezon, a southern Palawan municipality well away from the El Nido-Coron-Puerto Princesa circuit most visitors stick to.

The caves are where archaeologists found Tabon Man and human fossils dated to roughly 47,000 years ago — among the oldest human remains discovered in the Philippines — along with more than a thousand burial jars, including the well-known Manunggul Jar.

The site is managed by the National Museum of the Philippines and holds National Cultural Treasure status. Only a handful of the known caves are open to the public, and there’s a small museum on site covering the finds.

This is a trip for history-focused travelers rather than a quick add-on. Reaching Quezon from Puerto Princesa takes most of a day round-trip, so plan it as its own excursion rather than squeezing it between beach activities.

Of roughly 215 known caves in the Lipuun Point complex, only a small number are fully explored, and just a handful are open to visitors — so this isn’t a sprawling cave system you wander freely, but a focused, guided look at a handful of chambers with real archaeological weight behind them.

Cross-Area Activities

14. Freediving and PADI Courses

El Nido and Coron both have PADI Open Water courses (PHP 18,000–25,000, 3–4 days) and freediving courses (PHP 10,000–15,000 for basic level, AIDA 2★). Visibility in Palawan’s waters makes it a top location for learning. Recommended: Liquid Dive Adventures (El Nido), Discovery Divers (Coron).

15. Mangrove Tours

El Nido’s Las Cabanas area has guided mangrove kayak tours (PHP 500–800) through the Bacuit Bay mangrove systems. Not a primary highlight, but good for a rest day or combined with Nacpan Beach. Birdwatching possible (Palawan peacock-pheasant, Palawan hornbill).

16. Firefly Watching at New Ibajay River

Seasonal mangrove night experience available from El Nido — boat tour to view fireflies along the riverbanks at dusk (PHP 500–700 per person). Runs October–March when the mangroves are in peak condition. Bookable through El Nido tour operators.

Activity Costs Summary