El Nido Island Hoping Tour A Review

Published on 19 February 2024 at 10:58

El Nido is one of the most popular spots to visit in Palawan.  This is because it is a starting point for the surrounding archipelago of limestone cliffs, the biologically diverse coral reefs and beautiful beaches.  And the most popular thing to do in El Nido is island hoping.  There are 4 tours with extremely creative names: tour A, B, C and D.  Tour A and C are the most popular.  Tour C is famous for going to pristine and remote beaches, and being a beach guy myself, it would have been my choice.  But we were going to Nacpan Beach the following day and Boracay later in the trip, so the group wanted to go on Tour A, which is most famous for lagoons and kayaking.

We booked a good chunk of our El Nido trip through Emerald Travel Agency, so several things were priced together, including the tour.  But there are a number of places where you can book the island hoping tours, Tour A is usually priced at 1200 PHP ($30 CAD) and is actually cheaper than Tour C which is 1500.  A few things to note, when you are getting ready for your tour, the guide will collect 400 PHP from you for an environmental fee and will suggest rock shoes and snorkeling gear, which you can rent for a small fee.  If you have your own and have room in your suitcase bring it, that’s what I did, if not you’ll dish our another few hundred pesos (only a few dollars).  You are also going to need a water bag.  Then you will have to pay for a kayak if you want one in the final destination, but I’ll talk about that later.

After paying our fees and waiting for everyone in the group to arrive it was time to head out to the bangka, a typical Filipino boat with the two planks jutting out on the sides for balance.  You have to swim to the boat (it is about shoulder depth) which can be a problem if you’re really scared of water or can’t swim, although I’m not sure why you’d go on an island hoping tour.  But if necessary they can help you get to the boat by way of kayak.  This is the first time of many where your water bag will come in handy. Once everyone is on the boat you’re off.  After a short ride along the sea and marveling at the limestone cliffs and islands, you reach your first destination, Seven Commandos Beach.

Seven Commandos Beach was my favorite destination, it’s too bad we only had about 45 minutes there.  When you pull up to the island, you will immediately notice the lush palm trees, the white sand and crystal blue water.  The beach was beautiful but slightly crowded.  I swam a bit, took some photos and even grabbed a beer.  And if alcohol isn’t your thing you can also grab a fresh juice.  After our all too short time on the beach we were off to our next stop, Secret Lagoon. 

To get to Secret Lagoon, you need to swim from the boat this time.  Again, hence the need for a water bag and you’ll definitely need rock shoes here because it’s rocky.  Once you reach the limestone rocks, you’ll see an opening where people are exiting, after eagerly waiting (we were told that we were lucky, we only waited about 10 minutes and it is usually more busy) for the group to exit it’s time for your group to enter.  If you are quick to get to shore like I was, you can be the first one in which was a short moment of serenity.  The water isn’t clear like I expected, but it’s warm, hopefully not from too much urine, and you will be in a small lagoon towered by cliffs.  After swimming around a bit, sniping a few photos, I was one of the first one out.  I didn’t want to wait to exit through the cave, and I wanted to quickly swim over to Secret Lagoon Beach.  We didn’t have any time there, but being the first one out, I was able to go there for a couple of minutes, take a few photos and marvel at the beauty.  And one word of advice, be careful trying to film or take photos while going to or from the boat, the rocks change level and with the waves, you may slip or get hurt.  While trying to video my journey from the boat to the cave, I opened my water bag, tripped on a rock, scraped my leg and water got into my open water bag.  Luckily the Samsung S23 Ultra is water resistant, and I didn’t have a lot in the bag to begin with.

Because of the windy conditions, we weren’t able to eat lunch where we were scheduled to and pulled up just beside an island across from Secret Lagoon.  The lunch was a typical Filipino Sea Food lunch.  There was shrimp, grilled fish, rice, some chicken and a small salad for the few foreigners who like to eat veggies with their meal.  This was included with the price.  A boat selling Boku (coconut juice) pulled up too, and if you want one, make sure you have some cash, he will even add rum to it for a hefty price.  After lunch and some Boku we were off to our third spot, snorkeling.

Like Jet skiing, I always like to snorkel on my vacations to the ocean.  Snorkeling gear isn’t provided, so either bring your own or rent some.  Most of the people on our boat didn’t have snorkel gear, so they had to get a sun burn while waiting under the beaming sun rays while I was out there enjoying  the tropical waters.  I’ve done a lot of snorkeling in the Caribbean, and the coral reefs of the South China Sea were different than I was used to.  Where our boat stopped, it was too deep to get a good look at the fish in the coral reef, so you need to swim off a bit.  I swam towards the limestone cliffs where it got shallower and the snorkeling experience was amazing.  It was one of my best times snorkeling.  The coral reef was lush and unique compared to what I had seen before.  The fish were plentiful and again, different than I was used to.  Just be careful if it’s wavy, even though the bangka boats are anchored they will move, and while I was marveling at the fish, the side planks of the boat were inches from running me over on two different occasions. Despite almost being run over twice, it was an amazing experience snorkeling and I wish I had an underwater camera to capture the diversity of the fish and coral reef. 

The day was amazing, but it was getting late and my skin was starting to burn.  The sun was hot.  We were off to the last and most coveted spot, Big Lagoon.  When I first got to the boat, I wondered where the kayaks were, but the guide told me we’d get them at the location.  When we were on our way to Big Lagoon, that is where they tell you that you will need to pay for the kayaks, so make sure you have some pesos.  For a basic kayak you will pay 300 PHP ($7.50 CAD) and if you want a clear bottom kayak you will pay 600 PHP.  When you arrive at Big Lagoon you will see a ton of boats, other tour groups and the boats that rent the kayaks.  Despite my money being soaked from earlier, it was still money, and I opted for the basic kayak.  You can share if you want, but I decided to go alone, that way I’d be in full control. 

Again, I was the first one to get a kayak (apparently there is a limited number) and the first one off the boat.  The experience was amazing, even the kayak ride towards Big Lagoon was beautiful.  You are in the open sea, kayaking towards a lagoon that is towered by limestone cliffs.  After about 5 minutes you will be in the lagoon and will have time to explore.  You will kayak through the lagoon and channels, the views are similar throughout, but it is beautiful.  The water is warm, clear and you’re surrounded by cliffs.  The only downfall was the number of tourists.  We took some photos enjoyed the view, baked in the sun and explored the lagoon.  If you are going quick, it’ll take about 10-15 minutes to get to the end.  But you’ll probably stop to swim, take photos and just enjoy.  Hopefully you put your sunscreen on before you hopped off the boat.  Towards the end, there is a small cave you can go through which is pretty cool.  The whole experience was amazing, and on your way back it’s nice to jump off your kayak and take a swim.  Just leave your stuff in the water bag on the kayak and you’ll be good.  Just be careful, luckily my tour guide warned me there are shallow parts that are packed with Sea Urchins.  I was swimming above them and was lucky not to step on one. 

After a little over an hour, I headed back to the boat.  And of course, there were going to be people who were late, I didn’t know it was going to be my sister in-law and brother in-law.  They were over 45 minutes late!  I was sunburnt, tired and wanted to get back to S Resort El Nido to see my fiancé and daughter.  Of course, our 7 month year old daughter couldn’t participate in the experience, so like a champ, the fiancé stayed back with her and let me enjoy an amazing day of island hoping in El Nido.  There was a one-year-old on the tour, he did fine after a bit of vomiting, but it was a bit too hot and looked challenging for him.  I wouldn’t recommend bringing a baby under 2 years old, if you want to enjoy the entire experience.

The experience was great, and despite the added costs, which were a bit annoying the price is still worth it.  My favorite location was Seven Commandos Beach and kayaking in Big Lagoon was pretty amazing.  Snorkeling was good too, just make sure you bring snorkel gear.   Secret Lagoon was underwhelming and my least favorite stop on the tour. And just remember, bring sunscreen, rock shoes, snorkel gear and a water bag.  You will also need extra money: 400 PHP environmental fee, money to rent the gear if you didn’t bring your own and at least 300 PHP for the kayak,  but it’ll definitely be worth it and a once in a lifetime experience!

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