Coron Island, Palawan, Philippines
Philippines is comprised of more than 7,000 islands, and one of the most growing tourist destinations nowadays has to be Palawan.
While a lot of tourists congregate to Palawan itself, most stay around Puerto Princesa just to view its famous Subterranean River National Park. I am sorry to say that I haven't visited the Underground River, though I may return one year just for this trip alone (I do hope to see the bats that live in there, and I have heard of the mini waterfalls inside of the cave).
For myself, I visited Coron Island, because I was able to capture the image above. The viewpoint shows the view of Coron Bay, and it's taken at the top of the hill, right before heading down to Kayangan Lake.
Be careful while walking - have a pair of trail shoes / hiking shoes that have a good grip as some of the paths aren't the best (i.e. mixture of stones / rocks and sand).
However, once you arrive at the Lake, it will make the trip worth it. Kayangan Lake is known to be one of the most beautiful, crystal clear waters and tall cliffs that surround it. If you are visiting, check out the small cave located in there. I do wish that I had brought a flashlight since it gets a bit dark in there.
For those interested, if you are scuba diver, Coron Island is known to have multiple locations for diving. There are a few sunken ships located around some of the islands - the one featured below is a pair of scuba divers at Barracuda Lake.
So, interested? If so, here are a few things to know prior to the trip.
If you are going to visit Coron Island, I advise you to stay at Coron. From Coron, you can purchase the Lake Tour(s). There are several tours that offer the lake tours, and most offer a buffet lunch as visiting the different lakes take most of the day. (This ranges roughly between $20 - $80). If you do capture a tour, I advise getting a private tour if you can find one as it allows for a relaxed atmosphere, and you can spend as much time as you want on each island.
If you stay at Coron, most locations are a walking distance. But there are some highlights, such as the local church, the hike up Coron Island, and visit the Maquinit Hot Springs.
By the way, if you do decide to hike up the island, bring some water with you. There are locals selling water right before you go up for the hike.
For Maquinit Hot Spring, to get there, I advise you take the tricycle going up (bring small change to get you where you need to go). It's a huge saltwater hot spring and it's pretty relaxing, especially at night.
As to where, you should stay? There are multiple hotels in the surrounding area, but the one that I stayed at for this trip is at Corto del Mar. They had free breakfast, had a nice pool, and their location offers in-room massages.
One last advise, Coron Island has frequent outages but they almost-never last that long. If you experience this, don't be too shocked and bring some backup power for your cellphone, if needed.
Has anyone else been to Palawan, and if so, what was your favorite location?