In 2020, the pandemic reached my city, all my travels stopped. Today for the first time after 2 years of lockdowns, confusing travel rules and finally 3 doses of COVID 19 vaccine, I traveled again for the first time. Because of the travel restrictions everywhere, I could only be comfortable traveling locally. For now.
When someone talks about Palawan, I always remember a group of tourists from the Netherlands I met in Bali. “Where are you guys from?” one asked me.
“Philippines.”
He was so surprised. “Philippines!? What are you guys doing here? You should be in Palawan. Palawan is so much better!” (His words, not mine.)
The thing is, I have never been to Palawan!
So the idea of a weekend in Palawan was very welcome. Finally, I get to know what these guys are talking about! I decided to bring my mom with me for this trip since going to El Nido has remains uncrossed in her bucket list.
For this weekender, we will be staying in El Nido Resorts Miniloc Island. The good thing about booking with El Nido Resorts is that they take care of everything, the moment you arrive until the moment you leave.
Day 1: Small Lagoon/ Cudugnon Cave/ Snake Island
We arrived at NAIA 4 ( Damn, my first time in NAIA 4) early in the morning to catch our flight with Air Swift. It is my first time to fly this plane. This plane directly flies from Manila to El Nido.
The plane was very small and every ounce of turbulence was felt. There were 4 chairs each row and an aisle in between. We arrived at Lio Airport. Lio Airport is one of the smallest airports I’ve landed in. We were greeted by our tour guide, Sir Jun. There was no need to take our bags as we were advised this would be directly taken to Miniloc Island. Then, we were then taken by a van to a dock. A small boat ride to El Nido Resorts Miniloc Island awaits us. After less than an hour of ending gazing into a sea and sky of blue, we arrived at Miniloc Island.
Upon arrival, we checked out the island. It was beautiful. There were cottages floating on the water. They have a pool table which you can use for free, a volleyball court, an infinity pool, snorkeling gear for free too. They have diving equipment (with charge). While exploring the resort, I saw a huge monkey crossing in front me. It was like he was very used to humans. When I asked the staff, these are monkeys from the wild. (Sometimes the staff leaves bananas for them to eat). We were asked to witness their jackfish feeding at 9:30 am but I decided to take a nap, waking up only for lunch.
At 1 pm, our tour of El Nido began. Our first stop was the Small lagoon. The small lagoon can only be reached through the kayak because of the very small entrance. (Which I never had an experience with before hand). We were given a kayak crash course. Our tour guide, Mr Jun, taught us how to paddle straight, turn left, turn right and how to stop. All this happened in less than 2 minutes, and we were good to go! Paddling through the small lagoon gave me an eerie feel. You could shoot a horror movie here. Other times it made me feel like I am with Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas paddling in Middle earth. The waters in palawan are clean, finally providing me a good illustration of what crystal clear waters are.
After the small lagoon, we went to Cudugnon Cave. For this part, our tour guide bought with him a yoga mat. It was only later when we found out what it’s for. Apparently, getting inside involved climbing a few steps, with a few rotations and rolling on your back on a sharp rock surface. Even so, I ended up with a laceration on my foot. But it’s okay. Inside the cave is beautiful!
Next we went to Snake Island. However, it started raining so we sailed home to Miniloc Island. Once we changed into dry clothes, we devoured our wonderful dinner: jack fish.
Day 2: Secret Lagoon/ Entalula Island/ Big Lagoon
For Day 2, I was excited to see more of El Nido! Our first stop was another lagoon. Palawan is rife with lagoons! It’s name: The Secret Lagoon. If the small lagoon yesterday can only be reached by kayaking, the secret lagoon can only be reached by swimming. Speaking of secrets, can I tell you a secret? I can’t swim! But I was not one bit worried because El Nido Resorts provided us with life vests.
Our tour boat docked a few meters from the secret lagoon entrance, and we swam inside one by one. Entrance has to be perfectly timed with the crushing waves to avoid injury.
After the small lagoon, we docked close to Entalula Island. We again swam our way to the Entalula beach. Around the islands are beautiful corals with lots of fish! My goodness gracious! I saw a Nemo (clownfish) rubbing himself with the sea anemone. I saw lots of Dory’s, Seargent fish, small silver fish, one tried to attack me. I can’t get enough of this sea life!
I tried to take photos with my phone but it was a mistake. I placed my phone in so called waterproof case, but it stopped working. I submerged it in rice in the hotel (to absorb moisture). But a week later, it still won’t turn on. After lunch at Entalula island, we went to the Big Lagoon. It was packed with other tourists! We had to ride it with kayak. According to our tour guide, big boat operators ended up fighting for space inside the big lagoon, so they ended up with a rule that only kayaks can enter. The big lagoon is less eerie than the small lagoon.
Day 3: Infinity pool, snorkeling and flight home
After eating breakfast, I took a dip in the infinity pool. After which, I went snorkeling at the house reef. Miniloc island has a house reef with lots of fish. There are lots of clownfish and their anemone, parrot fish, rainbow fish, royal blue tang (Dory) and there was a school of silver fish. When I saw the school of fish, I was paralyzed, I was so scared! But they ended up swimming around me and for a while, I was in the middle of the school. (I wish for an underground water camera)
Their largest fish would be the jack fish. From a distance, they look like sharks! They are three fourths my size. They feed the jack fish at 9:30 am everyday. Some of the jack fish are already swimming around the dock and are waiting for their food before the feeding time. How does a fish tell time? According to Mr Jun, they feed the jack fish sort of like a nursery so they all won’t be lost from all the fishing. They are cannibals so they they are fed raw bits of fish. After feeding, the jack fish disappear into the deep sea.
At 12 noon we were already back at Lio Airport. And a few hours more, in Manila. I was so obsessed with all the fish I saw I ended up googling all about them when I went to bed that night.
- In summary I had a great weekend, it felt like I was swimming for the first time.
- I highly recommend El Nido’s Miniloc Island Resort. Great place to stay with a house reef you can snorkel anytime, you can laze around the pool, free meals onboard (Drinks are not free).
- They also have a tour complimentary to your stay, perfect for those who just need to go and relax on a weekend and can’t be bothered to create an itinerary, or negotiate with tour operators when you arrive in El Nido.
- El Nido is beautiful, and yes, I now I know what that tourist in Bali is talking about.
- Do not trust waterproof bags.
xxxx, Gayle
When she gets lost 