PRICE:
Air Fare: Php 1,412 for a two-way ticket from(to) Manila to(from) Palawan via Cebu Pacific
Package Tour: Php 5,000 c/o Seablitz Travel & Tours
ITINERARY:
DAY 1 Check In, Grocery, Dinner at Kalui
DAY 2 Underground River with Buffet Lunch
DAY 3 Honda Bay Island Hopping with Buffet Lunch; Dinner at Balinsasayaw
DAY 4 City Tour
Our departure flight was in the afternoon, so when we arrived at the Palawan airport at around 5p.m., we went straight to our lodging. We lodged at the Fran Pension House. It seemed like a secluded area so I found the place good because it was quiet and peaceful, a real rest on a vaccation trip. The only disadvantage, though was since it was far away, tricycle drivers charged us a higher rate whenever we need to go to or from the city.
Having left only a few hours til bed time, we decided to go to the city to buy some groceries for our stay so we went with our travel agent, Bles, to the NCCC mall - the biggest mall in Palawan, but still small if you compare it to the small malls in Manila.
That night, we had our dinner at Kalui. It was a weird (in a good sense) experience. They ask you to removce your footwear and go barefoot inside the restaurant. The floor was made of wood ( I'm not sure it were bamboos) The place was dimly lit with dim lights and candles. The decorations were a little absurd as well (again in a good sense). We had the seafood platter at Php 375, which includes salabat soup, seaweed appetizer, grilled fish (which I'm not sure if it was Blue Marlin, Adobong Pusit, Lobster, rice, and mixed vegetables (don't know what it's called but it's not chop suey). This was already good for two! Plus, shakes were also available for as low as Php 50. Can you imagine that?
Air Fare: Php 1,412 for a two-way ticket from(to) Manila to(from) Palawan via Cebu Pacific
Package Tour: Php 5,000 c/o Seablitz Travel & Tours
ITINERARY:
DAY 1 Check In, Grocery, Dinner at Kalui
DAY 2 Underground River with Buffet Lunch
DAY 3 Honda Bay Island Hopping with Buffet Lunch; Dinner at Balinsasayaw
DAY 4 City Tour
Our departure flight was in the afternoon, so when we arrived at the Palawan airport at around 5p.m., we went straight to our lodging. We lodged at the Fran Pension House. It seemed like a secluded area so I found the place good because it was quiet and peaceful, a real rest on a vaccation trip. The only disadvantage, though was since it was far away, tricycle drivers charged us a higher rate whenever we need to go to or from the city.
Having left only a few hours til bed time, we decided to go to the city to buy some groceries for our stay so we went with our travel agent, Bles, to the NCCC mall - the biggest mall in Palawan, but still small if you compare it to the small malls in Manila.
That night, we had our dinner at Kalui. It was a weird (in a good sense) experience. They ask you to removce your footwear and go barefoot inside the restaurant. The floor was made of wood ( I'm not sure it were bamboos) The place was dimly lit with dim lights and candles. The decorations were a little absurd as well (again in a good sense). We had the seafood platter at Php 375, which includes salabat soup, seaweed appetizer, grilled fish (which I'm not sure if it was Blue Marlin, Adobong Pusit, Lobster, rice, and mixed vegetables (don't know what it's called but it's not chop suey). This was already good for two! Plus, shakes were also available for as low as Php 50. Can you imagine that?
On our second day, we went to the Underground River. The travel time from the city to the beach (where we had our buffet lunch) was roughly 2 hours. From that point, you still need to take a boat to get to the other island, where the underground river is specifically located. But the travel was all worth it! As in! It was really amazing!!! Until now, I keep on wondering how such stalactite and stalagmite formations can be formed. We only traveled as far as 1.5kms (taking us aroung 45 minutes back and forth), which is the usual package included in the tour but the river is about 4.5 kms long, and you can actually get a trip as far as that though you will have to spend a little more cash and allot a little more time. It was pretty awesome - Jesus’ face, the Holy Trinity, a market of fruits and veggies, different animals including Nemo - all and more in rock formations. The cave was also inhabitted by bats - not just one kind but different species of bats and you can clearly see them. Also inside the cave are swallow birds, which I didn't really see but only heard. It's no wonder this qualified to be on the New 7 Wonders of the World! :)
Our third day day was spent island hopping. This is what they call the Honda Bay Island in the package tour. Our first stop was the floating house at Pambato Reef. We got under water and did some snorkeling there. There were tons of corals, it was beautiful! And unlike my snorkeling trip in Bauan and Puerto Galera, we had a tour guide snorkeling with us. He was pointing the different corals like the table coral, mushroom corals, branching corals ( all without further explanation necessary as the name depicts what it looks like). There were also tons of fish. Our next stop was the Snake Island, where we did fish feeding. It was a very close encounter with fishes, one fish even tried to bite me, not the bread I was feeding him! :) We also had our buffet lunch here (yumyum!) and did some picture taking! Our last stop should have been in Pandan Island, unfortunately the waves were really big that time and our tour guide feared we might not be able to handle the waves anymore, so we just stopped at Starfish Island, where starfishes are supposed to be found, though we only saw one - looking much the same like the one I saw in Grande Island. On the way, we also had a view of Luli island (or as explained by our tour guide - the Lulubog, Lilitaw Island)
We had our dinner at Balinsasayaw this time. We ordered for Garlic Crab, Litson Kawali and Bird’s nest soup. It wasn't great but it wasn't bad either. Shakes were priced even lower at Php 39. Our total bill for this dinner was at Php 650, good for 2-3 persons.
Our last day was spent touring Puerto Princesa City, a.k.a. the City Tour. We visited the Iwahig prison, where I had some reservations at first because first, it was a prison (I think we all know what prisons are for), second the prisoners were not behind bars (which is what makes this prison a tourist place). But the tour turned ok, we just visited the souveneir shop where some prisoners approached us to buy from them. We also went to the Crocodile Farm, where I saw the biggest crocodile
so far, big enough that I think it could swallow the three of us in one gulp. There was also a small zoo, where we only got to see the Ostritch and the Katala who left a very good souveneir for my friend, a bite! Next stop was at Butterfly Garden – the pupa was cute, and the differently colored butterflies as well. We also went to the little Tagaytay in Palawan, where Mitra's mansion is located. Next was the Baker's Hill, where we did a lot of our picture taking with Looney Tunes characters and others. During the tour, we also passed by Palawan's version of the Baywalk, and the area that looks like Tondo.
Our third day day was spent island hopping. This is what they call the Honda Bay Island in the package tour. Our first stop was the floating house at Pambato Reef. We got under water and did some snorkeling there. There were tons of corals, it was beautiful! And unlike my snorkeling trip in Bauan and Puerto Galera, we had a tour guide snorkeling with us. He was pointing the different corals like the table coral, mushroom corals, branching corals ( all without further explanation necessary as the name depicts what it looks like). There were also tons of fish. Our next stop was the Snake Island, where we did fish feeding. It was a very close encounter with fishes, one fish even tried to bite me, not the bread I was feeding him! :) We also had our buffet lunch here (yumyum!) and did some picture taking! Our last stop should have been in Pandan Island, unfortunately the waves were really big that time and our tour guide feared we might not be able to handle the waves anymore, so we just stopped at Starfish Island, where starfishes are supposed to be found, though we only saw one - looking much the same like the one I saw in Grande Island. On the way, we also had a view of Luli island (or as explained by our tour guide - the Lulubog, Lilitaw Island)
We had our dinner at Balinsasayaw this time. We ordered for Garlic Crab, Litson Kawali and Bird’s nest soup. It wasn't great but it wasn't bad either. Shakes were priced even lower at Php 39. Our total bill for this dinner was at Php 650, good for 2-3 persons.
Our last day was spent touring Puerto Princesa City, a.k.a. the City Tour. We visited the Iwahig prison, where I had some reservations at first because first, it was a prison (I think we all know what prisons are for), second the prisoners were not behind bars (which is what makes this prison a tourist place). But the tour turned ok, we just visited the souveneir shop where some prisoners approached us to buy from them. We also went to the Crocodile Farm, where I saw the biggest crocodile
so far, big enough that I think it could swallow the three of us in one gulp. There was also a small zoo, where we only got to see the Ostritch and the Katala who left a very good souveneir for my friend, a bite! Next stop was at Butterfly Garden – the pupa was cute, and the differently colored butterflies as well. We also went to the little Tagaytay in Palawan, where Mitra's mansion is located. Next was the Baker's Hill, where we did a lot of our picture taking with Looney Tunes characters and others. During the tour, we also passed by Palawan's version of the Baywalk, and the area that looks like Tondo.It was a very good experience...away from the hustle bustle of the city life. The huge waves served us a pretty good adventure. It was like riding a roller coaster ride with the cool waves spalshing on your face. The sights were amazing. Tour guides were great. The people we were grouped with for the tours were friendly. Foreigners shared their culture as we shared stories from both sides.
One of my observation was how simple life was in this place. We even had a chat with one of the tricycle drivers, and he told us he was from Tondo, Manila but upon setting foot in Palawan, he decided to live there. People work whatever work and they were happy. They don't seem to want more, they're contented. One thing though, electricity wasn't stable in the islands of Palawan yet, as brown outs are experienced on a daily basis. Still, I consider it a good retirement place overall, though the price of land was a little pricey for me (Php 1,200 to Php 5,000 depending on the specific location). Well, it's definitely something worth saving for! :)
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