PALAWAN TRIP (PUERTO PRINCESA)

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PUERTO PRINCESA PALAWAN TRIP

February 23-26, 2012

Good day!
This was my first time to visit PALAWAN! I was attracted due to the good reviews and at the same time with regard to the recent news that the UNDERGROUND RIVER is already part of the 7 WONDERS of NATURE.

Of course to get there, you need to book a flight or through ship.

I got an PHP888 prom from Cebu pacific, it costed around P2000 for the round trip (I booked this flight because during that time, I really wanted to go there). But there will be cheaper trip, you just need to wait and be more patient.

Day 1
Arriving at the PALAWAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT....


After arriving, I took a short time to rest in the inn where me and my buddy stayed. It costs 600 per night, not bad. We stayed there for 2 days and 3 nights.

From the room, we decided to roam around. My buddy had a friend in Puerto Princesa, the source of all the information that we have.

Take note, we did not avail a tour package... since we wanted to save money, then we took the risk of planning our own vacation/itineraries.

At night, we went to the so called bay walk of Puerto Princesa. I think it's a 10-minute tricycle ride worth Php 20. There were only few people there. It was also quite hot and not windy knowing that it's near the sea. There were food stands also there where you can buy cheap foods.



After strolling, we decided to go back to the dorm. For our dinner, I told my buddy that I wanted to taste the lechon. We bought half kilo for 160php and ate it in a resto near our dorm. We just ordered rice and softdrinks... solve....... burp!

Day 2

We woke up early because that was the day of our underground river tour. We met also the friend of my buddy who will guide us. We shouldered also his expenses since he did it for free.

We rode a cab, going to the terminal of van going to Sabang. 10Php i think for the fare.

I got distracted by this signage... anyway the terminal is at the back of this. Ride a van going to SABANG

By the way, you cannot just go there in the terminal without reservation because you will not be prioritized. Unless, there's a passenger who will not show up, then you can get a slot. The trip is not also good for 24 hours, the last trip will be at 2pm if I'm not mistaken. We took the 7am trip. You can also ride a jeepney but for sure it will give you a bumpy, slow and a hot ride. If you will be riding a van, it will take 2 hours, but if jeepney, more than 3 hours. The fare costs 160php.

Reaching Sabang!. Our guide, Glenn, went to the office where he used his connection to get a underground river permit tour for the three of us . While waiting, we took pictures of the place. The sand is brownish in color and the place has a very beautiful scenery as seen in the photos.




Unfortunately, Glenn said that they cannot provide a permit because it's already fully booked. My buddy and I were very disappointed because we did not expect that it will happen, We came all the way from Bayan so it seems that our time and money were wasted.
REMINDER: Do not go to SABANG unless you already secured a permit.

Since we cannot do anything about it, then we decided to go back and pursue ISLAND HOPPING in HONDA BAY...
We rode a jeepney, but we waited for 1 1/2 hours. I promised myself that I will never ever ride a jeepney there again going to puerto princesa from sabang. Good thing, we reached HONDA BAY at 2pm, 30 minutes before the last trip.
Renting a boat costs 1200php. Since we're only three, so it will be 400 each. We just waited for some tourists and luckily, there were three beautiful girls who will do island hopping as well. So we just formed one group and paid 200 each.

The boatman said that we cannot go to snake island because it was under maintenance during that time. So we just visited Pandan and Starfish Islands.

It was so hot, but who can stop us from visiting those islands...
Starfish island is just ok... not so beautiful for me...
Pandan Island is much better, I snorkeled here and fed some fish! It was an awesome experience!



You need to pay 50php for each island. It's like the entrance fee. Bring food and water with you. There's no store in star fish island, while in Pandan it's quite expensive! I bought 10php worth of bread that I used in feeding the fish in Pandan island.
Though we were not able to visit the other island, I can say that it is just ok. It's worth it! Time to go back in BAYAN and eat dinner. We have a sudden change of plan. We were informed that the permit will be granted on Sunday. My buddy cannot have it anymore for he is leaving at 12noon. We talked and planned things out for what is the best thing to do. The situation may look tiring and it stressed us out! But that's the exciting part, decision making. That everything is based on our decision and not from others. Day 2 CITY TOUR. We rented a tricycle worth 700php that brought us to the different places in the City. Crocodile Farm. There's an entrance fee, but I forgot how much it costs.
Butterfly Garden. Entrance Fee: 50php. It's so nice to walk on a garden with a lot of butterflies flying around you. The garden showcases also the life cycle of butterfly. You will see cocoons and even the newly-hatched ones. They also have collection of some insects like scorpions, millipedes and beetles.


________ Ranch. I forgot the exact name. No entrance fee. The place is good for picnics.
Baker's Hill, One of the most famous place in the city. The best place to buy pasalubong. The store is located just infront. There are a lot of restaurants also inside. If you are an animal lover like me, then you'll enjoy this place because there's like a mini zoo inside. We bought lots of bread stuffs like hopia, chocolate crinkles etc.
We went back to the city proper to eat lunch and then back to the dorm. Since the flight of my buddy was 12 in the afternoon and mine is at 5pm, we decided that I will pursue my underground river tour. Day 3 The next day, I went again to Sabang, got the permit, talked to the personnel in the office and waited for my turn. After few minutes, I was called told me that I'll be joining a group. We rode the boat and travel for around 30 minutes.
I saw this rock formation, I thought that this was the underground river...

After getting off the boat, I took some pictures on the shore. They really have a strict rules here so you need to comply.
Finally....... Before going there, you need to register and pay a certain amount. You need to listen to your tour guide as well.After this, you need to follow the trail leading to the place where the tourists are waiting... While waiting for our turn, we grabbed the chance of taking pictures in the area.


Woooo it's my turn, I joined this group.. I don't know them. Good thing I was seated on the last part, next to the boatman... The boatman was so funny and he had lots of jokes... our trip inside was fun because of him! I will not post pictures inside the cave... It's for you to find out...
Done with my underground river tour, one last pose before going back to sabang. I took the 1pm trip going back to Puerto Princesa.. take note you need to reserve for you to make sure that you have a slot.. You can get the number in the terminal itself or just simply approach a driver for he will lead you to the person in charge of it. I stayed for 2 hours in the city, sight seeing, before I went to the airport to catch my 5pm flight. The flight was delayed for more than an hour, so I arrived Manila around 8pm already.... That was a terrific experience.. If I will be given a chance to return, I will surely visit EL NIDO. Airplane fee: 2000Money spent in Palawan: 5000 Overall: 7000

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