Spending a month in the Philippines was one of the best vacations I’ve ever been on. It was my boyfriend and I’s first big travel trip together, so that definitely added to the excitement.

We wanted a more unusual beach destination, in SE Asia, with world-class dive sites (since we’re both keen divers). Also so we had the option of being total beach-bums for an entire month.

After our trip in Nepal, we flew straight to paradise in the form of an island called El Nido. It’s actually a protected area in the province of Palawan, Philippines, making it all the more special.

Our journey there was another adventure in itself. We took a flight to Manila, then to Puerto Princesa Airport (Palawan’s main international airport) through Cebu Pacific airline. From here we took a 6 hour mini-van ride that we booked through El Nido Boutique & Art Cafe. They’re a fantastic tour booking agent in the main town (‘town proper’ they call it) as well as cafe and shop.

I have to say the mini-van ride was pretty horrendous. I’m amazed we survived the rickety roads that the driver seemed to think was completely fine to drive over at insane speeds! It’s all part of the adventure 🙂 Although my advice would be to book a large coach, which takes a few hours longer but it will be worth it, trust me.

Since we arrived late at night, we crashed in our hotel immediately, still having no idea what to expect of the island.

The memory of our first morning still makes me smile. Just the pure joy I felt waking up to rays of sunshine beaming through our window, then ripping open the curtains to finally see what the island was like.

After the cold, cold nights spent in the Himalayas, waking up to bright-blue skies and luscious, green palm trees swaying over our bedroom window was a huge and welcoming contrast. We found paradise!! We both looked at each other wide-eyed with huge grins on our faces, burst out laughing, then ran outside to explore.

From what I’d previously heard, my initial thoughts of El Nido was a mysterious island for the super rich who arrive on private jets and get pampered all day in luxurious resorts. Hence why I wanted to go ;).

Turns out that’s not the case at all! Well, of course if you choose to stay in one of the four El Nido Resorts, each on its own little island nearby, this will certainly be the case. Those resorts would be a dream to stay at especially for a honeymoon or if you just wanted to seriously treat yourself.

Instead we stayed in the main town and only booked the first night, thinking we’d wing-it for the rest of the trip and find accommodation as we go. This wasn’t a wise move as we soon realised almost every single hotel was booked for weeks!

My tip is to definitely book ahead so you don’t have to skip from hotel to hotel in search for a place to sleep (although it is a good way to scope out the island very quickly!). In the main town the accommodation ranges from budget for the many back-packers to relatively high-end.
The main strip of beach in town is lined with picture-perfect palm trees, cafes and hotels. With a backdrop of tree-covered limestone cliffs and blue ocean.

What I really love about El Nido is that it’s quiet, with no big tour groups and hardly anyone below the age of 25 it seemed. We found that most people were adventurous, travel-loving couples in their late-20’s/early-30’s. We rarely saw solo travels which I found interesting, although a Swedish girl on our dive trip was on her own and we soon invited her out for dinner with us, so it definitely shouldn’t be ruled out!

What I also absolutely love and miss about El Nido are the banana shakes! Ahh those cold, thirst-quenching, delicious drinks were far too addictive. We had at least two every day.

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day, and I went all out every morning. Turns out the classic Filipino breakfast dish called Pork Tocino is my all-time favourite breakfast meal, I adore it! It’s a sweetened-cured pork served with garlic rice and sunny-side up eggs. Perfecto.

We made sure to eat in a different beach-front cafe each day in search of the perfect breakfast. Possibly my favourite hobby?

Seaslug’s was a front runner. Often I’d have garlic rice with fish too. It doesn’t beat pork tocino though.

And did I mention that the food is incredibly cheap? Less than $5 kind of cheap.

Many of the beach cafes have kayaks to rent, it’s brilliant. You just give your deposit, drag your kayak across the sand, in to the ocean and away you go. Tip: Just make sure you check the weather in case it’s meant to be very windy. Don’t lose your paddle and get stranded like one couple did! Also, leave in the morning so you have enough time to paddle out to the nearest island which takes about 45 minutes, enjoy the beach and paddle back again before dark.

There are stunning karst, rugged islands dotted around El Nido. In fact 45 of them, similar to Phi Phi Islands in Thailand, or Ha Long Bay in Vietnam.

Kayaking out to these islands where the water is as clear-blue as it gets, and the sand is powder-soft, is when you realise the true beauty of El Nido. Especially when there isn’t another soul in sight. It really felt like our own Adam & Eve moment, just the two of us secluded on a dream island to do whatever we pleased.

About a 30-minute tricycle ride from the main town is another beach called Corong-Corong. You MUST go there if you’re in El Nido.

Staying in the main town was perfect for convenience. We were close to different restaurants, relaxed beach-cafes and plenty of popular bars at night. Also being located at the main point of departure for dive and kayak trips. However, the sand isn’t as perfect as it could be (ok I’ll admit I am a total beach snob and have very high expectations!) and it is advised to not swim in the waters since they’re lined with fishing and dive boats. It’s also generally not very healthy to do so.

So a trip to Corong-Corong is a great day out to experience a beautiful beach, if you don’t want to kayak or get a boat ride out to the islands.
Tip: Having a dry-bag (the blue bag in the below photo) was a complete godsend, especially during kayak and dive trips. 

With a thick forest of palm trees lining the beach and views of the tiny, karst islands scattered far out in to the ocean, it was total bliss spending the day here. There were way more people than I’d expected. Clearly the place to be!

Me trying (not very elegantly) to casually lounge on a palm tree..

There aren’t too many places to eat on the beach itself. But that’s ok, because all you need to do is head to The Beach Shack and you won’t be disappointed.

Sip on a refreshing cocktail, order a plate of seafood (I was eating an obscene amount of calamari the whole time, so this grilled, stuffed squid was a healthy alternative and tasted incredible) and enjoy a spectacular sunset with your feet nestled in the warm sand.

It’s hard to tear yourself away from this island. El Nido is a special place. It feels almost secret, an undiscovered paradise. Make sure you get there before everyone else discovers this magical island.

It gets better even better though when we went island hopping in El Nido.