Inside
To paddle into the lagoons that made the Philippines famous, ideally before anyone else does.
Add El Nido to my journeyEl Nido is the reason many people book a flight to the Philippines, and it mostly lives up to it. Bacuit Bay is a scatter of sheer limestone islands with lagoons tucked inside them, white-sand coves between the cliffs and water that turns from jade to deep blue within a few metres. On a calm morning in a kayak it is genuinely hard to believe.
The town itself is another matter: busy, noisy in places and still catching up with its own popularity. Our advice is simple. Stay a little outside it, get on the water early, and give yourself at least three full days so a rainy morning doesn't cost you the lagoons.
Nowhere else in the country puts so many classic scenes within a short boat ride: enclosed lagoons, snorkelling over coral at the foot of cliffs, sandbars that appear at low tide, and a westward view that makes sunset the event of every evening.
It's busy because it's good. With the right timing and a private boat, you'll spend most of your day somewhere that feels far quieter than its reputation.
Where you sleep shapes the trip more than in most places, because El Nido town is compact and crowded while the best beaches are spread out.
Some of the best beaches here are only reachable by boat, so the beach list and the island-hopping list overlap.
El Nido's shared tours are labelled A, B, C and D. Tour A covers the Big Lagoon, Small Lagoon and Secret Lagoon; Tour C takes in Hidden Beach, Secret Beach and Matinloc Shrine; B and D are mixes of caves, beaches and snorkel stops. The Small and Big Lagoons have visitor caps and timed slots, which is another reason to plan.
A private boat lets you mix the tours, start early and stay longer where you like it. It also means lunch where you want it, not where 30 other boats have anchored.
Beyond the boats, there's enough to fill an off day without feeling short-changed.
El Nido's food is mostly about seafood and the boat lunch. On tours, crews grill fish, pork and squid on board and serve them with rice, salad and mango on a beach. In town, look for kinilaw, grilled fish sold by weight and halo-halo on a hot afternoon.
The town also has a wide range of international cafés and restaurants, especially along the main beachfront and in Corong Corong. Quality changes quickly with staff and seasons, so we give current suggestions when you travel rather than printing a list.
El Nido faces west, so every evening is a show if the sky is clear. Las Cabanas is the classic, Corong Corong is the calm option, and Nacpan offers the widest horizon. From the water, a sunset sail is the best seat in the house.
The dry season runs roughly December to May, with calm seas and the best visibility from March to May. From June to October, the southwest monsoon brings rain, wind and some cancelled tours; it can still be lovely between showers, and much quieter. Christmas, New Year and Holy Week are the busiest weeks of the year.
Insider notes
14 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • El Nido • Bohol • Siargao
El Nido's lagoons, Bohol's rivers and hills, Siargao's palm-lined roads. The three islands most people mean when they say the Philippines, in an order that actually works.
From €2,300per person ·
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12 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium
Manila • Coron • El Nido • Port Barton • Puerto Princesa
One island, three speeds: Coron's wrecks and lakes, El Nido's lagoons, then Port Barton, where Palawan still feels like a fishing coast. Joined by sea and road, not airports.
From €2,000per person ·
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12 days · Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • El Nido • Private island • Siargao
El Nido from a private boat, three nights on an island where yours is one of very few villas, then Siargao's easy evenings. Two people, one plan, nobody else's schedule.
From €3,900per person ·
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15 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium
Manila • Siargao • Bohol • El Nido
Six days on Siargao with proper surf coaching, then Bohol to rest your shoulders and El Nido's lagoons to finish. Built for beginners and improvers, with something for non-surfers too.
From €2,300per person ·
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21 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • Banaue • Sagada • El Nido • Bohol • Siargao
Three weeks from Manila's old city to the rice terraces of the Cordillera, then Palawan, Bohol and Siargao. The whole country in one trip, without pretending it is a small one.
From €3,300per person ·
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10 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • El Nido • Siargao
Ten days is enough for two islands done well, not four done badly. El Nido's lagoons and Siargao's palms, with one transfer day in the middle and nothing rushed.
From €1,700per person ·
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9 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • Puerto Princesa • El Nido
The Underground River near Puerto Princesa, a road trip north through Palawan's countryside, then El Nido's lagoons by boat. Palawan's best in nine days.
From €1,400per person ·
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9 days · Premium / Signature
Manila • El Nido • Private island
Private boats in El Nido, then a private-island resort where yours is one of very few villas. Nine days of Palawan at its most beautiful and its most quiet.
From €4,800per person ·
View journey →12 days · Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • Bohol • El Nido
For travellers who want comfort and fewer early starts: a private car and guide, good hotels that are easy to reach, short boat days and time to rest.
From €3,200per person ·
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15 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium / Signature
Manila • Puerto Princesa • El Nido • Bohol • Boracay
The classic first trip: the Underground River and El Nido in Palawan, Bohol's hills and turtles, then Boracay's White Beach. Four islands in fifteen days, with sensible connections.
From €2,100per person ·
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17 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium
Manila • Donsol • Bohol • El Nido
Swim with whale sharks in the wild at Donsol, under the Mayon volcano, then Bohol's hills and El Nido's lagoons. Seventeen days of wildlife, volcanoes and islands.
From €2,400per person ·
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19 days · Essential / Boutique / Premium
Manila • Coron • Linapacan • El Nido • Siargao
Five days by traditional boat from Coron to El Nido through the remote Linapacan islands, sleeping in simple island camps. Then El Nido and Siargao to finish.
From €2,600per person ·
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16 days · Premium / Signature
Manila • Batanes • El Nido • Private island • Siargao
The far north of Batanes, private boats in El Nido, a private-island resort and Siargao in private. Sixteen days of places few travellers reach, with everything private.
From €6,800per person ·
View journey →Use this journey as inspiration. Change the islands, hotels, pace, activities or number of nights.
Add El Nido to my journeyThree full days is the minimum we recommend: two boat days and one for beaches or rest, plus a buffer for weather. Four or five is better.
Flying to Lio saves most of a day and is worth it on shorter trips. The drive is fine if you split it with a night in Port Barton.
Yes. Visitors pay an eco-tourism development fee, valid for several days, plus lagoon fees on some tours. We include them in the plan.
Yes, by fast ferry in about 4 hours in decent weather, or on a multi-day expedition boat in the dry season. Both depend on sea conditions.
The town and the most famous lagoons can be, especially at midday in high season. Early starts, a private boat and staying outside town solve most of it.
Inside
Inland lakes inside limestone cliffs, Second World War shipwrecks you can dive or snorkel, and a busy harbour town on Busuanga Island.
Inside
A long, thin island of karst lagoons, empty beaches and slow coastal towns, stretching 450 km between the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea.
Tell us when you're coming. We'll help design the rest.