It is the question we are asked more than any other, usually in the first five minutes of a call: El Nido or Coron? Both are in northern Palawan, both are limestone islands rising out of improbably blue water, and they are only around four hours apart by fast ferry. They are also very different places, and choosing the wrong one for you is the most common way to come home slightly disappointed from a trip that looked perfect on paper.
Here is how we explain the difference to friends.
The short answer
El Nido is the more beautiful place above the water. Coron is the more interesting one below it. El Nido is better organised, with more places to stay and eat and a wider choice of experiences. Coron is rougher around the edges, less polished and, for some people, more fun for exactly that reason.
If you can, see both. If you can only see one, read on.
El Nido: the postcard, with a queue
Bacuit Bay is, frankly, ridiculous. Karst cliffs rise vertically from the water, islands shelter hidden lagoons you paddle into by kayak, and beaches appear in the gaps between rock walls. The standard island-hopping tours, labelled A to D, take you to the Big and Small Lagoons, the Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island, the beaches of Seven Commandos and Helicopter Island, and more.
The trade-off is that everyone is doing the same thing at the same time. Shared tours leave at around 9am and arrive at the lagoons together. At the Small Lagoon in peak season, you can find yourself in a kayak traffic jam. El Nido town itself is crowded, noisy and still building around its own success.
None of this is a reason to skip it. It is a reason to do it differently:
- Stay outside town, on a quieter beach to the north or on an island.
- Take a private boat and leave at 7am. The lagoons are a different place before the shared tours arrive.
- Reverse the standard route, so you reach the famous spots as everyone else leaves.
- Give it four nights, so you are never forced to go out on a day the wind is up.
Nacpan Beach, about an hour's drive north, is a long, wide curve of sand that still feels open, even in high season. Go late in the afternoon.
Coron: wilder, wetter, stranger
Coron is the name of both a town on Busuanga Island and the dramatic limestone island facing it. The town is functional, more market town than resort. You do not come for the town.
You come for what lies around it. Kayangan Lake, reached by a short, steep climb, has the view that appears on every poster of Coron, and freshwater so clear the limestone below looks close enough to touch. Twin Lagoon is two bodies of water separated by a rock wall that you swim or climb through, depending on the tide. Barracuda Lake has a thermocline where the water suddenly turns hot, and is one of the strangest swims you will ever do.
Then there are the wrecks. In September 1944, a US air raid sank a fleet of Japanese supply ships in the bays around Coron. Today they make it one of the best wreck-diving areas in the world. Some, like the Skeleton Wreck, are shallow enough for snorkellers. Others are serious dives for trained wreck divers.
Coron's trade-offs: it takes longer to reach the best spots, the town has fewer good places to stay, and the experience is less curated. Some of the most popular sites get crowded around midday. For travellers who like their beauty slightly unruly, that is a feature.
How they compare, point by point
- Scenery above water: El Nido wins, by a margin.
- Diving and snorkelling: Coron wins, by a larger margin.
- Places to stay: El Nido has much more choice at every level, especially boutique and luxury.
- Crowds: both busy in peak season; El Nido feels busier because more of it happens in one bay.
- Getting there: El Nido has its own small airport with limited flights, or a 5 to 6 hour drive from Puerto Princesa. Coron is served by Busuanga airport, around 40 minutes from town, with more frequent flights from Manila.
- Wet season: Coron is somewhat more sheltered than El Nido from the southwest monsoon.
- Families: El Nido, for its beaches and easier logistics.
- Divers and adventurous couples: Coron.
How to do both
The best way is the fast ferry between Coron and El Nido, which takes around four hours and runs mainly in the dry season, weather permitting. In the wet season, or if the sea is up, you fly via Manila instead, which takes most of a day.
For something special, multi-day expedition boat trips cross between the two over three to five days, stopping at remote islands, fishing villages and beaches with no road. Accommodation is simple and the experience is not. It is one of the very best things you can do in the Philippines.
Our recommendation for a two-island Palawan trip: three nights in Coron first, then the ferry, then four nights in El Nido to finish slowly. Starting in Coron means you end in the more comfortable place, with the better beaches, just when you want to stop moving.
The verdict
Choose El Nido if this is your first time in the Philippines, if you want the most beautiful version of the limestone islands, and if you care about where you sleep. Choose Coron if you dive, if you prefer rough edges to polish, or if you are travelling in the wet season.
And if you have ten days in Palawan, stop choosing. Do both.
