Island Hopping Fun in Coron, Palawan

We visited Coron back in 2012. Rates may have changed, also policies in doing Island hopping. Plus, please bear in mind that Coron was also affected by typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), they just didn't make a lot of fuss about it.

Coron is a small island in Palawan known for it's beautiful small islets and thriving coral reefs. It can be reached via a 45minute plane ride from Manila or you can opt to ride the overnight ferries also coming from Manila.

We stayed at Lilian's homestay  ( now known as Seaview Pension house). The rates are really affordable, plus since it only has a few rooms with a balcony fronting the sea, it gives you that homey feel. Plus, the balcony will give you great photo opportunities of the sunset.

I arrived a day early since my other wanderlust friend still had work to do. I arrived at around 1pm and on the Airport parking lot you will see a lot of vans that will take you to the town. Since I was staying at Ate Lillians, I had a assigned driver and I had the whole van to myself.

I spent my first afternoon exploring the town. Lillian's homestay is also near the public market, fish port and restaurants. I'm not sure if it's still the same, but bring a flashlight with you. During our stay, there were power outages during the night and we needed to go to the market to buy food.

Another plus factor with staying at Tita Lilian's is that she knows boatmen that can give you fair prices for the island hopping adventure. When we visited in 2012, when my wanderlust friend arrived from Manila we just shelled out P1400 for the whole day island hopping tour. We did have to pay an extra P200 each for the Kayangan Lake entrance, but still the rate she gave us for the the tour was way lower in comparison to those offered on the island.

Our island hop adventure covered seven tourist spots or hops. We were only able to finish six because we were so tired after staying in Kayangan Lake.

1st stop was the Twin Lagoons

2nd stop Skeleton wreck

3rd stop Banol beach. This was where we had our lunch. There are huts on the beach that they rent out from P100-250.

4th stop Coral Garden

5th stop, the wonderful Kayangan Lake. This is the cleanest lake in the Philippines. The water is so clear that you'd be fooled into thinking those rocks are near the surface but when I dove in, and I'm a tall girl, my feet never touched those rocks.

Our last stop was at Twin peaks. The current is a little strong on this area that my friend stayed in the water for just a few minutes and she was tired.

There was a recent headline of a tourist who died after stepping on the corals in Coron. I don't remember our guides telling us to step on the corals, since they know it takes years, decades to grow these corals. On some shallow parts they would even turn off the boat's motor so that they don't damage the corals. And they reminded us to wear aqua shoes or slippers, never barefoot. I wish that recent incident doesn't hamper anyone's desire to visit this lovely town. In our culture when we go to places we don't know or are familiar with, we always say "Tabi tabi po" or roughly translated "excuse me" as a sign of respect to whatever entity is residing in that place. There must be a reason why our ancestors taught us this.

White Water Tubing in Real, Quezon

The original plan was to learn how to surf. But since most of us don't know how to swim, we opted for the white water tubing adventure instead. The PARK's owner, Teody Villaflor, who briefed us said that the activity takes about two hours. And luck was with us that morning since it had rained the previous evening, so the river level wasn't too shallow.

What used to be the means of transportation of lumber from illegal logging now carries tourist along the Tignaoan river. The baranggay captain thought of a way to provide a means of living for the townsfolk after logging was banned due to a tragic accident in 2004. Non-stop rain plus the cutting of trees made the mountainside soft and buried a lot of people. Real became isolated and could only be reached by sea. The PARK, as Mr. Villaflor recalls, became the relief and rescue ground for the government.

The adventure starts with a 30-minute trek to the river. Because of the rain, the cement steps were slippery. Good thing that there are handrails even for half of the trail. Our guide told us that the trail will soon be cemented up to the river jump-off point. They are just waiting for the funds to be released to the local government.

The improvised bamboo raft holds up to five people depending on weight with two guides on each raft. The one in front maneuvers the raft from hitting rocks as we dove into the rapids. The guide at the back serves as the anchor or weight.

An added bonus or side trip is Bagumbong falls. It is a small waterfall with a small, but deep catchbasin where you can swim.

The river trek took more than two hours since there were too many shallow areas since it was summer and the guides had to climb down the raft and either push or pull it. The guides told us that the best time to go is September to November where the river current is strong enough to propel the raft across the rapids. I also suggest to go during these months since the water will cover a lot of the big stones. For me, it's more dangerous when the river is shallow due to the raft bumping against the rocks.

Too bad we didn't have a waterproof camera with us. the highlight of our river tubing adventure was three rapids, with one very steep like the crazy river ride in Star City. The only difference is you really feel the strong current and you have to shift your weight around to balance the raft or else, the raft capsizes or turns over.

The adventure ends when you reach the beach of the PARK. What I love and find really unique with Real is that the river and sea meet at the beach and the waters are warm, great for soaking up those tired and achy bones.

The white water tubing adventure costs P350 each. You can tip the guides when you finish the activity, but not required. I've checked around and found that this is the cheapest white water tubing adventure so far and Real is just a three hour drive from Manila.

Weekend in Real, Quezon

My wanderlust friends and I haven't been able to do any traveling these past few months, thus the reason why this blog became sort of semi-abandoned. A month ago we decided that it was time to satisfy our itching feet, but we needed a place that was near Manila that wasn't crowded and affordable since we could only afford a weekend off. So after some researching, we decided to go to Real in Quezon.

Real is a quiet sea-side town that is slowly gaining popularity for surfers. Travel time through the scenic route of the Marikina-Infanta road will take two to three hours by private car. If by public transportation, the Raymond bus line to Infanta will pass through Real and the resorts along the main highway.

After checking the resorts along the road, we settled at Janely Resort. For P3500 we were able to get an air-conditioned unit with two beds and an extra mattress, own bathroom, a TV and our own porch that also serves as our dining area and place where we can leave our cooler and foodstuffs. The caretaker, Rose, was very helpful and accommodating. I wasn't able to get the name of the nice lady who cooked our rice for us and even lent the kaldero for the duration of our stay. 

Buying food isn't a problem since there is a wet market or palengke near the resort where you can buy fish, vegetables, ice, charcoal and slippers. There is also a restaurant in the market offering paluto, and it doesn't cost much. For lunch before we left Real, we had sinigang na hipon and fish sarciado good for five people with five cups of rice and big bottle of cola. It cost us P300. I don't have pics of our food since we were so hungry after our white water tubing adventure that taking pictures was the last thing on our minds.

Real offers a lot of activities that are really a lot cheaper in comparison to other provinces that offer the same kind of activity. You can learn to surf at the PARK (Pacific Recreational Kamp). One good thing about the waves in Real is that it is good for beginner surfers since the waves aren't that high. Real also offer white water tubing at the Tignaoan river for P350.

I recommend this place if you want to relax, learn to surf and get your adrenaline fix without having to travel too far or spending too much. For this trip, we spent P2000 each with the breakdown as follows:

Gas/transpo = P600 (my friend brought her car and we split the gas bill between five people)
Accomodation = P700 (P3500 split by five. But the room is big enough to accommodate six people. And the biggest plus here is that the resort is well maintained and really clean)
Food = P300 per person
White water tubing = P350 each

One thing I also love about Real is that it isn't crowded. My friends and I try as much as we can to avoid super touristy places because that is where the crowd is and chances are you don't get to relax much.

So if you're looking for a place to go this weekend, try Real in Quezon. You will definitely fall in love with this quiet town and want to come back again.