Paradise guide - Coron vs El Nido The Philippines!

Back in May 2016 we finally landed in the Philippines full of great expectations due to all the amazing things other travellers had told us.

After much research I must admit I was a bit dubious as the Philippines can be quite a scary place. We came to the conclusion that Manila was not for us and the quicker we got out of there the better. We started planning our route and at this point we knew very little about this paradise mecca. We spent hours reading blogs and watching videos and we came out with a plan.

On the list was obviously El Nido as this destination is well documented online as the place to go.

Coron on the other hand had very little information available online, the only reason Coron was on our list was because we decided to take the 2GO Travel ferry rather than flying. By doing it this way our first stop happened to be Coron and I am so glad we decided to spend a whole week there.

Coron and El Nido are both unbelievably amazing places and both should be on your list if you decide to visit the Philippines. However, almost every traveller we met on our journey had missed going to Coron and we couldn't believe it.

So, let's break down the differences

Transport Access

Coron, has a domestic airport located 40 minutes from the town Proper; this is the main area of Coron where you will want to be situated. Airlines such as Cebu pacific and Philippine airlines fly between Manila and Coron on a regular basis. The flight is roughly an hour long and upon arrival a mini bus can take you to the town for around 150 PHP.

Going by boat is not the quickest way taking around 15 hours from Manila but it sure is fun. The boats are very comfortable and have great amenities. We opted for the 4-6 berth cabins which were comfortable and give you an opportunity to connect with the locals! (Check out 2GO Travel for prices.)

El Nido is situated just below Coron on the much larger island of Palawan. Flying directly to El Nido from Manila is by far the easiest way but not the cheapest. You can fly with Air Swift but they only operate 1 flight per day and a 1 way trip will be around 7,500 PHP.

Flying into Puerto Princesa however, is a lot cheaper as they have regular flights landing there from the bigger airlines such as Air Asia and Cebu Pacific. Puerto Princesa is situated 220 kilometers below El Nido and once you arrive you can decide on which mode of transport to take.

The most popular way is by minibus. We did this on the way up to El Nido ourselves but I found it to be very cramped and it was not a pleasant ride.

On our journey back we opted for the bus which is a big old coach, it is cheaper and in my opinion way more comfortable but it takes slightly longer.

You could always do it yourself hiring a motorbike or a car but be mindful as the road conditions can change very quickly. The roads are full of potholes and you will encounter cows, dogs and water buffalo on the road. This can be especially dangerous at night as there is no road lighting.

By boat, again this is not the quickest option. From Manila you will more than likely stop at Coron first before being dropped off in Puerto Princesa making it roughly 20 hours.

However if you are already in Coron you can get a boat straight across to El Nido at a cost of 1,700 PHP. Do your own research here, we did ours and found the chances of sinking were quite high. Yes sinking. So we decided to opt for the safer albeit, longer option.

Tourism

Tourism in Coron is very minimal compared to El Nido.

This makes Coron the perfect place to chill and unwind. The main town is small and quite compact offering amazing local restaurants with the mix of a few western places thrown in. The town has an amazing atmosphere and the mix of locals and tourist goes very well together and I hope that stays as Coron grows. Street hawkers are few and far between making Coron hassle free and the restaurants and bars are quieter and cheaper, but you can still find a small party atmosphere.

Out of the town around the coast line you can find fancy resorts where you enter and never want to leave giving Coron great diversity.

The biggest bonus for me were the island hoping tours. With fewer tourists, sometimes the only people on the beach were from our boat!

Tourism in El Nido however has a firm grasp and the infrastructure is more set up to cater to the average tourist. With its long sweeping beach filled with tour boats and great restaurants.

The town itself is nice and does offer more choice than Coron, but for this you will pay extra. The party scene here is a lot bigger than Coron so bear that in mind when booking accommodation.

The local feel is slowly slipping away in El Nido as it's becoming more mainstream. When I was there I felt El Nido had lost a lot of local influence and walking down the street you will be asked multiple times to take a tour, hire a bike or buy a souvenir.

However, saying that El Nido is still a magical place and only a short distance out of town you will find secluded beaches and local delights.

Island hoping tours

Coron vs El Nido

In Coron we went on the "7 destination highlights tour" where you stop at amazing white sand beaches, experience one of the best snorkeling spots in the world and swim in enchanted salt and fresh water lagoons.

The tour destinations are; Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoons, Siete Pecados Marine Park, Beach 91, Skeleton Wreck, Malwawey Reef & Coral Garden and CYC Beach.

Here is a video guide I did called : ISLAND HOPPING TOURS CORON PHILIPPINES.

In El Nido we decided to go on tours A and C, these two tours seemed to have more to offer than B and D. There is the option to take the best bits from 2 tours and combine them so you get a 4 in 2 deal.

Aly has made 2 awesome videos showing you TOUR A and TOUR C.

Now, if you are after amazing snorkeling I would recommend Coron over El Nido. Every stop in Coron had a abundance of sea life going on which was truly amazing.
El Nido does have this however, we only found it in one place and that was the last stop on tour C. The other stops were no match for what Coron offered.

The other major difference for me was in Coron, we had an amazing tour guide who actually explained how they are trying to protect the coral and the impacts of tourism on the local community.

This was lost in El Nido on both tours with two different companies, it was very apparent it was another-day-another-dollar. I can see why, the amount of tourists here is vastly more apparent and after thousands of tours the guys on the boat had really lost interest.

Both Coron and El Nido offer something unique and honestly if you could only pick one place it would be a hard choice.

My recomendation

I would say if you are a solo backpacker and you want to have a good time, meet some new friends and have the time of your life then El Nido is for you. I would also say El Nido is the better place if you are going as a family.

Coron is more suited to an experienced traveler who is over the whole party scene and wants to have a true Filipino experience. Coron really suites couples and travellers who like to stay away from the big tourist traps.

What are your thoughts? Let me know below.