Coron, Palawan is one of the most sought after destinations in the Philippines. And you can easily understand why. This island has pristine white sand beaches, jade-colored water, rich marine life, World War II shipwrecks and karst limestone hills.

 

 September 2016, We headed to Coron, Palawan to celebrate our anniversary. I am in no way exaggerating when I say that this place never fails to amaze me despite of the stormy weather. In fact, it's probably my best travel last year.

 

 

 

Touchdown Coron

 

 

Tour Starts Now

 

We availed a package tour at Iloveph Destinations Travel and Tours so that it will be hassle free for us. The package tour includes city tour, island hopping with buffet lunch and room accommodation with daily breakfast.

 

  The driver and the tour guide fetched us at the Island View Inn where we stayed .

 

Coron Souvenir and Gift shop

 

 

The first place we visited was the Coron Souvenir and Gift Shop, located in Brgy. Poblacion 5, Bancuang, Coron, Palawan. Here, they’re selling a variety of items from edible to non-edible. We bought keychains, wallet, ref magent and t-shirts as our pasalubong to our loved ones.

 

 

 

Mt. Tapyas

 

Over 700 steps to the top!

 

 

Next stopped, MT. Tapyas. It has a viewdeck  where you can see the town of Coron and its surrounding islands. At the peak, it has a big cross standing. You have to climb 714 steps to reach the top. It was not easy, but rewarding because of its picturesque sight at the top. 

 

 

 

View from the top

 

Maquinit Hot  Spring

 

Our city guide drove us to Maquinit Hot Spring, the only saltwater hot spring found in the Philippines and the only one in Asia. It was good place to rejuvenate our body from the stressful hike in Mt. Tapyas.

 

 

 

 

Let's Go Island Hopping

 

The following morning, we woke up early for our Island Hopping Tour. It was a whole day tour with 4 destinations which are, Green lagoon, CYC Beach, Atwayan Beach, and Kayangan Lake. The tour operator will be arranging everything, including the entrance fees and meals.

 

 

 

Green Lagoon

 

 

We left the tourist port around 8:30 in the morning and went to our first tour destination, Green Lagoon. You can obviously see why its name is Green Lagoon. This beautiful lagoon is surrounded by limestone cliffs covered with trees. Our activity here was snorkeling. We were so excited to dip in its clear emerald green water and took several photos. We stayed here for 45 minutes.

 

Beautiful Lagoon

 

 

 

 

Hi there fIshy!

 

Sea Urchins 

 

CYC Beach
 

After some picture taking, snorkeling and a little swimming in Green Lagoon, we proceed with our next destination. CYC beach or Coron Youth Club beach is a public beach island that is separated from Coron Island. Many locals visit this beach to hang out here. The beach has a fine white sand and has mangroves at the side of it. Since it is a public beach, entrance fee here is free. You can also spend the night camping here!  When we arrived here, heavy rain fell. We didn't have the chance to do snorkeling here because I was afraid of the big waves. :D 

 

It's raining with seeds

 

 

Atwayan Beach

 

After CYC Beach, we headed to lunch at Atwayan Beach where picnic huts dotted the shore. I was surprised at the amount of food they served us! It was a fiesta. We had squid, fish, pork belly and watermelons! I don’t know what I loved more, the delicious food or the gorgeous view sitting in front us. <3

 

Lunch time in paradise

 

 

Kayangan Lake

 

Our next stop was the famous Kayangan Lake. This is the one spot I like the most. Considering it’s one of the cleanest lakes in Asia and its amazing view, how could you not? Like any site worthy of worldwide recognition, nature doesn’t make it easy to reach Kayangan Lake. It’s a 10-minute climb uphill and downhill. Thankfully, we had aqua shoes on!

 

Halfway to the hill / cliff

 

Worth the stormy boat ride

 

Water babies :D

 

Trekking

 

 

The ride back to the pier allowed us some time to catch our breaths after a long day of hopping in and hopping out of the boat. Sure some of our photos were terrible–only because we couldn’t care less and just wanted to experience the places we went to–but boy were we thankful that we got the chance to see all (or rather some) that Coron has to offer. 

 

Dinner at Carl's BBQ

 

After the tiring island hopping, we went back to accommodation place; took a bath and preparing ourselves for our dinner. We strolled around the town finding some place to eat. Then we found Carl's BBQ and decided to dine in here. The atmosphere was good, the service was good and the food was great.  

 

 Happy 1st Anniversary Love <3

 

So Long Coron