Phillipines 6 Day Itinerary

Six days sounds generous until you realize the ferry between Coron and El Nido alone eats half a day, and both towns deserve more time than a rushed itinerary gives them. Manila is really just a landing pad here; the real trip starts once you’re on Palawan, so don’t linger in the capital longer than a single afternoon.

Day 1: Manila

Most nationalities, including US, UK, EU, and Australian passport holders, get 30 days visa free on arrival, though Indian and Chinese travelers currently get only 14 days, so check your specific allowance before booking flights. Everyone needs to complete the eTravel online registration within 72 hours of departure, a requirement that trips up plenty of first-timers who assume the old arrival card system still applies.

Land at Ninoy Aquino International Airport and resist the urge to overplan. Manila traffic is genuinely one of the worst in Southeast Asia, so a short trip to Intramuros for the old Spanish quarter and a walk through Fort Santiago is plenty for a jet-lagged first day. Skip Mall of Asia unless air conditioning and a movie are the actual goal; it’s a mall like any other and burns hours you’d rather spend on Palawan.

Day 2: Manila to Coron

Fly from Manila to Busuanga Airport, then take a van or tricycle into Coron town, about 45 minutes. Spend the afternoon island hopping to Kayangan Lake, frequently ranked among the cleanest lakes in Asia and worth the steep initial staircase, and Barracuda Lake, where a genuine thermocline means warm water near the surface and a sharp cold layer deeper down. Book a shared boat tour rather than a private one on your first day; it’s a fraction of the cost and covers the same highlight sites.

For dinner, skip the generic hotel restaurant and head to Santino’s Grill, a spot locals and trike drivers actually recommend, known for grilled baby back ribs that fall off the bone. If you want a livelier scene with a menu that leans adventurous, including crocodile sisig, Sharky’s Restobar has occasional live music and a solid range of Filipino bar food.

Day 3: Coron

Visit Calauit Wildlife Sanctuary in the morning if you’re curious about the odd colonial-era decision to import giraffes and zebras onto a Philippine island in the 1970s; it’s a strange but genuinely interesting half-day trip, not a polished zoo experience. In the evening, Maquinit Hot Spring is one of the few saltwater hot springs in the country, warmed geothermally, and it’s far more relaxing after a full day of hiking and boat rides than before one.

Day 4: Coron to El Nido

The ferry to El Nido takes around 3.5 hours, not the shorter times some older guides quote, and runs roughly once a day around 7:30am on operators like Montenegro Lines or Jomalia Shipping, so confirm the current schedule a day ahead since sailings shift seasonally and with weather. Expect rougher water on this crossing than the calm bay cruising you did in Coron; if you’re prone to seasickness, take medication before boarding, not after you start feeling it.

Once you’re settled in El Nido town, this is a rest day by design. Walk the main strip, try local street food stalls rather than the tourist-facing restaurants right on the beach, and catch sunset from one of the bars along the shoreline.

Day 5: El Nido Island Hopping

El Nido’s boat tours are split into lettered routes, and Tour A, covering Big Lagoon, Small Lagoon, and Secret Beach, is the one most people mean when they picture El Nido’s postcard scenery. A shared group tour runs roughly 1,200 to 1,800 pesos per person including lunch, and you’ll also pay a mandatory 200 peso environmental fee plus a 100 peso municipal tourism fee, cash only, collected before you board. Small Lagoon requires either swimming in or a tight kayak squeeze through a narrow rock opening at low tide, so bring a dry bag for your phone.

Big Lagoon gets crowded by mid-morning as every tour boat arrives on a similar schedule, so if your operator offers any flexibility on route order, ask to do Big Lagoon last rather than first.

Day 6: El Nido to Manila, Departure

Fly back to Manila, budgeting extra buffer time since small regional airports in Palawan are prone to weather delays that don’t affect Manila’s larger airport. If your connecting flight isn’t until evening, a few hours in Bonifacio Global City for a proper coffee and one more decent meal beats sitting in the airport.

A few things worth knowing before you go: Filipino hospitality is genuine but so is the traffic, so build slack into every transfer day. English is spoken fluently nearly everywhere in Palawan’s tourist areas, more so than in much of Manila outside business districts. And keep small peso bills on hand throughout Palawan; card payments are still inconsistent outside of larger hotels, and boat crews collecting environmental fees will not have change for large bills.