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Coron is in the province of Palawan, Philippines on Busuanga Island. It is the largest town on the island and has the largest share of accommodations.
[edit] Get in
[edit] By plane
[edit] By boat
- SuperFerry [1] stops in Coron on its way to Puerto Princesa. Leaves Manila on Friday afternoon and arrives in Coron early Saturday morning. Heads back to Manila on Sunday night. Wait until a couple of days before it departs to get cheaper tickets. Don't wait too long, though.
- Negros Navigation [2]
[edit] Get around
- Tricycles are everywhere downtown. P5-7 for rides around town.
- Motorcycles are available for rent P500 plus gas to fill the tank.
- There is a cross on the mountain above town, Mt.Tapyas. You can look at it from below or climb up the path. The climb up is worth to see the view of the small Coron islands surrounded by glass-like water.
- Market Pier: home to shops, stalls, slaughter houses, diners, and karaoke. Great for hearing early morning karaoke and picking up supplies. The smell can get pretty bad close to the slaughter houses.
- The Coron sign. Noticeable from the water is a Hollywood style sign up on a hill overlooking the town.
- Mangroves in Sangat. Natural mangroves are abundant.
- Mt. Tapyas hike - If you are staying in the Coron main town, you can walk to the foot of Mt. Tapyas or grab a tricycle for P7 (May 2008). The hike reportedly is a 900-step stairs to the top, the entrance is found at the side of community basketball court. Experience a breathtaking view of the sunset, recommended to start setting out at 4pm.
- Island Hopping - Head down to the Market Pier and get a boat captain (P1000-1500) Boats generally handle around 6 passengers. Grab a lunch before you head out. Vivian at the Discovery Bar can arrange it all for you as well. You can also buy meat, fish, veggies from the wet market and request the boat captain to barbecue or cook them for you or your group.
- Siete Pecados is popularized by the shoot of a local television show of a mermaid love story. Experience swimming in an aquarium, beautiful corals and a great variety of fishes. There is a caretaker who will collect P100 from tourists. Recommended time to snorkle is around 1pm to 2pm. Current can be strong in the morning. This is one of the best sites to snorkel in Coron. Myth suggests that seven kids swam from the main island to escape it and follow their parents. They all drowned and the place where they drowned is where the islands are now present.
- Barracuda Lake on Coron Island is amazing. Entrance is P100. Bring goggles or snorkles to observe underwater rock formations.
- Kayangan Lake P200 entrance fee. Before approaching the lake, go over the cave and glimpse at the great view on top of the mountain. This view is the most photographed area in Palawan. It is also judged as the cleanest lake in the country.
- Twin Lagoon. The water and towering rocks are great photos for poster. On low tide, experience kayaking under the hole of the rock.
- CYC Island is nice but gets very busy. It's the only free beach in the area. Entrance fees for the other beaches aren't too steep (P100).
- Skeleton Wreck is a snorkeling destination where you can see a sunken ship even while snorkeling. Around it are beautiful corals. Beware of sea urchins.
- Banol is very picturesque with its flower trees set against the rocky island. It has sugary fine white sand in its beachline.
- Beach 69 is not as good as Banol. Free if you come from Kayangan lake (as of May 2008) however seems unmaintained. Beware of jellyfishes (me and my companion had individual encounters).
- Diving - Lots of wreck diving and some decent coral as well. Discovery Divers (on the beautiful 'Discovery Island') and Sea Dive are the big ones, and Coron Divers the cheapest one in the island.
- Coron Divers, [3]: Is the only Dive Center owned by a Filipino, and the cheapest option in Coron. Arni is the big boss and his sons are divemasters. Everything makes you feel in a Filipino family (even more if you stay at Chinette's lodge, just 10m away in front of Coron Divers).
- Discovery, [4]: Tucked away on 'Discovery Island' a 10 minute boat ride from the pier. Talk to Vivian in Coron town located at the Discovery Bar or get to the pier around 8am to catch the boat out. Gunter is a great guy with a lot of experience in the area (18 years? I read that he discovered the Cathedral). Bryan Kim was a fantastic instructor/dive master. Larson and Melody(?) are really friendly as well. Larson seems to be the wreck dive specialty course go to guy.
- Sea Dive, [5] Located downtown on the water near the pier.
- Dive Calamianes, [6] Located between the Discovery Bar and downtown
- Sights - this stuff can be arranged by Vivian at the Discovery Bar
- Horseback riding
- Mountain bike tours
- Jungle Treks
- Go to the Maquinit hot spring. Beautiful place to hang out in the evening/during storms. Suffers from tourist induced price hikes (P100) with P300 to rent the tricycle (prices quoted by Kokosnuss staff)
- Go camping on a (somewhat) deserted island. There are a couple of islands to check out. You can find everything you need in town/at resorts. Ask around. Gunter at Discovery seems to know of a couple good spots. All info as of December 2006.
- Water - aquapure can hook you up with large containers of water and you can buy bottles basically anywhere in 500mL, 1L and 4L sizes.
- Drugstores - plentiful. Contrary to what you may hear you can buy sunscreen, Off (bug repellant), shampoo and all that other good drugstore stuff.
- Market - money can be exchanged for goods.
- Bistro Coron Owned by Bruno it is home to French food at reasonable prices. Entrees go from P155-270 for the most part but crab and lobster meals are available for more. Get the mousse, the apple pie, the coq au vin, the basquaise, the salade nicoise, the cordon bleu...San Miguel will set you back about P30. The good pizza would be excellent if the cheese was better.
- KokosNuss Resort has a good kitchen. They have a Palawan style all you can eat BBQ deal. 6 or more people required at P475 each. They also have a Christmas feast on Dec 24 which is the BBQ and definitely worth going to if you are around (tell them in advance if you are going) San Miguel is P32. Breakfasts are good as well.
- The Old House has friendly staff and cheap food. No knowledge of it's quality.
- There is a Vietnamese place as well as a Chinese restaurant somewhere around town both of which are reported to be good.
- You can get food at all the resorts. The breakfast at Discovery always looked good.
- The Chicken Grill looked promising.
- Buy fruits from the town market and have them prepared at the lodge you stay at free of charge (feel generous to provide a tip). Recommended to try local fruits such as mango, watermelon, jackfruit, coconut, they are seasonal.
- Bistro - you can also drink and play billiards at this amazing eatery.
- Discovery Bar - chill on the beautiful balcony over the water and overlooking the bay. Relaxing atmosphere complete with hammock. Great place to get your dive theory out of the way at. One billiard table. In Coron
- Ottos - Rock out to some AC/DC and enjoy spying on the hustle and bustle of Coron's main street.
- The Old House - happy hour 5-7pm all you can drink rum and Coke for P50. Beer came with a coozie. Nice view of Coron's main street from the balcony.
- Sea Dive
- KokosNuss Resort,[7] is outside of town a 10 minute walk up the main road. The rooms all surround a beautiful garden great for lounging around on less adventurous days. The staff can help you arrange things to do around the island.
- Nipa hut rooms good for 2 or 3 at 12USD (shared bathroom) and 26USD (private bathroom) with fans. Be prepared to hear everything your neighbors say/do as well as what goes on outside. Large rooms built in the local style which means quite open to the air. Private bathrooms are clean. You may even acquire some gecko friends.
- Air conditioned rooms are 32-36USD. Not as traditional or large as the nipa huts but with concrete walls.
- Sea Dive, [8] - Downtown near to the Market Pier. Could see it being a bit noisy at night but nothing that earplugs wouldn't cure.
[edit] Get out
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