It’s horrible, and it’s been that way for years. The only reason people go there is (a) hype and (b) you can hire a boat there which will take you to nicer places out in open water.
It takes about six hours to drive there from Puerto. And then six hours back. There’s not much to see on the way, either.
“Are we there yet? Mum, I’m bored! Dad, he hit me!”
No, Puerto. The airport is right in the middle of the “city” (it’s actually just a small town by normal standards) and you can hire a car right outside the airport for a reasonable sum (should be less than P2000 per day for something fairly nice).
You can do all of that in Puerto Princesa. If you literally only have 4-5 days, its a pretty good destination. The beaches around the city are nothing spectacular, but they’re nice and peaceful, and if you want pristine sand and clear water with fishies in it, do one of the boat tours to the nearby islands.
Cebu and Boracay will definitely be more tourist-oriented and have more choice in accommodation. Palawan is a bit more rough around the edges.
I went there in The Beforetimes in late 2019, but I’m mostly with @finley on this. The city itself was, well, I wouldn’t say “dump” - it was alright - but I understand there’s a lot of fecal bacteria in the water supply and nearby seawater so it’s not a place for swimming. The beach was closed to swimming when I visited, and I heard the same from a couple of friends that went a month or two ago.
It’s also pretty much the only place I’ve been where I’ve brushed my teeth with bottled water and made sure to keep my mouth closed in the shower (I heard that from one or two locals too).
Some decent food options though, and the areas visited on the boat tours were pretty stunning. I don’t know how @finley’s suggestions around PP compare because I’ve never been there.
I dunno, it seems a bit unlikely it’s changed much in two years. That’s about the timescale needed for fixing a pothole in Palawan. Didn’t realise the airport was finally open, though, so that’s a big plus.
I agree with @Andrew that the food options are quite good, but it’s not worth travelling there for that.
OP can’t really go wrong with Cebu or Boracay! I was just suggesting something a bit different. The promotional pictures of Palawan are invariably of Coron, which (as mentioned) is best accessed via Manila.
I’m a big fan of the Philippines islands and some of their historical sites are awesome such as Vigan city, made the mistake of going there in the rainy season this year and trying to use public transport in some places. Won’t be doing that again.
Have you been to Koh Chang before? I would have liked to have stopped there for a few nights on the way back to Bangkok too but we didn’t really have the time. A friend recommended it years ago, but I think it’s way more developed now.
Boracay was good until they decided to develop it, put in a golf course and attract major hotel chains. Let’s say pre-2010. Diving should be still OK I guess.
Philippines has tonnes and tonnes of places to explore, but getting around it is difficult as fuck sometimes . Even getting around Luzon nearly killed us this year.
Want to hit Samar, Siargao and also Mindanao sometime as well as Palawan .
