Backpacking Coron
Coron is El Nido’s rival and the argument never gets settled. Same limestone, same impossible water, but the geography here works differently: instead of lagoons open to the sea, Coron has lakes, sitting inside the rock with walls going straight up around them and water so clear the boats above look like they are floating on nothing.
The second thing is underneath. In September 1944 an American air strike caught a Japanese fleet sheltering in these bays and sank it where it lay. Ten of those ships are still down there at diveable depth, some of them starting at twelve metres, which makes Coron one of the best wreck diving sites in the world and a place non divers can still snorkel over history.
And the third is a staircase: 721 steps up Mount Tapyas, free, for the best sunset on Palawan. Three days, €22 a day, and it is noticeably cheaper than El Nido.
Why Coron is popular with backpackers
- Kayangan Lake, routinely called the cleanest lake in the Philippines
- Twin Lagoon, where you swim under a rock wall into the second lagoon
- Ten Japanese wrecks from 1944, some shallow enough to snorkel over
- 721 steps up Mount Tapyas for a free sunset over the whole bay
- Saltwater hot springs at 40 degrees, on the edge of the sea
- White sand islands to the south that most people never get to
- Cheaper than El Nido, four hours away by boat
Best time to visit Coron
Northern Palawan again, with a fairly reliable season. Coron sits a little more into the wind than El Nido does, so boat trips are cancelled here a bit more often.
If the wrecks are why you are coming, come between December and May. In the rainy season underwater visibility can drop to about five metres, and at five metres a hundred and fifty metre ship is just a wall.
Backpacker budget: around €22 a day
- €7hostel bed
- €2.50local meal
- €1.20beer
- €7scooter for the day
Guide prices from our own days in Coron. Add a tour or a night out and it climbs fast.
Best area for backpackers
Coron town
Coron town is the base, and it is not where the scenery is: the lakes, the lagoons and the wrecks are all out in the bay. What the town has is every hostel, restaurant, dive shop and tour desk, plus the harbour that all of them leave from.
Twenty minutes to walk across, with Mount Tapyas rising directly behind it.
Good to know about this area
- Every island tour and dive boat leaves from the harbour here
- The town crosses in twenty minutes on foot
- Dive shops on nearly every street, so compare more than the price
- Mount Tapyas starts at the top of town, and the steps are free
- Tricycles from about thirty cents, for the hot springs and the beaches
- Cheaper for food and beds than El Nido
Best hostels in Coron
All in town, all a short walk from the harbour and the tour desks.
Outpost Hostel Coron
Up on the hill ten minutes above town, with a pool, a rooftop bar and the best sunset view in Coron. Almost twelve hundred reviews and a 9.5.
The social one, and the easiest place to find people doing the same trip tomorrow.
BAMBAM Hostel
The long standing budget option: central, clean and cheap, which in a town where the boats are the real expense counts for a lot.
Basic rather than polished, and it has been getting backpackers onto boats for years.
Kaiz Hostel
The most comfortable of the three, central, and rated 9.7. Quiet, modern and a short walk from the harbour.
Good if you are diving, because a proper night’s sleep between two days on a boat matters more than you would think.
Best things to do in Coron
One big boat day, one dive day, one beach day, and a staircase every evening.
Four days sailing to El Nido
Our own pick
Four days between Coron and El Nido
The expedition runs in both directions, Coron to El Nido and back again. Four days and three nights past islands with no promenade and no wifi, sleeping in a beach hut or a glamping tent, snorkelling over coral, and a chef on board who cooks three times a day.
See the expeditionOur partner on this route
If you are going to El Nido anyway, this is the alternative to the four hour fast boat. It also solves the problem of that boat being cancelled, because the expedition is the journey rather than a connection.
The Coron Ultimate Tour
The big day out, and it strings together everything the postcards show: Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, the Coral Garden, CYC Beach and three more stops, with lunch on an island in the middle of it.
Nearly fifteen hundred reviews and a 4.8, which for a tour this popular is unusual. Get on the first boat.
Kayangan Lake
A short steep climb over a ridge from the boat, past the viewpoint that is on every photograph of Palawan, and then down the other side into a lake of fresh and salt water sitting inside the limestone. Visibility down there is measured in tens of metres.
Go on the first boat of the day. By eleven the wooden platform is shoulder to shoulder.
Twin Lagoon
Two lagoons separated by a limestone wall, and the way through is under it: at low tide you duck below the rock and come up in the second one, where cold fresh water and warm seawater layer over each other and blur everything you look at.
About an hour, and usually part of the same day trip.
Diving the Japanese wrecks
In September 1944 an American carrier strike found a Japanese supply fleet sheltering in these bays and sank it. Ten ships are still there at diveable depth, some starting at twelve metres, and after eighty years they are coral reefs with holds and engine rooms in them.
Open water is enough for the shallow ones. Going inside a wreck is a different qualification and a different decision, and it is where the accidents here have happened.
Mount Tapyas
721 concrete steps straight up the hill behind town to a cross at the top and a view over the whole bay, the islands and the boats coming in. About half an hour up, free, and considerably harder than it sounds in this heat.
Start around half four and you are at the top for sunset with half the town’s backpackers.
Maquinit Hot Springs
One of very few saltwater hot springs in the world, on the edge of the sea a few kilometres out of town. Forty degrees, in stone pools, under trees, and open until about ten at night.
Do it after a day of climbing or diving, and not with fresh sunburn, because forty degrees on burnt skin is its own kind of mistake.
The southern islands
Malcapuya, Banana and Bulog Dos, a longer boat ride south, and the whitest sand around Coron. A quieter day than the lagoon tour, because most people only book the famous one.
If you have three days, spend the third here.
How to plan your days in Coron
Three days: islands, wrecks and the view. Pick how long you have.
Kayangan Lake and the lagoons. The classic day out past Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon and Barracuda Lake. Take the first boat, because by eleven Kayangan is shoulder to shoulder.
Tonight: up Mount Tapyas, 721 steps, for the sunset.
Wreck diving. A whole Japanese fleet was sunk here in September 1944. Ten wrecks lie at diveable depth and a few of them start at twelve metres.
Tonight: the Maquinit hot springs, salt water at forty degrees by the sea.
Malcapuya and the beaches. The islands south of Coron have the whitest sand: Malcapuya, Banana and Bulog Dos. A calmer day than the lagoons, and much less busy.
Tonight: boat or flight to El Nido, Manila or Cebu.
Food and drink in Coron
Coron town is small and so is the choice, but a lot of what there is came out of the water that morning, and it costs noticeably less than the same plate in El Nido.
The market by the harbour sells the catch in the morning and plenty of places will grill whatever you bring them in the evening. Fresh tuna is the local speciality and it is very good.
Getting there and onward
Coron is on Busuanga, an island north of the Palawan mainland. There is an airport, there is a harbour, and that is about it.
Getting there. An hour by air from Manila or Cebu, and often cheaper than the boat. The airport is thirty kilometres from town, with a shared van that takes about an hour.
Around town. Twenty minutes to walk across. For the hot springs and the beaches you take a tricycle or hire a scooter.
Onward. The fast boat to El Nido takes four hours and does not run daily. In the rainy season it can be off for several days in a row, so plan for that rather than around it.
- PlaneManila 1 hr · Cebu 1 hr
- Fast boatEl Nido 4 hrs, and not every day
- Day tripKayangan, Twin Lagoon and Barracuda Lake
- Dive boatOut to the wrecks, half a day or a full one
- TricycleIn and around town, from about €0.30
Staying safe in Coron
Safe on land. The thing that needs real attention here is the diving: the wrecks are not a beginner dive, and there have been accidents involving divers who went further inside than their training allowed.
- Only go inside a wreck with a guide and the right qualification
- Ask how much experience your guide has on that specific wreck
- Take water up Mount Tapyas. 721 steps in this heat is real work
- Pay the environmental fee. It is compulsory on every island trip
- Swim into the enclosed parts of a wreck without a wreck qualification
- Fly within 18 hours of your last dive, including the short hop to Manila
- Get into the hot springs with fresh sunburn. The water is 40 degrees
- Assume the El Nido boat is sailing. Check it the evening before
Rebels on the Road tip
Everybody takes the same boat to Kayangan Lake and everybody arrives at the same time, which is the one thing that can spoil it. Book a tour that goes to Kayangan first rather than last, get on the water by eight, and you will climb that ridge with maybe two other boats in the bay instead of fifteen. Half an hour later it is unrecognisable. The tour costs the same either way; the only thing you are paying is an earlier alarm, and it is the single best trade available in Palawan.
Frequently asked questions
How many days do you need in Coron?
Three. One for the lakes and lagoons, one for diving or snorkelling the wrecks, and one for the southern islands. Two works if you skip the beaches.
Coron or El Nido?
Coron has the lakes, the wrecks and lower prices. El Nido has the lagoons, the big beaches and more going on in the evening. Most people who do both say it is impossible to pick, and the honest answer is to do both.
Do I need to dive to see the wrecks?
No. Some of them start shallow enough that you can snorkel over them and see the outline of a ship beneath you. To go down onto the decks you need open water, and to go inside you need a wreck qualification.
Is Kayangan Lake worth it?
Yes, and the time of day decides how much. On the first boat it is extraordinary. By mid morning the platform is packed. The entry fee of about €5 is on top of whatever your tour cost.
How do I get to Coron?
Fly from Manila or Cebu, an hour, and usually cheaper than the ferry. The airport is thirty kilometres out with a shared van that takes an hour. The fast boat from El Nido is four hours and does not run daily.
Is Coron expensive?
Less than El Nido. About €22 a day covers a bed, three meals and a beer. The boat trips at €25 or so and the diving at €60 for two dives are the real budget.
Is Mount Tapyas hard?
721 steps, about half an hour, and it is steeper and hotter than the number suggests. Go late in the afternoon, take water, and it is free.
When is the best time to visit Coron?
December to May, and for the wrecks specifically that window matters: visibility runs to thirty metres in the dry season and can drop to five in the wet. April and May have the calmest water of all.
