El Nido island hopping explained: what you see on Tours A, B, C and D, how much each costs, the fees on top, and which tour to choose if you only have time for one or two.
El Nido island hopping is the whole point of a trip to this corner of Palawan. Out in Bacuit Bay are dozens of limestone islands hiding lagoons, coves and white-sand beaches that you can only reach by boat, and every morning a fleet of bangkas heads out from the town beach to find them.
The system is simple once you know it. The trips are sold as four set routes, Tours A, B, C and D, and almost every agency in town sells the same four. I did Tours A and C, the two most people recommend, and they were two of the best days of my three weeks in the Philippines. This guide compares all four tours, with my experience of the two I did, so you can decide which to book.
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El Nido tours at a glance
| Tour | Highlights | Best for | Shared tour price |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Big Lagoon, Secret Lagoon, Shimizu Island, Seven Commandos Beach | First-timers and lagoon lovers | Around ₱1,200 to ₱1,500 |
| B | Snake Island, Cudugnon Cave, Cathedral Cave, Pinagbuyutan Island | Caves and sandbars | Around ₱1,300 to ₱1,600 |
| C | Helicopter Island, Hidden Beach, Secret Beach, Matinloc Shrine | Beaches, snorkelling and the open sea | Around ₱1,400 to ₱1,800 |
| D | Small Lagoon, Cadlao Lagoon, Paradise Beach, Pasandigan Beach | Quieter lagoons and beaches | Around ₱1,200 to ₱1,500 |
Prices are for a seat on a shared boat and usually include lunch, snorkel gear and a life jacket. The fees below are extra.
How El Nido island hopping works
Each tour is a full day, leaving between about 8.30 and 9am and getting back around 4 or 5pm. You can join a shared boat, which carries around 20 to 25 people plus the crew, or charter a private boat for your group and set your own pace. Stops can be rearranged on the day, and the crew will swap a stop if the sea is too rough to land.
I booked both of my tours through GetYourGuide with Corazon Travel and Tours, a local operator accredited by the Department of Tourism. They asked us to meet at Jarace Grill in town between 8 and 9am, and to bring photo ID, cash, water, a change of clothes and a dry bag. Hotel transfers weren’t included, but in town everything is walking distance. There’s always a wait before you leave while the guide gets the permits and coastguard clearance, so bring patience as well.
Fees on top of the tour price
- Eco-Tourism Development Fee: ₱400 per person, valid for 10 days. You pay it once, then show the receipt each day.
- User fees: ₱200 for the Big Lagoon on Tour A, ₱200 for the Small Lagoon on Tour D and ₱200 to ₱300 for Matinloc Shrine on Tour C.
- Kayaks: ₱300 to ₱500 per kayak at the lagoons. I paid ₱300 for a single on Tour C.
All of these are paid in cash, either to your guide or at the stop. Some operators fold them into the price, so check before you pay twice.
Top tip
My operator warned that crews in El Nido can no longer cook on the boats, so lunch is prepared before you leave and may be served cold. Mine was still a good spread, eaten on the beach, but it’s worth knowing if you’re expecting a barbecue.
Tour A: the lagoons
Tour A is the most popular of the El Nido tours, and it’s the one to do if you only have one day. It stays in the sheltered waters behind the cliffs of Miniloc Island, which also makes it the tour most likely to run when the weather turns.
The star is the Big Lagoon, where the water turns a turquoise that totally doesn’t look real, ringed by sheer grey walls. We kayaked in, paddled into a secret little tunnel through the rocks, and drifted around in the sun. Then there’s the Secret Lagoon, which you reach by swimming to a gap in the rock, lying flat on your back and letting the guides slide you through into a tiny hidden pool. The tour also includes snorkelling at Shimizu Island and ends at Seven Commandos Beach, a palm-backed stretch of sand that’s lovely but busy.
My verdict: Tour A was amazing, and El Nido over-delivered on its promises from the very first stop.
Do
Book a shared El Nido Tour A with Big Lagoon and Secret Lagoon with Corazon Travel and Tours, the tour I did. For every stop in detail, read my El Nido Tour A guide.
Tour B: caves and sandbars
I didn’t do Tour B, but it’s the one with the most variety on land. The headline stop is Snake Island, where a long, curving sandbar snakes out into the sea at low tide, best seen from the viewpoint at the top of the island. Cudugnon Cave is a cave you squeeze into through a small opening, where archaeologists have found ancient artefacts, and Cathedral Cave is a soaring sea cave you see from the boat. The day usually also includes beach and snorkelling stops at Pinagbuyutan Island and Entalula Beach.
Tour B suits you if you’ve already done the lagoons, or if you’d rather explore caves than swim. There are fewer user fees, but expect some scrambling, so water shoes are a must.
Do
Book a shared El Nido Tour B with Cudugnon Cave and Snake Island with the same operator.
Tour C: beaches and the open sea
Tour C heads west, beyond the shelter of the bay, to the islands of Matinloc and Tapiutan. That makes it the most dramatic of the tours, with the best snorkelling and the most beautiful beaches, but also the first to be cancelled when the sea is rough.
My Tour C started at Helicopter Island, which looks very dramatic as you sail towards it, with a long white beach and good snorkelling around the big rock at the end. Secret Beach, which you reach through a hole in the rock, was too choppy to land at that day, so the crew swapped in Cadlao Lagoon, where I rented a kayak for ₱300 and had the lagoon almost to myself. After lunch on a beach, we snorkelled along a lovely drop-off by the rocks and had a surprise visit from dolphins. The final stop is Matinloc Shrine, an abandoned shrine to the Virgin Mary on a cliff. I went ashore but skipped the shrine itself to fly my drone instead.
My verdict: it felt completely different from Tour A, which is exactly what you want from a second day out.
Do
Book the shared El Nido Tour C: Hidden Beaches and Shrine with Corazon Travel and Tours, the tour I did, and see my El Nido Tour C guide for what to expect.
Tour D: quieter lagoons and beaches
Tour D is usually the least busy of the four. It includes the Small Lagoon, a narrow, cliff-walled lagoon you swim or kayak into through a gap in the rock, and Cadlao Lagoon, plus a string of quiet beaches such as Paradise Beach and Pasandigan Beach.
I didn’t do Tour D, but I did paddle Cadlao Lagoon when it was swapped into my Tour C, and it was one of my favourite stops of the whole trip: calm, green, peaceful and ringed by cliffs. If you want lagoons without the crowds at the Big Lagoon, Tour D is a great choice.
Do
Search the El Nido Tour D options, or ask any agency in town, as every operator runs the same route.
Which El Nido tour should you choose?
- If you only have one day: Do Tour A. The Big Lagoon is the sight that made El Nido famous, and the tour is the most likely to run in bad weather.
- If you have two days: Do Tours A and C, as I did. One is about the lagoons, the other about the beaches and the open sea, and together they cover a real slice of the bay.
- If you get seasick: Stick with Tours A and D, which stay in more sheltered water. Even on Tour A, the open water before the Big Lagoon and at the first snorkelling stop was choppy enough to make me queasy.
- If you want fewer crowds: Choose Tour D, or charter a private boat and leave early, before the shared boats arrive.
- If you love caves: Tour B is the one for you.
Top tip
Book your tours for the start of your stay, not the end. If a tour is cancelled or rerouted because of the weather, you’ll have time to try again.
Shared or private boat?
A shared tour is the cheapest way to go island hopping in El Nido, and it’s a fun way to meet people. Lunch on the beach with everyone from my boat on Tour C was one of the best bits of the day. A private boat costs anything from about ₱6,000 to ₱14,000 for the day, depending on the boat and how many people are on it. It lets you choose your own stops, leave early to beat the crowds and combine two tours in one day, which is only possible on a private charter.
What to bring
- Cash for the fees, kayaks and tips, in small notes.
- Water shoes, for wet landings and sharp rocks.
- A dry bag for your phone, money and ID.
- Sun protection, including reef-safe sun cream and a hat. On Tour A, I left my hat and cover-up on the boat at Seven Commandos Beach, and with the sun out I regretted it within minutes.
- A floating strap for your camera. I bought a new float for my GoPro in town on the morning of Tour C, and I wouldn’t go out without one.
- Seasickness tablets, if you’re at all prone. And go easy the night before.
My Philippines packing list covers everything else.
When to go
The dry season, from December to May, is the best time for island hopping in El Nido, with the calmest seas from February to April. I went at the end of May, and the weather was mostly good, though it was choppy getting into the Big Lagoon, rain swept over Seven Commandos Beach just as we landed, and Tour C had to skip Secret Beach. From June to October, rougher seas mean more cancellations and swapped stops, especially on Tour C.
Map
Read next
- Coron island hopping tours: which tour to choose
- 3 days in El Nido: the perfect El Nido itinerary
- El Nido travel guide
- El Nido Tour A guide
- El Nido Tour C guide
- The perfect 3-week Philippines itinerary
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