Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Marber's At the southern end of the beachfront. Head to
this old favourite beachfront bar-restaurant with a pool
table for the coldest beers (P50) in town. The food is
home-made, with a strict no MSG policy; they do great
burgers, schnitzels (P330) and veggie dishes. Mains P100-
450. Daily 7.30am-10pm.
Pukka Bar In the middle of the beach. Next door to Spider
Pension House . This reggae café is the perfect place to
watch the sky turn pink over the astounding view; good
meat and fish dishes (P180-350), though portions are on
the small side. Daily 3pm-2am.
Sea Slugs At the southern end of the beachfront. Popular
place with candlelit tables spilling onto the beach and a
loyal crowd who come to see their favourite local band
play nightly. Seafood dishes are the speciality here; try
the chilli crab in coconut milk (P350). Free wi-fi. Daily
6am-midnight.
day) or bangka that they reveal dozens of
perfect little coves, hidden in the folds of
the mountains. Tribes, including the
Tagbanua, still live in the interior, where
a short, steep climb takes you to the
island's volcanic Kayangan Lake , a great
place to swim and one of the area's
favourite dive sites. You could spend a
lifetime on Coron and still not get to
see every hot spring, hidden lake or
pristine cove.
Busuanga Island (Coron Town)
Coron Town is home to Busuanga's most
backpacker-friendly resorts, and is the
place to arrange bangkas for island trips
(there's no beach in town). Apart from a
couple of more expensive resorts dotted
around the island, the rest of Busuanga
is very rural, with limited electricity
and, occasionally, patchy cell-phone
coverage. For breathtaking views of the
area climb the 722 steps up to Mount
Tapyas in time for sunset, before
heading to the 36°C Maquinit Hot
Springs (daily 8am-8pm; P150), which
were damaged by Typhoon Yolanda but
are now open again. A fun way to
explore the region is to rent a motorbike
or hop on a bus from the market to take
you west along the south Busuanga
coast to the villages of Concepcion,
Salvacion and Old Busuanga. he
presence of several sunken Japanese
World War II ships in the bays near
Coron Town has made it a point of
pilgrimage for wreck divers , and the rest
of the Calamians have plenty to occupy
island-hoppers and regular divers.
Plenty of places in town offer island-
hopping trips (P1500, depending on
what you want to do), although SeaDive
are the most reliable. hey also offer
scuba packages and more adventurous
itineraries, including overnight safaris.
DIRECTORY
Banks El Nido's one and only bank doesn't accept
international cards; make sure you bring plenty of cash.
Some of the smarter resorts accept credit cards, or there is
a Western Union near the church.
Internet There are plenty of internet places around
town, though the connection only works when there's
electricity (from 2pm); numerous cafés and resorts also
have free wi-fi.
Police Calle Hama (daily 24hr; T 0921 255 6368).
8
THE CALAMIAN ISLANDS
Access to the beautiful Calamian Islands,
the largest of which is Busuanga ,
followed in size by Culion (where there's
spectacular snorkelling) and Coron , is
through the increasingly popular little
fishing port of CORON TOWN , which,
confusingly, is on Busuanga, not Coron.
he Calamian group was badly affected
by Typhoon Yolanda, and though the
landscapes and diving remain largely
intact, many houses and buildings
(including resorts) were damaged and
electricity supply remains sketchy. All of
the accommodation options listed in this
book were at least partially open at the
time of writing, and it is certainly still
worth the long journey here to see the
spectacular limestone cliffs of Coron
Island , regardless of whether you also
plan to dive the famous wrecks. Coron
Island is twenty minutes by boat from
Coron Town, and it's only when you get
close to the cliffs in a kayak (P250 per
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
By plane The airport is 30min by van/jeepney (P150)
from Coron Town. All the airlines have o ces in town, and
there are also several travel agencies, including Calamian
Islands Travel and Tours on Rosario St.
Destinations
Cebu Pacific and PAL Express fly to Manila
(3 daily; 1hr). Cebu Pacific also has a flight to Cebu (daily;
1hr 40min).
 
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