TRAVEL GUIDE: SAN VICENTE, PALAWAN
The underrated hidden paradise located in the north-western side of the main island of Palawan and 3 hours away from Puerto. It's San Vicente! I'm sure you have heard of this place. The next Boracay of PH. Just minus the bars, restaurants and the jam packed since most of the stores there closes early. It’s a “probinsya” kind of life most people yearn to feel to escape the busy city life for a while. If you are looking for complete serenity escapade, then San Vicente is your choice of destination. We have been told by the locals that artists bought pieces of islands and spends a quiet island life during summer.
San Vicente has its own airport which was opened last 2017 to boost tourism as well as an alternative route for those who wanted to go to El Nido but wanted to stop by at San Vicente first. This paradise is also the perfect place to visit as there are rarely typhoon around the area.
Actually, our first plan was at Balabac but then we were
terrified of possible bad weather and considering we have to sleep on a tent. The long
hours ride also wavered our adventurous heart. We have to spend 1 day just to
travel going to this place and that means, 2 days for a back and forth trip.
The bangka transfers from Rio Tuba to Balabac Island has only 1
schedule which is during mornings from 7 to 10 AM. This also depends on the
number of passengers though. They will leave early once the bangka is full. So
if you arrive late the next day, that means you have to wait for another day.
Why Balabac? Balabac is known for its Maldives kind of vibes
and for its clear water and white sand beaches. This place also is planned to
be included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site nomination in the future. The
biodiversity of this place is extremely high with several plant and animal
species. Home of Philippine mouse deer, a lot of marine creatures specially,
saltwater crocodiles (yikes!).
OK enough of the Balabac trip regrets and lets focus on San Vicente documentary. Don’t get me wrong, San Vicente is a beautiful underrated place. I just wanted to have that wild experience being in an island and living a life like a true Survivor cast in Balabac.
How we got to San Vicente
- Booked our flight at Cebu Pacific during the promo period. From Cebu to Puerto – PHP 1,531.28
- From Puerto Prinsesa, we rode a tricycle outside the airport going to San Jose terminal. Fare: PHP 150 good for 1 tricycle
- From San Jose Terminal we rode a van going to Poblacion terminal. Fare: 350 PHP
- From Poblacion terminal, we rode a tricycle going to the Long beach which our accommodation resides. Fare: 50 PHP each
Places we Visited
Our stay at San Vincete was short as we planned to go at El
Nido after. We also planned to go to Port Barton but we were told that Port
Barton and San Vicente’s island hopping are just the same. Port Barton was also
part of our island-hopping destination, so we decided to just stay at San
Vicente for 2 days.
Long Beach
The longest beach in the Philippines. Pure Bliss is how I describe this captivating place. Long beach was our first destination when we arrived at San Vicente.
Morning jog is the best but me and my friend went on a sunset jog. It was still pretty cool. The sun was actually not that visible but a partial of it was still enchanting. In the morning, we strolled at the beach while taking photographs. It was a refreshing feeling. Just beware of sand flies or know as "niknik". There are lots of them at the Long beach. The bites are painful, very itchy, causes red bumps. I actually didn't experience itchiness after the bite but when we got home to Cebu after 7 days, the red bumps are showing and the bites are literally very itchy. I treated it with chamomile lotion and avoid scratching it as much as possible.
But nikniks can't stop us wandering the place. It was a complete serenity. The place we were staying was a beach front and the day I woke up and at night when I called it a day, I stared at the beach and reflected how life could be amazing when we live simply. Dazzled of the big waves and amazed how it made my soul so calm when I breathed the salty air.
Bato ni Ningning
The famous spot because of the overlooking, breathtaking
view. The sunset was the highlight of the beautiful view. But I also think the vibes and the mountains. But I think not, it's the total package of the view, the place and everything in between 💙. There is this rock
that you could climb (there’s a ladder but let’s keep it a secret 😉) so you
can strike a pose to post.
Motor ride –
PHP 500 back and forth
Duration
of ride: 1 hour from long beach to Bato ni Ningning
 |
| BTS 😅 |
After the tour, we went to their proper and ate dinner. Sadly, 2 non meat eaters, me and a friend just stared and waited for the 4 bunch of carnivores. Feasting their dinner while slurping a gigantic bowl of lomi. I don't know but their lomi was the star. They bought the medium size for only 130 and didn't finished it since I think it can be shared by 10 people.
 |
| Look at this cute doggo. He makes that face while asking to feed him |
The island hopping in San Vicente was just like the island
hopping in El Nido/Coron. There’s a lunch buffet! The food was a feast
with unlimited refill not like the ones we had in El Nido that you have to eat fast so the food won’t disappear. There were lots of islands we visited unfortunately, we were not able to visit the turtle sanctuary because our
bangka accidentally hit a man in his head while swimming and got mad. I don’t
know why he swam so far from the island and the waves that time was strong. We were just shocked when we saw a head floating and it was too late to stop the
bangka. The captain just decided to proceed to the next destination. We weren't able to visit the Bigao falls also since locals told us the place was in drought.
Inaladelan
 |
| The Cast |
Lunch Time
 |
| Fruits / Eggplant / cucumber salad / chopsuey! 💚 |
Exotic Maxima Islands
Sandbar
Port Barton Proper
After the island hopping, we bought eggs, pancit canton and 1kg of rice at their market for our dinner that night. I remembered I constantly asked them how much was their coconut since lots of coco trees filled the place. We were surprised they served us some freshly picked coconuts. I think they gave 5 to 6 of it. It was a dinner to remember and that feels where we were treated so nice from the start to our last day even though I had a very bad day due to unlucky circumstances. My phone broke while it fell after climbing the rock at Bato ni Ningning. The goggles we rented for island hopping lost some parts and we had to pay 1,500 PHP for it but, I brought it home as a souvenir. My heart broke when "ate" told me not to be sad or to feel down after all the bad things happened me. I was still thankful though that everyone of us are safe. And everyone we met there are very hospitable.
Accommodation
We didn't make any reservations during our trip. We just pushed our luck. As a saying goes, trips that are not well planned are likely pushed while those that are well planned rarely happens. When we arrived at San Vincente terminal, we asked the locals if there are cheap accommodations near the long beach. Voila! they recommended this place which is just in front of the long beach. 2 of our friends first looked at the place since they rented a motor. They told us to choose the non aircon instead and we really made a right choice (thanks to their suggestions). At night, we squeezed ourselves in the bed but we don't really mind and just slept. The cold breeze and the sea salt filled wind made that night magical.
Price: 1,000 PHP + 200 extra bed good for 6pax
 |
| This was the 1st choice but I'm glad we chose the simple one. |
 |
| Breakfast by the beach is the best |
Sample Itinerary
Day 1:
4:00 AM - Home going to Airport
6:00 AM - Boarding time
8:00 AM - Arrived at Punta Prinsesa International Airport
8:30 AM: Walked a few distance from the airport to hail for a tricycle going to San Jose terminal
9:00 AM: Arrived at San Jose terminal. Ate our breakfast at a nearby eatery while waiting for the van to pick up more passengers.
10:00 AM: Rode the van going to Poblacion terminal
12:00 PM - Alight at Poblacion terminal. Ate our lunch at a nearby cafeteria
1:00 PM: Rode a tricycle going to the long beach where our accommodation resides
1:30 PM: Arrived at the long beach. Play cards while inhaling the salty air
3:00 PM: Getting ready going to Bato ni Ningning
4:00 PM: Arrived at Bato ni Ningning
6:00 PM: Travel going to the nearby market
7:00 PM: Dinner at their market
8:00 PM: Getting ready to bed
9:00 PM: Lights off
Day 2:
6:00 AM: Wake up time. Stroll at the beach
7:00 AM: Breakfast time. Getting ready
8:30 AM: Picked up going to the island hopping site
9:00 AM to 3:00 PM - Island Hopping
4:00 PM - Went to the market to buy some pancit canton, soft drinks, water, rice
5:00 PM: Enjoying the beach. sunset jog
6:00 PM: Dinner is ready. Eat
8:00 PM: Took a bath. prep for sleep
9:00 PM: Lights off
Day 3:
6:00 AM: Morning stroll at the beach
7:00 AM: Breakfast
8:00 AM: Prepare our bags to leave
9:00 AM: Took the van going to El Nido
11:00 AM: Arrived at El Nido. Still deciding where to go
11:30 AM: Hailed a tricycle and lucky enough, he recommended a place to stay
12:00 PM: Arrived at the hostel
12:30 PM: Ate our lunch at a nearby eatery. Paul G's Vegan and Vegetarian
1:00 PM: Strolled the streets of El Nido
2:00 PM: Decided to rent a tricycle going to Nacpan and Lio beach
3:00 PM: Nacpan beach
4:00 PM: Lio beach
5:00 PM: Arrived at the hostel
6:00 PM: Chill at the hostel while the owner made a scene
8:00 PM: Strolled the lively night of El Nido
10:00 PM: Lights off
Day 4:
8:00 AM - Breakfast time
9:00 AM- Waiting for our bangka for Island Hopping
10:00 AM to 4:00 PM - Island Hopping
5:00 PM - Took a bath
6:00 PM: Stroll. Dinner time
9:00 PM: Lights off
Day 5:
9:00 AM - Breakfast at B Belle's Vegetarian Cuisine
10:00 AM - Packed our things
11:00 AM - Checkout
12:00 PM - Lunch time
1:00 PM: Waited for the free shuttle bus going to Lio beach
2:00 PM to 6:00 PM - Chill at Lio beach
7:00 PM: Went to the terminal to take the van
9:00 PM to 11:00 PM: Van ride going to Punta Prinsesa International Airport
12:00 PM to 5:00 AM: Slept at the nearby Korean restaurant of the airport
Day 6:
6:00 AM: Fly back to Cebu
Sample Budget and Expenses
---
For Palawan videos, please click this link
Like and Subscribe my Youtube channel 😸