El Nido Island Hopping Tours
El Nido is a tourist hot spot in the Philippines. Located at the northern end of the island Palawan, it is known for its four island hopping tours.
Most people who come to Palawan are here for either the Puerto Princesa Underground River, or they’re here for El Nido and its island hopping tours.
These four tours are aptly named: A, B, C and D.
This post is an El Nido island hopping tours comparison, so that you can decide which of the four tours will be best for you when you get to El Nido.
Before I left I read a lot about them online by a bunch of people who hadn’t done all of the tours, but said things like “I’ve heard blah blah blah about island hopping tour D”, with no actual experience.
Which isn’t good enough in my books.
Having actually done all four of the island hopping tours I thought it would be a good chance to share my experiences.
When doing an El Nido island hopping tours comparison like this I think it’s important to start with facts and give my opinion later on.
So I won’t be answering what’s the best El Nido island hopping tour, because that changes depending on each person. Some people want beaches, others want lagoons, some might want caves.
But I will be listing my favourite spots at the end of the El Nido island hopping tours comparison post for those wanting to do a private tour of all the best places (if they agree with my reasoning).
We’ll start the El Nido island hopping tours comparison with the facts, where does the tour go, how much does it cost and showing my own pictures of each place we visited.
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El Nido Island Hopping Tours Comparison Video
Images are great, but sometimes a moving visual can be extra helpful to get an understanding of the environments that you’ll be moving through in the El Nido island hopping tours. See this video for some footage.
COMING SOON…
El Nido Island Hopping Tours Comparison
Each of the four El Nido island hopping tours has a few things in common.
They all involve 5 stops, each one will have a supplied lunch and they all run from approximately 09:00 until 16:00, but all can differ on those times by half an hour in any direction.
For the El Nido island hopping tours comparison, I mapped out the 5 locations of each of the different tours, this way you can see why the 5 stops are grouped the way they are.
It is all done based on location, minimising the time spent in the boat by grouping attractions that are close together in the one tour.
To make the comparison as fair as possible I booked all 4 tours with the same company to minimise the amount of variables, I also had breaks in between the tours to try and minimise island hopping fatigue.
El Nido Island Hopping Tour Map
Flick through the 4 images to compare the El Nido island hopping tours destinations as seen on the map below.
Island Hopping Tour A
Let’s do this El Nido island hopping tours comparison in alphabetical order, starting with tour A.
Tour A, along with Tour C, is one of the two most popular tours on offer in El Nido.
But I won’t be giving opinions here, I’d like people to have a look at everything in the post before I give my opinions on it all after the factual side of the comparison is complete.
Cost
El Nido Island hopping tour A costs:
₱1200 – The cost of the tour itself.
₱200 – Environmental fee for visiting Bacuit Bay – valid for 10 days.
₱200 – Fee for visiting Big Lagoon.
₱300 – Kayak rental at the lagoon – optional.
₱100 – Snorkel rental for the day – optional.
₱100 – Water shoes rental for the day – optional.
The total cost here is likely to be ₱2000, that’s everything except the water shoes which you don’t need in my opinion. I just had some Crocs that I wore when needed.
You will want to rent a kayak so although I have it listed as optional, you’ll want it. Same for the snorkelling mask, unless you’re travelling with one.
The environmental fee is only relevant if this is your first island hopping tour, or if it has been more than 10 days since your last island hopping tour.
I recommend anyone doing all 4 island hopping tours does them all within 10 days in order to just pay this fee once.
Island Hopping Tour A Destinations
Next, the 5 destinations on El Nido island hopping tour A, in the order that we did them on the day and with a picture from each location.
I won’t go into much detail about each stop in this section of the El Nido island hopping tours comparison, I’ll stick to brief rundowns of what you can do and expand on my favourites later.
The general theme for tour A is – a bit of everything.
Big Lagoon
Big lagoon is the first stop on El Nido island hopping Tour A and it is one of the highlights of all the island hopping tours.
You will want to rent a kayak here and explore. You will be given about 45-60 minutes to explore at your hearts content.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Secret Lagoon
Secret Lagoon is a lagoon that is protected from the outside ocean. The entry and exit point is a small gap in the rocks that only one person can fit through at a time.
The water inside is shallow enough to stand.
You also can explore Jiji’s Beach from here which is a short walk away.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Shimizu Island
One hour lunch stop on Shimizu Island.
When it is busy, or if your boat is one of the last ones to arrive then the boat will pull up around the other side of the island and lunch will be served on the boat.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Inatula Island
25-30 minutes of snorkelling at Inatula island.
The snorkelling sites can change depending on conditions.
Shot with the GoPro Hero 10 (Amazon/eBay link).
Seven Commando’s Beach
The final stop is 7 Commando’s Beach.
This is a large beach attached to the mainland but only accessible by boat. There are bars to buy drinks, volleyball nets, sun loungers and a lot of room to lie down.
This is a one hour stop to relax, swim or chat with others from the group.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Island Hopping Tour B
Next up for this El Nido island hopping tours comparison is tour B.
Tour B is less popular than Tour A, but gives a different look at some of the attractions further south in Bacuit Bay.
Cost
El Nido Island hopping tour B costs:
₱1300 – The cost of the tour itself.
₱200 – Environmental fee for visiting Bacuit Bay – valid for 10 days.
₱100 – Snorkel rental for the day – optional.
₱100 – Water shoes rental for the day – optional.
The total cost here is likely to be ₱1600.
That is assuming that you rent a snorkel and only if this is your first and/or only tour.
The environmental fee is only relevant if this is your first island hopping tour, or if it has been more than 10 days since your last island hopping tour.
I recommend anyone doing all 4 island hopping tours does them all within 10 days in order to just pay this fee once.
Island Hopping Tour B Destinations
Next, the 5 destinations on El Nido island hopping tour B, in the order that we did them on the day and with a picture from each location.
I won’t go into much detail about each stop in this section of the El Nido island hopping tours comparison, I’ll stick to brief rundowns of what you can do and expand on my favourites later.
The general theme for tour B is – caves and coves.
Entalula Beach
A stop for exploring, swimming and snorkelling.
This beach has fascinating rock formations to look at overhanging the pristine water and reef.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Snake Island
Snake Island is an island that is connected to the mainland via sandbar.
At low tide this will be about knee deep and you can walk out into the middle of the ocean. During high tide this will be about chest height, but it is still walkable.
This was our lunch stop on tour B.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Cudugnon Snorkelling
The area around Cudugnon cave is not an island but is a remote part of the mainland.
The boat will stop somewhere along here for snorkelling, the exact location may change depending on conditions.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Cudugnon Cave
Step into Cudugnon cave which is located right on Cudugnon beach.
Your tour guide will be able to talk you through the history of the area. Cudugnon cave has been the site for archeological discoveries and has also been used as refuge in times of war.
Shot on the Sony A1 (Amazon/eBay link) using the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 (Amazon/eBay link).
Cathedral Cave
This cave is named because of its high ceiling, however as of 2024 you are no longer allowed to swim inside.
The reason for this is that there are sea snakes and other animals who call this cave home, so to minimise disturbances tourists can no longer swim inside.
Your boat will pull up to the front and give everyone a chance to get a photo.
Just doing sick lie downs.
Island Hopping Tour C
Next up in the El Nido island hopping tours comparison is tour C.
Tour C, along with Tour A, is one of the two most popular tours on offer in El Nido.
Cost
El Nido Island hopping tour C costs:
₱1400 – The cost of the tour itself.
₱200 – Environmental fee for visiting Bacuit Bay – valid for 10 days.
₱200 – Fee for visiting Matinloc Shrine – optional.
₱100 – Snorkel rental for the day – optional.
₱100 – Water shoes rental for the day – optional.
The total cost here is likely to be ₱1900, that’s everything except the water shoes which you don’t need in my opinion. I just had some Crocs that I wore when needed.
The fee for Matinloc Shrine is only if you want to get off the boat and walk around. I will discuss more on Matinloc shrine later on in the El Nido island hopping comparison post.
The environmental fee is only relevant if this is your first island hopping tour, or if it has been more than 10 days since your last island hopping tour.
I recommend anyone doing all 4 island hopping tours does them all within 10 days in order to just pay this fee once.
Island Hopping Tour C Destinations
Next, the 5 destinations on El Nido island hopping tour C, in the order that we did them on the day and with a picture from each location.
I won’t go into much detail about each stop in this section of the El Nido island hopping tours comparison, I’ll stick to brief rundowns of what you can do and expand on my favourites later.
The general theme around Tour C is – hidden beaches.
Helicopter Island
See below, the name of the island comes from its shape slightly resembling that of a helicopter.
This is a beach stop with snorkelling for about 30 minutes.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Hidden Beach
Hidden beach is a beach that is protected from the ocean with a unique design of limestone cliffs creating an amazing looking beach with turquoise waters.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Talisay Beach
Stop for lunch here, either onboard the boat or on the sand if your boat is early enough. There is snorkelling to be done around the beach as well.
This beach is in between Tapiutan island and Matinloc island which is the most stunning bit of scenery on all of the four island tours.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Secret Beach
See below for the entry to Secret Beach.
Secret beach has a similar entry to Secret Lagoon, but it is deeper water and wider, easier for multiple people to enter or exit at the same time.
Once inside secret beach it is a lot different to Secret Lagoon. It is bigger, more beautiful and with more things to do.
There is also another secret spot within Secret Beach that only some people can fit inside!
Shot with the GoPro Hero 10 (Amazon/eBay link).
Matinloc Shrine
The final stop on Tour C is Matinloc Shrine.
There is a small shrine here and an old neglected building. Higher up is a lookout point that can be accessed with a small climb.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Island Hopping Tour D
To end the El Nido island hopping tours comparison is tour D
Tour D is currently the least popular of all four of the island hopping tours, but I feel like that might change over time.
As boats are no longer allowed to visit both of Small and Big lagoons in the same day, Small Lagoon is done on Tour D.
Cost
El Nido Island hopping tour D costs:
₱1200 – The cost of the tour itself.
₱200 – Environmental fee for visiting Bacuit Bay – valid for 10 days.
₱200 – Fee for visiting Small Lagoon.
₱600 – Kayak rental at the lagoons – optional.
₱100 – Snorkel rental for the day – optional.
₱100 – Water shoes rental for the day – optional.
The total cost here is likely to be ₱2300, that’s everything except the water shoes which you don’t need in my opinion. I just had some Crocs that I wore when needed.
You will want to rent a kayak at both of the lagoons so although I have it listed as optional, you’ll want it. Same for the snorkelling mask, unless you’re travelling with one.
The environmental fee is only relevant if this is your first island hopping tour, or if it has been more than 10 days since your last island hopping tour.
I recommend anyone doing all 4 island hopping tours does them all within 10 days in order to just pay this fee once.
Island Hopping Tour D Destinations
Next, the 5 destinations on El Nido island hopping tour D, in the order that we did them on the day and with a picture from each location.
Tour D is concentrated on Cadlao Island, which is the large island you can see to the north of El Nido from the town centre.
The general theme with tour D is – lagoons and empty beaches.
Paradise Beach
There are two Paradise Beaches, right next to each other. Your captain will choose whichever is less crowded for you to go swimming and snorkelling.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Pasandigan Cove
Snorkelling stop along the reef system at Pasandigan Cove.
Snorkelling stops normally are 25-30 minutes in length and can sometimes change depending on conditions.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Serenity Beach
A one hour lunch stop at Serenity Beach breaks up the day.
There is an old abandoned looking beach hut at one end of the beach, some limestone rock formations to check out as well as the usual reef systems off the beach for snorkelling.
Shot on the Sony A1 (Amazon/eBay link) using the Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 (Amazon/eBay link).
Cadlao Lagoon
Cadlao Lagoon is an incredible stop as it combines a lagoon and a beach.
Rent a kayak for the usual fee and go exploring, pull up on the sand if you want a break or to go for a swim.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Small Lagoon
Small Lagoon is right next door to Big Lagoon that you do on Tour A.
Much the same but smaller, you enter on a kayak through a small gap in the rocks, the whole area is cut off from the outside world and it looks absolutely stunning.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Which El Nido Island Hopping Tour is the Best?
You’ve seen the El Nido island hopping tours comparison laid out there, which is the best depends on what you want to get out of it.
In the next section I will add my own personal thoughts about the four El Nido island hopping tours. Things I liked, things I didn’t and other things to consider when doing all of the tours.
Comparing the El Nido Island Hopping Tours
So that’s it, there’s the factual side of the El Nido island hopping tours comparison. Hopefully by looking at that you can start to make your own opinions about which is the best island hopping tour.
I will give my thoughts here though as well as add some extra notes, but I don’t want to discourage anyone from trying all four of the island hopping tours like I did.
Your experiences could vary greatly from mine.
What were my favourite stops?
I am going to list my favourite locations here amongst all of the different tours. Theoretically if I was to make my own perfect private tour these are the stops we would make on the way.
It is worth noting though that you’re not allowed to visit Big and Small Lagoons on the same day (I have heard this may also apply to Secret Beach but haven’t been able to confirm), so this theoretical private tour is not actually possible.
Big and Small Lagoons are right next to each other.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
Big Lagoon
Despite the overcrowding and bottle-necking of the entrance by moronic tourists, Big Lagoon was still one of my top 5 stops.
If you get your Kayak and paddle further down towards the end of the lagoon you will be rewarded with stunning limestone formations as well as a section at the end that is cut off from the rest of the lagoon.
Like a private little enclave where nobody else goes.
Small Lagoon
Entering through the small hole in the rocks makes this place seem like a secret, even though everyone knows about it.
The landscape is equally as stunning as Big Lagoon next door, but without the overcrowding it is equally as enjoyable.
Secret Beach
Swimming through the small entry point only for this large open area to reveal itself was pretty cool.
What then made it better was to see the little angel fish swimming around in the shallows. The beach has different nooks and crannies formed in the limestone so you can explore and find something new.
Best of all was a small 1m² dome section that requuired going mostly underwater, squeezing your shoulders through a gap in the rocks and then standing up on the other side, completely alone and in peace.
This was the highlight for me, a secret within a secret.
Cadlao Lagoon
Might not be as visually stunning as the other two lagoons, but the fact that it has a beach for you to get off and rest in the shade wins it some bonus points.
It is amazing in its own right.
Best of the rest
I’ll be honest, after a while this all becomes a bit of a blur. It is hard for certain places to stand out but here are a few things on the tours that are slightly better than the other areas or beaches.
Hidden Beach
A lot of beaches look the same at the end, but this beach has a unique entry that helps it stand out.
Tapiutan & Matinloc Islands
This isn’t a specific destination, but is the area that houses Talisay Beach, Secret Beach and Matinloc Shrine.
This particular stretch in between the two islands is the most scenic landscapes that you will get on all of the different tours and is done on Tour C.
Cudugnon Cave
Having been in different and larger caves in Southeast Asia and even on Palawan, the cave itself wasn’t a massive highlight. But to have access to it as well as a nice beach with overhanging limestone rock makes the stop as a whole stand out from the average.
What were my least favourite stops?
Keep in mind that being my least favourite doesn’t mean they’re crap, but they’re just average and I wouldn’t have cared if I had missed them.
It’s only fair to list them to balance the El Nido island hopping tours comparison out after the big praise dished out to some stops.
Secret Lagoon
The entrance here is so small that you have to line up for people who are already in there to exit, I was waiting for 5 minutes while about 25-30 people were exiting.
This becomes annoying when they’re elderly or uncoordinated and can’t get themselves in or out, requiring assistance and slowing everything down.
After this, you finally get in and it’s just kind of …. meh ..
The water isn’t that clean look that you’re used to, there’s nowhere to sit or lie down, there are no extra nooks or crannies to explore. So you join the line to get out (where everyone already is who has spent 30 seconds inside).
It really lacks anything to make it exciting, although it might look cool from a drone.
Cathedral Cave
We were lucky that when our boat arrived there was only 1 boat at the cave and they were leaving.
Only one boat can fit at the entrance at a time, so our boat went to the entrance. Then everyone sits at the front of the boat for photos, but that’s it.
As we were all getting our photos another 3 boats rocked up to join the queue. I would have hated to have been on that 3rd boat, waiting for another 2 boats to take photos while you sit there doing nothing.
It looks cool but overall is a waste of time.
Things to consider on the El Nido island hopping tours
The island hopping tours are fantastic but let’s put it all into perspective for a second.
Things outside of your control
Any tour that you do can be made better by the people that are on the boat. Unfortunately you can’t control this unless you’re with a large group of people.
Also, your enjoyment of a place can be different depending on what happens there. As an example, when I was at Helicopter island snorkelling I saw an octopus, it was incredible.
But when I think back to Helicopter island as a whole, it was one of the least interesting stops if it wasn’t for that one encounter.
Get it cheaper
You may be able to get slight discounts by booking multiple tours with the one tour agency.
Another way to save money is to do more than one tour within 10 days and not have to pay the ₱200 environmental fee each time. This can save you ₱600 if you’re doing all four tours.
Tours can be flexible – My Matinloc Shrine experience
I never went to Matinloc Shrine. The pictures that I took were done with the drone, I flew it there from Talisay beach.
Why?
Well the boat had a vote. Nobody wanted to pay the ₱200 fee to walk around the shrine, the tour leader said we could go to Cadlao Lagoon instead on the way back if we wanted and the boat chose to do that instead.
Matinloc Shrine is private land so the tours can’t set the fee for it. This fee used to be ₱50, then it was ₱100 and now it is ₱200. It gets some pretty ordinary reviews and our boat wasn’t interested.
I don’t suggest people argue with tour leaders to try create their own tour as others on the boat may have booked the tour for any reason and shouldn’t be out-voted on such things.
However I just wanted to note this here that sometimes things are fluid. I personally would have gone to Matinloc only to document it here, but I really wasn’t that interested in it either and was happy enough to just take drone shots.
Shot with the DJI Mini 4 Pro Plus (Amazon link).
What was my favourite El Nido island hopping tour?
My favourite El Nido island hopping tour was tour D.
My equal favourite was our altered version of Tour C (because it had Secret beach, Hidden Beach and Cadlao Lagoon), but if we had have gone to Matinloc Shrine as we were supposed to do, then Tour D wins.
Funny how the least popular tour was my favourite, but I have my reasons.
Firstly, this tour has two lagoons, Cadlao and Small Lagoon. These stood out as highlights to me as I did my El Nido island hopping tours comparison. To have two on one trip is great.
Secondly, as the majority of the beaches kind of struggle to stand out from each other, the fact that tour D is less popular made the beaches better as we were sometimes the only boat, or sharing with only one other boat.
What was my least favourite tour?
My least favourite El Nido island hopping tour was Tour B.
That doesn’t mean that Tour B is no good.
I think Cathedral Cave lets it down and this tour doesn’t have any of the big ticket items (Small Lagoon, Big Lagoon or Secret Beach) so it can’t make up for the disappointment of Cathedral Cave.
This also comes down to my experience, I was on a boat with only 7 people. 3 couples and myself.
It just felt a little bit different and not as fun as the other tours, but having a different boat of people could have changed all of that.
Conclusion to the El Nido Island Hopping Tours Comparison
That’s it for the El Nido island hopping tours comparison.
Which one do you think looks like the best tour?
One thing I’d say is that if you do plan to try all four island hopping tours, do them within 10 days but don’t do them for four days in a row. Have a break.
There are other things to do in El Nido (like climbing Taraw Cliff) and by mixing it up you will enjoy the island hopping tours more than you will just smashing them all out in quick succession!
