El Nido’s Private Islands: The Classic Honeymoon

The four El Nido Resorts properties in Bacuit Bay are the backbone of any Palawan honeymoon shortlist. Pangulasian Island is the most luxurious, with beachfront and canopy villas, a long white beach facing the sunset, and a spa on stilts over the water; it is the one most honeymooners choose. Lagen Island sits in a forested cove with overwater cottages that are the most photogenic in the group, and Miniloc Island is the original resort, more rustic but with the best house-reef snorkeling. Apulit Island, further north in Taytay Bay, has overwater villas and a quieter, more remote feel.

All four include full board, boat transfers from Lio, and non-motorised water sports. Honeymoon packages typically add a private candlelit dinner on the beach, a couples’ spa treatment and room decoration. Expect 700 to 1,200 US dollars per night for Pangulasian and 450 to 800 for Lagen and Miniloc in high season. The El Nido Resorts website publishes current packages and the seasonal calendar.

The Far North: Amanpulo and Banwa Private Island

For couples with an open budget, two properties in the Palawan province sit at the very top of the Philippine market. Amanpulo, on Pamalican Island in the Cuyo group, is reached by Aman’s own flight from Manila and offers beach and treetop casitas, a seven-kilometre white beach, and a house reef with resident turtles. Rates start around 1,500 US dollars per night. Amanpulo’s official site details the flight schedule, which is included in most honeymoon packages.

Banwa Private Island, near Roxas on the north-east coast, is a six-villa island that is often booked in its entirety, with rates that run into the tens of thousands of dollars per night for exclusive use but with individual villa bookings available. Both resorts define the ceiling of what Palawan can offer and are most often chosen for a three- or four-night finale after El Nido.

Coron: Lagoons, Wrecks and Quieter Resorts

Coron, on Busuanga Island north of El Nido, is the second honeymoon hub. Its appeal is Coron Island’s Kayangan and Barracuda lakes, the Twin Lagoon, and the Japanese shipwrecks that make it one of Asia’s best wreck-diving destinations. Two Seasons Coron Island Resort, on its own island 40 minutes from town, is the most established honeymoon choice with beachfront bungalows and a house reef. Club Paradise Palawan on Dimakya Island offers a similar private-island format with a turtle nesting beach.

Coron works best as a second stop rather than the only one: the town is functional rather than romantic, and resort options are fewer. The fast ferry to El Nido takes about four hours, or there are short flights via Busuanga airport. See our Coron luxury resorts guide for a full list.

Mainland El Nido: Boutique Resorts and Private Pools

Not every honeymoon needs a private island. The mainland beaches around El Nido town, Corong-Corong, Lio and Nacpan now have boutique resorts with private-pool villas that cost a third of the island resorts and give you freedom to explore. Cauayan Island Resort, a short boat ride from town, blends the two with pool villas on a small private island. On the mainland, resorts along Lio Beach and Nacpan offer villa-style rooms, beach clubs and easy access to the island-hopping tours that visit the same lagoons the island resorts use.

This route suits couples who want to dine in town, take the standard Tour A and Tour C boat trips, and keep the budget for a splurge night elsewhere. Our Palawan beyond El Nido guide covers the quieter stretches of coast north of Nacpan and around Port Barton for couples who want even fewer people.

Palawan Honeymoon Resorts Compared

The table below compares the main options on the factors that matter most for a honeymoon: setting, transfer, what is included and typical high-season rates. Prices are indicative and change with the season and exchange rates.

Transfers and Timing: Getting the Logistics Right

Palawan is not a hop from the airport. Most El Nido honeymoons begin with a flight from Manila to Lio Airport on AirSWIFT, a 75-minute hop on a small turboprop with a strict baggage allowance of 10 kilograms in checked luggage, so pack accordingly. The alternative is a Philippine Airlines or Cebu Pacific flight to Puerto Princesa followed by a five-to-six-hour road transfer, which is cheaper but eats most of a day. The Philippine Department of Tourism site lists licensed transfer operators.

Time your trip for the dry season, December to May, with February to April the most reliable. Typhoon season from July to October can close boat tours for days; if you must travel then, choose a private-island resort with a house reef so that a cancelled tour still leaves you with snorkeling from the beach. Build in a buffer night in Manila before the international flight home, because small-plane departures from Lio are weather-dependent.

Romance Extras Worth Booking

The best Palawan resorts have refined the honeymoon toolkit. At Pangulasian, book the sunset cruise on the resort’s own boat and a private dinner on the sandbar; at Lagen, request a kayak-at-dawn excursion into the cove before other guests are up. Amanpulo will set up a picnic on a deserted beach at the far end of the island. On the mainland, a private boat with a chef for a day around Bacuit Bay costs less than a single night on the islands and is often the most memorable day of the trip.

• Ask for a beachfront rather than garden villa; the price gap is small relative to the difference in experience.
• Request the honeymoon package at booking, not on arrival, so the resort can plan the private dinner.
• Bring reef-safe sunscreen and water shoes for the limestone lagoons.
• Consider a night at a Manila hotel such as those in Makati on arrival, which turns a tiring first day into a gentle one.

Frequently Asked Questions