What to see and do in San Vicente Palawan
If you are looking for a quiet place where relaxing and escape the noisy crowd of El Nido, San Vicente Palawan is the right place. Here, You can simply enjoy the beach in front of your accommodation only surrounded by nature, visit the other beautiful pristine beaches or catch a boat to explore the stunning islands of Port Barton Bay.
Note: Port Barton is a settlement of San Vicente municipality, not to confuse with San Vicente Poblacion. The 2 settlements are linked by boat (1 hr ride) or by Van (3 hrs ride). Port Barton is more known by tourists since cafes and restaurants pepper it.
- How to move around
The best way to enjoy the different parts of long beach and the other beaches along the coast is to rent a scooter (about 400 pesos x day) or a motorcycle with a driver (about 1000 pesos x half-day). You can ask your accommodation to rent.
- Tourist attractions in San Vicente Palawan
1. San Vicente Long Beach
It’s a 14 km long beach fringed by high palm trees with white sand and a denim blue clear sea. It has been dubbed the longest beach in the Philippines. Long Beach can be divided into 3 beaches shortly interrupted by rock formations: Long Beach 1, Long Beach 2 and 3. Long Beach 1 is the closest to San Vicente Poblacion (the town proper), long beach 2 is next to St Isidro barangay (10/15minutes by tricycle from the town proper, long beach 3 is next to Alimanguan barangay (30 minutes from the town proper). Our favourite part, and where we suggest staying, is Long Beach 3, a tranquil area with nice and cheap accommodations right on the beach.
2. Bato Ni Ningning viewpoint
It s a well-known viewpoint from where you can enjoy a stunning view of Erawan beach and a stunning scenic sunset. There is a small cottage to access the viewpoint where you have to pay a small fee of 20 pesos. It takes at least 45 minutes from San Vicente Town, only 15 minutes if you stay in Long Beach 3.
Note: we rented a motorcycle with a driver, and Bato Ni Ningning was our first stop. Then, step by step, we visited all the beaches until Long beach 1, where we had an exciting ride on the beach waiting for the sunset. We started our visit at 1.30 pm paying 1000 pesos.
3. San Vicente beaches hopping
Starting from the bottom of Bato Ni Ninging, there are other beautiful beaches like Erawan beach, Boong beach, Nagtulay beach.
4. Port Barton Bay islands hopping
It s a must-do indeed if you like enjoying pristine islands with crystal clear sea and white sand. There are also lovely spots where snorkelling while surrounded by thriving tropical fish and see the coral reef. You can arrange the boat tour through your accommodation or going to the San Vicente Pier, next to the public market building, where you’ll find the San Vicente Travel and Tour agency.
- Prices
There are different shared tours to choose from, and the price is about 1200 pesos, including entrance fees, lunch, snorkel gear, and a dry bag with a towel. There is also the chance to hire a private boat for the whole day, and it costs about 5000 pesos (up to 6 people + 600 pesos for excess person). If you are at least 2-3 people or a group of friends, it is indeed the best way to enjoy the bay. You can decide the spots to visit and the time to spend there without rushing.
5. Turtles hatching
The nesting period for turtles is around November to March. If you are lucky, you can see this incredible wonder of nature. We were amazed because we could admire the turtle hatching inside the beach restaurant of our accommodation! A turtle dug a hole to lay its eggs right there, and the days we were at Victoria Beach House, the hundreds of newborn turtles got their way to the sea. It was terrific!
6. Swim with the turtles
Port Barton Bay is also known to be an excellent place to spot turtles. There is a spot called “turtles point” where you can see these lovely marine creatures. We were lucky to spot a couple of turtles there and another one in the shallow in Maxima Island.
7. Inandeng River
It s a different way to spend an hour kayaking along the Inandeng river in complete relaxation surrounded by coconut trees. The river is next to Turbulien Resort.
8. Hiking trails to the waterfalls
If you like hiking, the hills around Port Barton are dotted by waterfalls where you can enjoy their refreshing cold water. The most visited are Bigaho Falls (3hrs to go) and Pamuayan Falls (1.5 hr to go). You can book the hiking tour from San Vicente at the San Vicente Travel and Tour. Some boat tours include the visit of one of these waterfalls since they are close to the beach.
