Best Beaches In El Nido Palawan: Mainland and Island Hopping Guide
Uncover best beaches in El Nido on your trip. Palawan is an island in the Visayas region of the Philippines, known for having some of the best white sand beaches in the world. From local surf spots to long, stretching beaches with calm tropical water, there is something for everyone. Palawan’s most popular stop is the town of El Nido, as from here you can join a boat tour for a day trip to some amazing beaches plus you can explore on scooter or by taxi the other beaches the island has to offer.
Throughout this blog we will share El Nido's best beaches mainland and the best from our island hopping tour. Pack your snorkel and swim wear as you’re about to visit some of the most picturesque beaches in the world!
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Duli Beach: Best Local El Nido Beach
Not the most famous beach, but that also means Duli Beach is quieter than others found in the area, making it one of El Nido's best beaches. This beach is a local hang out spot and in the right season a surf beach, grab a board and have a lesson because where else can you learn with such a stunning backdrop! The access road to Duli Beach isn’t well kept and you need to take care if you’re on a scooter or join a tour here! This was one of our favourite El Nido Beaches due to the adventure getting there and the quiet, local vibe. Location 📌
Nacpan Beach & Calitang Twin Beaches: Most Famous Beach In El Nido
The most famous beach near El Nido and voted one of the best beaches in the Philippines. Nacpan beach is a long strip of powdery sand with gentle lapping waves making it perfect for sun-bathing, swimming and relaxing, you can even go on a day tour here or include in a jeepney tour. If you’re looking for some more adventure head down to the Mad Monkey hostel where they offer water sports including Parasailing.
Nacpan beach joins Calitang beach where you can get a hike to view the beautiful landscape.
Nacpan Beach is the best beach in El Nido (book your transfer here) and is also a famous sunset spot, grab a cocktail and watch the sun go down or if you want a bit of luxury stay in one of the yurts right on the beach. Location 📌
El Nido Beach: Best Beach For Bars & Food
El Nido Beach is a bay that sits in front of El Nido Town. The famous day trip boat tours leave from here meaning in the morning and evenings the bay is full of local boats creating a picturesque spot. Although this bay is not the best for swimming there are a few beachfront bars and restaurants which are nice in the evening, and we even shared a pizza on the sand here while watching the sunset… a romantic spot with the limestone cliffs emerging out the water and we ate as the sky turned an pinky purple. Location 📌
Seven Commandos Beach: Best Island Hopping Beach
Picture perfect paradise is the phrase that comes to mind when I think about Seven Commandos Beach. A stop on Boat tour A or accessible by kayak this beach with a rich history has a party atmosphere. A beach bar and volleyball net make this a social setting perfect for any solo traveller. We spent our time here sitting in the shallows soaking up the sunshine, a perfect place for relaxing. This was our favourite island hopping destination and one of the most beautiful El Nido Beaches Location 📌
Las Cabanas aka Maramegeg and Vanilla Beach Shopping Area
Las Cabanas is the most famous sunset spot on the island and where travellers gather in the evening. There are many sea front bars and restaurants for you to enjoy plus a large beach with a swimming area and water sports. On top of this, Las Cabanas beach is where you’ll find the famous zipline between two islands, making it one of the best beaches in El Nido for adventure activites.
Las Cabanas is locally known as Maramegmeg beach, but they are in fact the same place.
Vanilla beach is the new shopping centre located in front of Las Cabanas. Vanilla Beach Shopping centre has a gym, barbers, souvenirs, clothes, food and even a McDonalds. In fact you can park near the McDonalds when visiting the beach. Location 📌
Corong Corong
Not a beach for swimming but if you’re looking for somewhere to garb a drink with a view Corong Corong is perfect. You can also hire kayaks from here to paddle over to Seven Commandos Beach. Location 📌
Lio Beach
At Lio Beach you’ll find calm sea, white sand and lots of little restaurants and bars for you to enjoy lunch or dinner. Only a 25 minute drive from El Nido, Lio beach is closer and easier to access than Nacpan or Duli beach making it a perfect beach to visit for a shorter amount of time or join a Jeepney Tour to explore with new friends. Location 📌
How To Get To El Nido?
El Nido has a small airport that you can fly in to however by far the most popular way to get to El Nido is a flight to Puerto Princesa Airport then a 6 hour shared van.
The shared van to El Nido takes 6 hours and costs ₽600 each, you can pre-book a van here or book on your day of travel.
Best Places To Eat In El Nido
To discover the best places to eat in El Nido download our Philippines Pinned Map, that gives you access to over 300 locations around the Philippines that we recommend or have been recommended!
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Best Places To Stay In El Nido
El Nido has lots of areas for you to stay in. You could stay in the centre of the town, everything like tours, bars and restaurants will be a walk away as your based in the hub. The town is quiet in the day but comes alive at night. If you don't want to stay in the town or are on a budget look at other areas such as Corong Corong.
We use Booking.com, Agoda and HostelWorld for all of our stays in The Philippines!
Below is a list of top accommodations we recommend for El Nido, Palawan:
Best El Nido Tours
Top Tips For Travelling To El Nido
Below we share our favourite tips for travelling El Nido:
Plan your transport: Getting to El Nido takes around 6 hours from Puerto Princesa, book your transport in advance here!
Be prepared for the boat tours to be busy. Boat Tour A is the most popular and therefore the busiest so perhaps try Boat Tour C or D.
Eat Local, we found it challenging to find authentic local food in El Nido, but the Western food options were mediocre.
Rent a scooter to explore the natural attractions and best beaches in El Nido. There are so many beautiful beaches in El Nido and waterfalls to explore nearby, just make sure you wear a helmet as it's compulsory in El Nido Town.
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Thank you for reading and enjoy your Philippine adventure. Reach out to us over on Instagram @KateandMikesTravels. We always love to hear from people who read our blogs!
For our Filipino friends: Maraming salamat sa pag babasa, hangang sa susunod nating pag kikita, mamimiss namin kayo, mabuhay ang pilipinas! Salamat
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